This is true educational TV!!!! Rita Moreno and Morgan Freeman!! Always loved the sounding of the word Ba LL BALL!!! And you know eventually you and your friends used swear words for that!!!
This is the version of the opening that I remember from when I was little. I didn't know there had been earlier versions until like 20 years later, when I saw reruns on the Noggin channel, I think it was.
@Kohntarkosz , I remember watching it from 1975-76 but don't really remember what year it went off the air because by 1977, I had started Kindergarten meaning I didn't get to watch it anymore since it would be shown weekday mornings. The Electric Company may have ran til 1979, I know it came out in 71.
ummm, oh....my..... GOD. Its amazing,the things that are stored in the back of ur mind that you forgot you even remembered. Thanks for posting this season 5 opener. the Crank!! Spiderman!!! and the Cranky Film director(Rita Moreno??) that would scare the S^&t out of Morgan Freeman with her bull horn. lol
Morgan Freeman was my favorite actor, of "The Electric Company" troupe. In the current Batman franchise, "Driving Miss Daisy", "Lean On Me" and "Alex Cross" franchise; he still proves to be the greatest actor.
I LOVED this show when I was a baby, and always made believe I was on the show every episode. Back then, shows like this were fun. Children couldn't WAIT to watch them. ^_^
Season 5 opening song is by far the best opening ever, the characters changing into their true life actor counterparts, Fargo, Jennifer of the Jungle, Easy Reader, etc....Love Rita Moreno's yell, "Hey you guys!' My cousins and I still talk about it and I'm 46 years young! Can't replace memories like this, it was entertaining as well as educational.....a rare and successful combination in any decade!
@SoundDeva5 , I agree 100% this show was great, I enjoyed it as a kid. I'm now 43 yrs old and have great memories of this show.. your right it was entertaining as well as educational. this kids of today should have this Classic show.
@SoundDeva5 Fargo North, Decoder (Skip Hinnant); Jennifer of the Jungle (Judy Graubart) and Paul the Gorilla (Jim Boyd); Easy Reader (Morgan Freeman); Valerie the Librarian (Hattie Winston); J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd); Pandora the Brat (Rita Moreno); Dr. Doolots (Luis Avalos); and of course the Short Circus.
Easily the best intro of all the seasons with the characters phasing from their skit characters to reality. The song is catchy and like everyone else says it throws you back into the past with fond memories of the show. I liked the whole show, including Spidey and The Adventures of Letterman (he quickly took the G off his sweater and changed the goat...into a coat!!!). Thank you, Morgan Freeman, for always being one of the coolest actors of all time!
The Original Electric Company was THE best...and the Stars that perfom in it were the tops. (Rita Mareno, Bill Cosby> Morgan Freeman..etc.....)and it was strange to me that Skip Hennson (Fargo Noth, Decoder) was the voice of Fritz the Cat
Judy who played Jennifer of the Jungle looked soo sexy in that outfit.A lot like Betty Page.I think i might have got my first hard on looking at her when i was 6 or so.
This whole show is like a psychotic nightmare. i will never forget the chilling experience of watching this thing, and being pulled into a Moog-synthesizer world with wires everywhere and the smell of instant coffee and pencil shavings. A place where you look out the window and see a blazing sun and realize that sometimes, children will die so suddenly.
This brings back memories. I was confused because I wasnt sure why they were changing clothes if they are already in the same outfits as the bigger screen.
Yep...Morgan Freeman. Wow. I totally forgot about this intro. Once I saw it again it totally took me back! Seeing those opening scenes with the actors really just made me feel like a kid again.
I had heard Morgan Freeman was on the show, but it didn't click until I saw the intro after all these years. I haven't seen this since I was a kid!
I enjoyed THE ELECTRIC COMPANY a lot. Although, I liked this opening credit the best because it showed the friendly atmosphere - characters showing greeting facial expressions everytime they turned back into themselves.
One of the BEST iconic intros of ANY tv show. Aww, gotta love EZ Reader, Crank, Spidey, Letterman, and Fargo North. The new show is DOGSHIT and an insult to the original. THIS is the REAL deal, back when people gave a crap about producing quality kids shows. What a shame.
