‘I just kinda got up and went to college’: ‘Blue’s Clues’ Steve Burns explains sudden 2002 departure

It’s been nearly 20 years since Steve Burns searched for clues with his dog Blue, but he’s going viral with a new video explaining to his fans who grew up with him why he left and how the show and his young followers helped shape him into the person he is today.

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Burns, in the video posted to Nick Jr.’s Twitter account, said he decided to go to college, Variety reported.

In the video, he reminisced about the adventures he would take kids on with Blue and the rest of the characters, but then one day everything changed.

“And then one day, I was like, ‘Oh hey, guess what? Big news, I’m leaving. Here’s my brother Joe, he’s your new best friend,’ and then I got on a bus and I left and we didn’t see each other for like a really long time? Can we just talk about that? Because I realize that was kind of abrupt.”

Here is the clip when he said goodbye to Blue and left for college.

Burns spoke about going to college and growing as a person but then told his former viewers they also grew over the past two decades.

“And then look at you, and look at all you have done, and all you have accomplished in all that time. And it’s just, it’s just so amazing, right?” he said. “I mean we started out with clues, and now it’s what? Student loans, and jobs and families? And some of it has been kind of hard, you know? I know you know.”

He eventually thanked his fans for helping him get to where he is now.

“I wanted to tell you that I really couldn’t have done all of that without your help. In fact, all the help that you helped me with when we were younger is still helping me today, right now. And that’s super cool,” Burns said. “I guess I just wanted to say that after all these years, I never forgot you. Ever. And I’m super glad we’re still friends.”

This isn’t the first time Burns has appeared as his “Blue’s Clues” persona since leaving the show, Entertainment Weekly reported. He returned for some special episodes through the years.

“The nice thing is now I get to bust that character out whenever I want to. It’s kind of like being Clark Kent,” he told the magazine in 2003.

Back in 2019, he appeared on “Blue’s Clues & You” for a special guest spot as a cousin of the new host, Josh.

Fans of the show, and their parents, responded to Burns, thanking him for the lessons that guided them into adulthood.

“Blue’s Clues” premiered on Sept. 8, 1996, Entertainment Weekly reported. Burns was the host of the show for the first four seasons.

There had been rumors about why he left the show over the years, but for a show marking the 10th anniversary of “Blue’s Clues” that aired in 2006, Burns explained that he left because he was going bald and didn’t want it to happen in front of his fans, Business Insider reported in 2014.

“I knew I wasn’t going to be doing children’s television all my life, mostly because I refused to lose my hair on a kid’s TV show,” Burns had said on the special. “And it was happening ... fast.”'

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