Cool News
Gonna Bring The Power!! PBS' ELECTRIC COMPANY Back On!!
I am – Hercules!!
The Sesame Workshop is bringing back PBS’ “The Electric Company” to help 6- to 9-year-olds read (and, presumably, post in AICN talkback).
The original, which starred Rita Morena (“Cane”) and Morgan Freeman (“The Dark Knight”) and maybe Spider-Man, ran new episodes between 1971 and 1977 and repeats until 1985.
Read all of Variety’s story on the matter here.
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Three-For-Two Blu-Ray Sale!!
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as was the original zoom...what matters the most is cast, and if they can swing getting a cast as powerful as the original (doubtful, there arent any morenos or freemans around that i know of) this would be a great show for kids...when it was on, i was a bit too old for it, but i watched anyway...i loved freeman all the way back then
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i missed my big break...when they were casting the show, they put an open call out to grade schoolers thoughout the country...begged my mom to let me go....i totally bombed the audition...i coulda been somebody, instead of what i am...which is a bum
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And let's not forget its influential role in the climax of The Goonies: "HEEEEEYYYY YOUUUUU GUYYYYYS!!!"
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I wonder if J. Arthur Crank will be coming back.
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THAT was a great show. Mathman, Mathnet...good times.
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Is this the first PBS-related item posted to the site since Herc's ground-breaking scoop that Mary Lou Metzger was hosting the Lawrence Welk repeats?
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...was portrayed by a guy in a cheesy costume, not animated!
And I remember loving it! -
I loved that show. A year or two ago, there was a marathon of episodes to celebrate their anniversary. It was nice to be able to introduce it to my sister's kids. I hope this one goes on the air while they're still young enough to enjoy it.
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Always liked EC growing up. Let's hope they do it justice.
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Holy, Morgan Freeman!
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just re-air the originals? D - UH, DUH. Hopefully they'll re-make Seaseme Street soon, and make it more feebles, less muppets.
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was one of my favorite albums to play when I was growing up.
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Now that I think, I can here it plain as day. He'd always just say, "I'm Letterman" in this bored, monotone voice. Of COURSE it was Wilder. Sweet. Didn't Joan Rivers do the narration? I can here the sound of Spidey's web blasting out too. As it came out it was animated, but then the badguys were trapped under a real net. Ahhh, sweet memories. They used to let us watch this during our juice and snack break in 3rd grade.
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Hey...combine that thought with the search for celebs. What's Adam Ant doing these days? Yeesh! That was lame even for me!
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You know it would be better
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Lose... loose.
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Is that a request for the return of Schoolhouse Rock?
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Zoom
Electric Co.
Villa Alegre...
Before stupid Elmo and before Mr. Hooper died.. Thems was the days... -
Now taking my lame-joke self outta here and letting serious talkbackers have a go. Serious talkbackers...now THAT's funny!
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...played Spiderman. I must have seen Spiderman vs The Yeti at least 50 times. He lured the yeti into his trap with snowcones. Haven't heard that much "wah wah" guitar since Match Game. Good times...good times...
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the bad-luck guy on the show was named Crank ha ha ha
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The New York Times did a story on the Electric Company revival (http://tinyurl.com/6b7gp7) and mentioned that Marvel was partnering with Sesame Workshop to do a magazine, much like they published "Spidey Super-Stories" in the 70s. And they HAVE to bring back the shadows ("puh" "et" "PET"...). I remember watching the repeats on Noggin back in 2000 and loving them as much at the age of 28 as I did at the age of 8!
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less hippie this time, plz.
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perhaps we can get Dennis Haysbert to recite the alphabet dramatically.
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I recently got the two, 4-disc "best of" box sets of the original show, and, it, along with the "Old School" Sesame Street set, are most repeatedly requested shows for "movie time" by my two toddlers. (IN YOUR FACE, ELMO!!)
The original cast also included Bill Cosby and veteran TV actress Lee Chamberlin in the first season. For the duration were the exceptional Freeman and Moreno, as well as the incredibly gifted Andy Boyd (J. Arthur Crank), Skip Hinnit (Fargo North, Decoder), and the lovely and goofy Judy Graubert (Jennifer of the Jungle), who had a huge crush on as a child. (YouTube her, she of the ol' Shake 'n' Bake and Tide commercials, as well). Luis Avalaos (Dr. Doolat) and Hattie Wilson (Valerie the Librarian) joined later, but were on for most of the run. Spider-Man began appearing in the fourth season.
I gots no affiliation widit, but the box set can be plugged here: http://tinyurl.com/6hym7j -
I thought Michael Clarke Duncan was the new James Earl Jones...
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He couldn't have fit the 'fro he sporting at that time in the suit, it would have looked weird. "Superguy is a meatball!", Anyone remember who was in that bit?
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...Danny Seagren in the Spidey suit. I had to look it up 'cause I remember a rumor that it was Morgan Freeman as well.
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Around 1998 or 1999 I was at the NCTM meeting and saw some people wearing shirts that said "ZOOM is back" on the front and "0 2 1 3 4" on the back. This was about the new show, but I don't think they ever sold the shirts widely, did they? I wish I had one of those.
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May 13, 2008 11:40:32 AM CDT
I predict Samuel L. Jackson will be Easy Reader.
by shut the fuck up donny
You easy read it here first.
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...for Easy Reader. With the Undercover Brother fro. You know it'd be magic.
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Cause goddamnit, I've got my Picture Pages! Ping Pong Balls! Bunny Rabbit! Mr. Moose! That Greenjeans son of a bitch! No, my name is NOT SIMON!
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Don't forget Gene Wilder as Letterman (voice only). I remember to this day Moreno and Freeman, and a couple others singing this do-whop song called "Grease." It had nothing to do with the musical of the same name, but the skits was full 50s motif.
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Easy reader from Electric Company, or Speed Reader from Great Space Coaster. I'd have to give the coolness factor to Easy, but Speed Reader can do a handstand, and read everything on the newstand. He can jog and read, while not crashing into things. He does pushups with his eyelids. It's no contest.
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Tom Lehrer is absolutely classic coolness!
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I think the character Mel Mounds had an influence on me becoming a DJ. Freeman was the coolest.The show not only taught reading, but also logic and critical thinking. Glad it's back because with schools not having kids sound words out has had a bad impact on literacy in the USA. Moreno states the show and its "sound it out" philosophy helped her own daughter learn to read.-----later-----m
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Not sure why it went off the air in the first place.
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Narrated "Letter Man." And, if memory serves, Morgan Freeman was also, 'Easy Rider."
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Sorry, just wanted to add that
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now this IS cool news.
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"D-e-m-e-n-t-o, Dr. Demento!" Also a fan :-). I'm really into Ivor Biggun right now, but, unlike Lehrer, I can't imagine he'd ever be cleaned up enough for a children's show.
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To have Mr. Morgan Freeman involved once more?
The answer is very CO – OL – COOL.
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...they NOT have a a funkified rap version of the theme music?
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Work for scale, for the kids!
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Not "Morena", ya big maroonies.
Oh, and in addition to appearing in "Cane", Rita Moreno also appeared in some obscure old indie flick called "West Side Story". She won some acting award for it or something.
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