Grover's Daddy

Grover's Mommy uses a "funny old helmet" that his daddy brought home.

While the exploits of Grover's mother have been well documented, his father has been a figure of some mystery. Given the lack of evidence, one might surmise that the patriarchal figure in Grover's life is largely absent.

More often than not, coverage of Grover's parentage is limited to the illustrated page, with only an occasional appearance on screen. A rare mention of Grover's father appeared in the pages of The Exciting Adventures of Super Grover, in a story about the secret origin of Super Grover.

In that story, it is revealed that Grover's mommy made Grover's superhero outfit as a Halloween costume, using "an old towel, a funny old helmet that Grover's daddy had brought home, and a few other odds and ends."

Grover's daddy is not pictured, and given the phrasing, it isn't clear what author Emily Perl Kingsley meant to imply about Grover's relationship with his dad. The sentence seems to suggest a number of possibilities that may include the three monsters living together, visitation rights, or the idea that Grover may never have even met his father.

The last option would seem to be eliminated with the facts found in The Sesame Street Library Volume 2, also published in the same year. It features a poem by Grover about when he was little and used to be scared of being alone at night. In it, he expresses his mother's assurance that there was nothing to fear, and that "she and my daddy were near." This at least suggests that Grover's dad lived with his family at one point in Grover's earlier years.

In 1985, When Grover Moved to Sesame Street tells the story, in flashback, of how Grover and his mom left their suburban home to live in an apartment on Sesame Street. This is an important time in Grover's backstory, but nowhere in the detailed account of this venture is any mention made of his dad. In fact, it is made quite clear that by this point in Grover's upbringing, his father is nowhere to be found, with a very strong case being made for Grover's Mom raising her son as a single mother.

One other fleeting reference to Grover's Daddy is mentioned in passing in the poem "I Used to Be Afraid" (First published: Big Bird's Busy Book). Given the creative freedom of the poem juxtaposed with the previous evidence, the visibility of Grover's father in their home life is left to the interpretation of the reader.

When Super Grover appeared on The Sunny Side Up Show on January 1, 2009, Kelly and Chica bestow upon him the Super Good Egg Award. In his humble acceptance speech, Super Grover thanks his mommy, his daddy, his cousin Georgie, his uncle Frank, his uncle Frank's tailor, his aunt Susie and his brother Norman.

In a 2011 interview for PBS NewsHour, Grover credits his mommy and daddy for teaching him good judgment in saving money.