Are Elmo's Parents Dead?

So asked Big Brother this afternoon after watching Elmo's World with his Elmo obsessed little sister.  An internet search found two sets of parents for Elmo: George and Gladys, who are pictured holding a brand new baby Elmo, and Louie and Mae who are pictured with a toddler Elmo.  Louie was a SAHD until he was deployed "to help people somewhere" so Mae looked after him then.  BB concluded that Elmo was adopted by L&M.  This led into an afternoon of discussions about the various ways people can be parents and ways babies can be made, from egg and/or sperm donation to surrogacy and IVF... <phew> bit much for a gloomy Saturday afternoon.  We also discovered that Elmo has a sister, "like me!" says Big Brother.