6 ms·
I was born in 1967 and just ate this up as kid. The intro with Rita Moreno yelling “Hey you guys!” followed by the theme song brings back a flood of emotion. I
by sundaeofshock 5y ago
I was born in 1967 and just ate this up as kid. The intro with Rita Moreno yelling “Hey you guys!” followed by the theme song brings back a flood of emotion.
I was a voracious reader as a kid. I suspect this show had something to do with that.
Thanks for sharing.
- busyant 5y ago1968 here. I'm not sure why, but The Electric Company resonated with me much more than Sesame Street. I was in awe of Morgan Freeman and his sonorous voice. Years later, I remember seeing him start to get traction in Hollywood and thought, "Hey! That's the guy from the Electric Company!"
- bsenftner 5y ago"Hey! That's Easy Reader!" I had the opportunity to chat with him once. I asked him how many people remember and ask him about Easy Reader. He lit up and says only grey haired people remember Easy, but the light in their eyes warms his heart.
- technothrasher 5y agoI was 1971, so a few years younger than you folks. For some reason The Electric Company scared the crap out of me, especially the creepy Spider-man segments. My older brother liked it, so we would watch it. But I had to watch Mr. Rogers afterward just to calm myself down. Obviously I grew out of being scared of it, but by the time I did I'd moved on to other shows.
- tingletech 5y ago72, no older siblings. I don't think I was allowed to watch it till I was in Kindergarten-- the same time my subscription changed from Sesame Street Magazine to Electric Company Magazine.
- MisterBastahrd 5y agoI was born in the 70s and I don't think I ever watched a full episode, thus having no point of reference for Sloth in Goonies yelling the same phrase. And now I do.
- bink 5y agoWow. I was born in the 70s as well and you just made that connection for me. I had no idea.
- MisterBastahrd 5y agoThe funny thing is that I remember watching the intro to The Electric Company after seeing it again for the first time in decades (and somehow got myself down into a rabbit hole of watching 3-2-1 Contact intros). Still didn't recall the "Hey You Guys" at the beginning though. https://youtu.be/H_iGaQglnKg https://youtu.be/H_iGaQglnKg Apparently Sloth was locked alone in a room with a TV, which is where he got the catch phrase from.
- themodelplumber 5y ago"Hey you guys" was always fun to hear on the TV. I was born about a decade later so it also instantly reminds me of another show that was on after The Electric Company: 3-2-1 Contact. That theme song always got my little heart going too.
- chrisweekly 5y agoYes! Also (even more so) -- Doctor Who!
- themodelplumber 5y agoFor sure! Mine was basically Tom Baker, you? I've been learning to appreciate the others recently. A lot of fun.
- chrisweekly 5y agoYes, the 4th Dr by a country mile. (And Leela, and K-9)
- cronix 5y agoWhenever there's trouble, we're there on the double. We're the Bloodhound Gang!
- themodelplumber 5y agoTotally. For some reason that segment got me creeped out on many a sick day, watching TV alone. lol
- johnisgood 5y agoUhn Tiss Uhn Tiss. :D
- bink 5y agoJust don't leave the TV on until HR Puffinstuff comes on. That was nightmare fuel.
- crispyambulance 5y agoMy favorite was the "Easy Reader" character-- a very young Morgan Freeman!
- mbostleman 5y ago1963 here and same. Also Zoom from WGBH.
- samstave 5y agohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XanjZw5hPvE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XanjZw5hPvE
- mwcremer 5y agoZOOM Z double-oh M box 3 5 0 Boston Mass 0 2 1 3 4... send it to ZOOM! And Schoolhouse Rock: Ready or Not, Here I Come; Conjunction Junction; I'm Just a Bill; The Preamble
- robotguy 5y agoDuring my college entrance English Placement exam in 1988, I distinctly remember hearing someone humming "Conjunction Junction."
- qohen 5y agoThe intro with Rita Moreno yelling “Hey you guys!” followed by the theme song brings back a flood of emotion. Here's a good-quality clip of that (6th season, 1977): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu7qn7c7Gpo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu7qn7c7Gpo
- redleggedfrog 5y ago1966'er here, and watched myself a ton of Electric Company. I too ended up a life-long reader, and interestingly, ended up hardly watching any television past childhood. Anecdotal, but still...
- petsormeat 5y ago1966 as well. I can still recall the Tom Lehrer bits about stuff like adverbs, and the go-go eco-groove about "-tion." Truly educational television.
- dllthomas 5y agoICYMI, Lehrer recently(ish) put up most of his music effectively CC0, including a bunch of Electric Company songs: https://tomlehrersongs.com/index https://tomlehrersongs.com/index
- duderific 5y ago1969 here, and my Mom used to yell "Hey you guys!" exactly in the style of Rita Moreno when she wanted us to come in for dinner. Back then of course, we would go outside and play all day or after school, so we'd inevitably be down the street somewhere...
- jimbokun 5y agoIt's amazing looking back that Spider Man was a recurring Electric Company character: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM22mzqWUec https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM22mzqWUec Morgan Freeman narrating a silly Spider Man comic book / live action mashup is surreal and hilarious. And incorporating the reading part is subtle and most kids watching don't realize it's meant to teach them to read. I used to watch the Electric Company just waiting for the Spider Man segment, back before there was limitless Spider Man movies and cartoons available on Disney+. And it's impressive that Marvel lent one of their most valuable pieces of intellectual property to an educational effort. But it probably helped them marketing the character and merchandising efforts.
- rectang 5y agoMy favorite was "Spidey Up Against The Wall". Where the dude dressed up as bricks blends into a portion of the outfield fence at Shea Stadium and then sneaks forward to mess up a routine catch by a Mets outfielder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hMRRWzACpM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hMRRWzACpM