Though he no doubt took a healthy slice of that $850 million, Bebo’s English co-founder Michael Birch went to ground when AOL (NYSE: TWX) bought the site in March - and he’s still keeping schtum on the deal. Appearing to speak at a Glasshouse event in his adopted home town of San Francisco last night, Birch managed to avoid any mention of the deal. CNET’s (NSDQ: CNET) Caroline McCarthy pushed but got only an oblique: ”850 million is an interesting number. It’s a lot bigger than some numbers and a lot smaller than some numbers.”

If that made Birch sound like the Count from Sesame Street, he did offer: “There were many other companies (as potential buyers)… It came down to fit.” But we already learned that in our acquisition-day interview with Bebo president Joanna Shields. A humble developer at heart, Birch, with wife Xochi, is now gone from the Bebo fold but is sure to reemerge in some entrepreneurial venture. Drop us a line if you find out what…

• Interview: Joanna Shields, President, Bebo: AOL Was First Suitor; ‘Attractive Bids’; Staffing Up
• AOL-Bebo: Falco: ‘Gamechanging For AOL’; Shields: Didn’t Plan To Sell; Birches Out Of Picture
• AOL Buying Bebo For £417 Million