Elmo is facing some seriously bright lights-and not for a good thing.

Kevin Clash, the puppeteer behind "Sesame Street's" Elmo since 1985, is alleged to have been in an inappropriate relationship with a 16 year old boy. He has thus taken a leave of absence from the show. He is a divorced father and has one daughter.

The following is what Sesame Workshop has written on its blog:

"We took the allegation very seriously and took immediate action. We met with the accuser twice and had repeated communications with him. We met with Kevin, who denied the accusation. We also conducted a thorough investigation and found the allegation of underage conduct to be unsubstantiated. Although this was a personal relationship unrelated to the workplace, our investigation did reveal that Kevin exercised poor judgment and violated company policy regarding internet usage and he was disciplined."

The complainant who is now 23, says the relationship happened when he was 16 and Clash was 45. However, Clash alleges that the relationship occurred only after the man turned an adult.

So will we be missing Elmo from now on?

Writes Sesame Workshop, "Elmo is bigger than any one person and will continue to be an integral part of "Sesame Street" to engage, educate and inspire children around the world, as it has for 40 years."