Wow, hard to believe I'm 42 now....time has passed by so quickly.....hard to believe I was watching this over 35 years ago in the early and mid 1970's. I thought the music was catchy and now I have a new appreciation of how cool the show was for its time. It brings me back to a much more simple, carefree and happy time.
@thebluetornado i turned 40 in may and this takes me back to a time that was TOTALLY CARE FREE. i remember crying over the last episode of giant robot LMFAO!! i thought my teenage yrs were awesome but seeing this reminds me of what pure happiness was really like
As a white boy from suburban philly in the 70s, I knew there was no one cooler or more hip than Morgan Freeman. Hey, almost 40 years later and he is a huge movie star. I called it back in the day.
I watched this when I was a little kid from 1971 to 1977. I keep hearing there is a new Electric Company out now but I've never seen it. Are there any clips of it here on YouTube because I couldn't find any?
"Unlike the 1970s series, where the Electric Company refers to a troupe of actors in comedy sketches, the new series refers to a group of super heroes who battle villains in the name of literacy."
In other words, it sucks big time (at least to us old head REAL PBS vets...lol)
Why oh why are there no kids shows like this anymore?? I loved this show when I was little. And what a talented cast - Rita Moreno (Grammy and Oscar winner already by then), Morgan Freeman (a great talent even then), Bill Cosby and everyone else.
Yes, I remember seeing from "The Goonies" that guy (I think his name was Sloth Fratelli) saying "Hey You Guys." As soon as he said that, it reminded me of "The Electric Company."
When Morgan Freeman walks up to the screen after changing from his Easy Reader outfit to his suit and points at teh camera, i swear to God I fealt like i was six years old again.
It was more than a memory it was almost a reality of me being trasported back in time for a few moments.
This may sound gay but I almost cried and I am almost 40.
dude, NOTHING gay about that at all! i felt the EXACT same way when i heard that theme song - more than a memory for sure! if you had asked me to sing the melody or even remember the intro at all, i couldn't have done it. those images and sounds were kind of shoved to the back of memory i guess, but they all came flooding right back when i heard that music and it was VERY cool indeed to be a kindergartner back in my old house again...even if it only was for a few seconds! peace!
Same here. I was instantly transported to my childhood as I was watching this. Sesame Street then right after, the Electric Company. Watched both without fail!
We're the same age and I feel the same way. For me it was Rita Moreno's transformation. I love the music change there - the chimes, the timpani, the trumpets, the modulation - just a great song! Amazing how revisiting something you have seen or heard in 30 years resonates in your mind afterward. This song was stuck in my head for days!
@Bigbadben7 I felt the same way. This is literally the first time I've seen this since I was 5 or 6. I could picture myself sitting in my babysitter's living room watching this. It really was a strange but pleasant experience watching this again. I couldn't have told you what the intro was before seeing it, but as I watched it, I recogized each person and remembered it.
@Bigbadben7 no shame in that. I'm 34 and I owe a slice of my childhood to Morgan Freeman and TEC. I still find myself singing the Easy Reader song and getting the odd looks.
@Bigbadben7 I know!!! The rush of joy is overwhelming! These opening credits (Seasons 5 & 6) perfectly capture the sense of empowerment and energy that made the Electric Company must-see kid's TV in the 70's. My progressive little elementary school-without-walls in MD let us watch it every single week in class. Teachers loved it; we'd all laugh together and groove together, and then apply the concepts immediately after. We adored the cast. This show was dyn-o-mite!
Agreed. I remeber watching PBS as a kid and somtimes after Seasme Street they would alter the programing and would show either Mr. Rogers which I liked or The Electric Company which I loved. This may sound silly but I have often told people that I knew I was never a Racist because of how much I was diggin Morgan Freeman back then as a child when I was innocnet with no outside influences.
@Bigbadben7 I think it was the theme song that got me. So many fond memories of this show, the cast and the catchy themes throughout the show. Such a classic!
