WOODSTOCK, Conn. >> The friendly, bearded face of Caroll Spinney may not be one you recognize immediately. But if you have watched TV at any point in the past 50 years or so, you are almost certainly familiar with his work. Since 1969, he has played the parts of the gentle, inquisitive Big Bird and the lovably disgruntled Oscar the Grouch on “Sesame Street,” the long-running children’s program.

On Oct. 18, as he so often has, Spinney, 84, traveled to the studios in Astoria, Queens, where “Sesame Street” is produced, and recorded some voices for his colorful alter egos.

These final recordings marked his retirement from the program: His roles will be passed on to new performers and his remarkable half-century run, in which he has embodied two of the most beloved characters on television, will come to an end.

Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit education organization that produces “Sesame Street,” did not have a precise figure for the number of episodes Spinney has appeared in, but a spokeswoman said the number was likely thousands of the more than 4,400 episodes that have been created.

Spinney, who spoke earlier this month from his living room here, seated next to his wife, Debra, said he had few if any regrets about his time on “Sesame Street.”

“I always thought, ‘How fortunate for me that I got to play the two best Muppets?’ ” he said. “Playing Big Bird is one of the most joyous things of my life.”

But in recent years, Spinney said, the physical requirements of performing the characters had become difficult for him. He stopped doing the puppeteering for Big Bird in 2015 and has since been providing only the voices for him and Oscar.

Jim Henson, the iconoclastic creator of the Muppets, recruited Spinney to “Sesame Street,” which made its debut on public television in 1969. The impending 50th anniversary of “Sesame Street” seemed like a good moment to take a bow. His final voice recordings will be used when it is celebrated on the show — next year on HBO and in 2020 on PBS.

Debra Spinney said, “It’s just the fates that bring things to a head sometimes.”

“Big Bird has always had the biggest heart on ‘Sesame Street,’ and that’s Caroll’s gift to us,” said Jeffrey Dunn, president and chief executive of Sesame Workshop. “I think it’s fair to say that Caroll’s view of the world and how we should treat each other has shaped and defined our organization.”

In some form or another, he plans to remain an ambassador of “Sesame Street,” at conventions and other public appearances. “I’ll be 100 years old, doing Muppet stuff,” he said.

Matt Vogel, who has been Spinney’s apprentice on Big Bird since 1996, will succeed him in the role.