Steve Burns, the former host of the '90s children's show Blue's Clues, opened up about his time on the show, revealing that his earnings were modest compared to the income of a waiter, and that his main source of income was voiceover work. Despite the show's success, Burns faced depression and struggled with rumors about his death, which significantly impacted his mental health. He described a decade-long period of isolation and self-neglect, during which he withdrew from public life and struggled with his identity. Burns eventually emerged from his depression, participating in the revival of Blue's Clues and engaging with fans on TikTok. His story highlights the personal challenges he faced during and after his time on the show, despite its outward success and popularity.

Steve Burns hosted Blue's Clues from 1996 to 2001, but he revealed that his earnings from the show were surprisingly modest, describing it as a 'side hustle' compared to his main income from voiceover work.

Burns faced significant mental health challenges, including depression, during and after his time on the show, exacerbated by the demanding schedule that left little room for personal issues.

The spread of rumors about his death deeply affected Burns, as they coincided with his struggle with clinical depression, creating a prolonged period of personal crisis.

For about ten years, Burns lived reclusively, during which he gained weight and felt unrecognizable, both to himself and others, while rumors of his death persisted.

Emerging from his depression, Burns has since been involved in the Blue's Clues revival and stays connected with fans through social media, marking a positive turnaround in his life.

Steve Burns is opening up about his time hosting ’90s children’s show Blue Clues.

The 51-year-old actor and musician made an appearance on Rainn Wilson‘s Soul Boom podcast.

During his appearance on the podcast, Steve spoke about his experience on the kid’s show, which he hosted from 1996 to 2001, including how much he made and what happened to him after the show.

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“I got Blue’s Clues early, but every waiter I ever knew made more money than I did for the first many seasons of that show,” he revealed of his earnings.

Steve referred to the series as his “side hustle” based on the modest pay, and credited voiceover work as his true main source of income.

“My real gig was, I was a voiceover guy. I fell into that early,” he explained, saying commercial voiceovers “would kind of sustain him,” even though early years in New York City were “grim.”

After finishing theater school, he saw the audition for Blue’s Clues.

“I thought it was a voice thing, I went to the audition,” he said. “And when I got there, there was a camera in the room. And I thought, ‘Oh, s–t. I better do something.’ And I looked at the script, and, you know, I figured … I’m gonna act the s–t out of this.”

However, Steve dealt with depression as the show continued to succeed.

“I would drink. I wanted so bad to be bad, but the schedule would not really allow for any seriousness in that world. There’s no such thing as doing an episode of Blue’s Clues hungover…J think I would have gone down that path in a pretty serious way if I didn’t have a schedule,” he reflected.

After appearing on the series and dealing with depression during the show, Steve also opened up about how rumors of his death impacted his mental health afterward.

“I was in kind of the throes of this depression after I left the show,” he explained.

“But what a lot of people don’t understand is that, that during the show, the internet was beginning to internet, and the world decided, or a large portion of the world decided, that I had died.”

The suicide rumors were “not what you want to hear when you’re severely clinically depressed,” he said.

“It was something I would hear from people. ‘Oh, I thought you were dead. Didn’t you die?’ And when it persists for 10 years, it feels like a cultural preference, and you start to feel like you’re supposed to be,” he admitted.

Steve said there was a period of “about 10 years” where he “did nothing” with himself.

“I built a house in Brooklyn and never left it. I call it ‘the gray’ of my life,” he said. “It was about 10 years where I did nothing but, like, drink a couple of bottles of wine every night alone, watch MythBusters and just eat Pad Thai.”

“I gained, like, 50 pounds. I was completely unrecognizable. I didn’t recognize myself. And everyone thought I was dead,” he continued. “And eventually, I started playing along. You know, that was the strategy. Was just, maybe I am.”

After coming out of his depression, Steve was able to work on the Blue’s Clues revival, Blue’s Clues & You!, and also checks in on TikTok with an audience of beloved fans. He also went viral after the 2024 election.

Watch him discuss…