@Bigbadben7 ...and I dare ANYONE to poke fun at you. My first year of the 3d grade was in '78-79, and we used to watch this in class. After The Electric Company, this is how I identified Freeman and Moreno!
@Bigbadben7 This is the kind of kids' programming that PBS lacks these days. I hope someone puts the episode with the egg/eggs segment. I don't know why(maybe I have a weird mind), but I'd like to see that again.
@Bigbadben7 watching this made me emotional too so you are not the only one. It brings back so many great memories . I loved this show more than sesame street and was so disappointed when it got cancelled. Of all the cast, I would always remember Morgan Freeman being cool, confident and smooth, I didn't realize Rita Moreno was on the show though.
@Bigbadben7 youre not alone when you say almost cried and being in your 30s, I have so many memories of this show... and some others like it from my childhood..aww the memories
"Faster than a Rolling "O". Stronger than silent "E". Able to leap Capital "T" in a single bound" It's a bird, it's a plan, IT'S LETTERMAN!!" (da,da,da...). The Spellbinder was funny. Always causing trouble.
Moving out in a new way We're gonna turn it on- We're gonna bring you the power- We're gonna light the dark of night like the brightest day in a whole new way We're Gonna Turn it On We're Gonna Bring you the Power We're gonna tell you the truest words that you heard anybody say Moving out in a new way Moving out in a new way We're gonna turn it on We're gonna bring you the power It's coming down the lines, strong as they can be through the courtesy of the Electric Company
I was borin 1969, so I remembrr the Electric Company pretty well..Not so much Season 1 or 2, but around season 3, 4, 5..Especially the part where Rita Moreno goes "Hey you guys"!!!!
I was born in 1974 and this was my favorite show even though I had no idea what was going on some of my first memories in life are from this and other shows from that time...the best music ever. It had such a creative, talented, diverse, and original casts of people and I am proud to have been able to grow up in such a unique world. Now everthing pretty much sucks but this show is like an old friend to me...thanx for reading this...get a job!
When I was very young, I used to be very scared of the very beginning hearing the loud shouting of "HEEEY YOOOOU GUUUYYYS" and seeing the title card vibrating. I know this is a crazy question but, does anyone know the reason why they had the loud shouting of "HEEEY YOOOOU GUUUYYYS" instead of just showing the title card with someone softly saying in the background "Welcome To The Electric Company" then the actors on the show could've then sang the intro song? The loud shouting has scared kids.
It was from a skit and they producers liked that line so much they threw it into the opening credits. I found it annoying as a kid but then my friends and the other kids in the neighborhood starting saying it so it grew on me and for the last 29 years it has been relooping into my head so "Youtube" thanks for allowing us to revist our child hood.
I didn't know the producers wanted to put that line into the intro song. When I was very young, I used to be very scared to watch The Electric Company because I was afraid if that loud shouting was going to come again sometime during the show when I used to cry hearing it as a very young child. I always watched Sesame Street and Mister Rogers Neighborhood, and after Sesame Street ended, I thought Mister Rogers Neighborhood would come next but instead, The Electric Company came and I cried.
I posted a comment a week ago about "The Electric Company" intro and a few days ago I got a response from someone here and I responded back to that person and somehow my comments got posted at the top instead of under that person's response!
Yes, the loud shouting scared me too. Sometimes first was Sesame Street, then Electric Company, then Mister Rogers, or after Mister Rodgers then came Electric Company. I was always scared whenever Sesame Street or Mister Rogers ended because I was afraid if Electric Company came. (I know that smilleydunc here mentioned that the producers loved the shouting of "Heey Yoou Guuys" so much but, I still think it would have been best to have someone softly say "Welcome To The Electric Company.")
One other thing, the reason I think it would have been best to have someone softly say in front of the camera or in the background "Welcome To The Electric Company" while showing the title card is because, the directors and producers should have known a lot better that shouting is a very bad thing for little kids to hear because "The Electric Company" is a young childrens show for kids to want to watch not have fear of. (Sesame Street, Mister Rogers, etc. didn't have shouting in the intros).
Yes, it sure is Spiderman (one of the superheros I have always liked). I'm not sure if Spiderman was part of "The Electric Company" show or not because I never actually watched "The Electric Company" on PBS when I was very young. On PBS when I was very young, I mostly watched "Sesame Street", "Mister Rogers Neighborhood", and "Today's Special."
Yes I agree. I loved Today's Special more than Sesame Street and Mister Rogers Neighborhood. (I was told that the reason Today's Special went off air was because it wasn't a PBS program. It was a Nickelodeon program).
I also know two Today's Special webpages and I will email them to your YouTube email.
HI.... I am not in USA but living near an american base in my country gave me access to the afrts tv and some kool programs.... this is the one I always remember...OHHH the funky music at the end of the intro I still love it!!
Okay nostagla buffs,here is a toughie..."Who portrayed 'Spiderman' and the 'Gorilla'? And remember Morgan Freeman got his start here,but why did Bill Cosby leave?
Bill Cosby was one the show to earn college credits for his PhD in Education. He left here to work on and create his doctoral thesis, a semi-autobiographical cartoon called "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids."
I always wondered what instrument they used when saying the words "are you happy?". Didn't they also have a "Six Dollar and Thirty-Nine Cent Man" segment. I hope someone uploads it.
That cool synthy sound on Good Vibrations by the Beach Boys is a theramin. I think they used it at the beginning of Darlin' as well. I think you played it by running your finger over a kind of keyboard, but it didnt have keys... Wiki it you will see what I mean!
Almost certainly done with a moog, since at the time, the theremin was in decline and a moog could be programmed to produce a similar sound with easier tonal control.
I think you must be referring to the Six Dollar and Ninety-Five Cent Man. That was from the short-lived ABC children's series Uncle Croc's Block. That series was so bad, it soured ABC's relations with Filmation Studios. They never ordered a cartoon or series from Filmation again.
The skit they announce in this intro where Easy Reader is asking Valerie "are you happy?" is actually a HILARIOUS skit that I haven't seen forever. If anyone has this skit, please post it for an automatic 5 stars! Your fellow TEC fans will greatly appreciate it!
ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh The funky basssssssssssssssss now I have 8 years again :)
calito44 1 month ago
Nice little up-skirt shot @ 0:46!
dcmretro 1 month ago
Gee, I remember watching this show when I was a kid (I'm 50, now!!). Great show!
sumame47 2 months ago
As old as Janina Mathews was, I wondered why she still liked to wear her hair in the 2 ponytails. Janina, if ya read this, let us know.
DaveWollenberg 2 months ago
This is true educational TV!!!! Rita Moreno and Morgan Freeman!! Always loved the sounding of the word Ba LL BALL!!! And you know eventually you and your friends used swear words for that!!!
Kelski1998 3 months ago
This is the season I remember watching when I was little and right after Sesame Street would go off!!
Princess07ish 4 months ago
This is the version of the opening that I remember from when I was little. I didn't know there had been earlier versions until like 20 years later, when I saw reruns on the Noggin channel, I think it was.
Kohntarkosz 4 months ago
@Kohntarkosz , you and me both remember this opening version back in 1975!!!
Princess07ish 4 months ago
Actually, I remember from more like 79-80. I think my family was still in Germany in 1975.
Kohntarkosz 4 months ago
@Kohntarkosz , I remember watching it from 1975-76 but don't really remember what year it went off the air because by 1977, I had started Kindergarten meaning I didn't get to watch it anymore since it would be shown weekday mornings. The Electric Company may have ran til 1979, I know it came out in 71.
Princess07ish 4 months ago
@Princess07ish The Electric Company ran first run episodes from 1971 to 1977 and then ran in reruns until 1985.
MyTurboReviews 4 months ago
ummm, oh....my..... GOD. Its amazing,the things that are stored in the back of ur mind that you forgot you even remembered. Thanks for posting this season 5 opener. the Crank!! Spiderman!!! and the Cranky Film director(Rita Moreno??) that would scare the S^&t out of Morgan Freeman with her bull horn. lol
MrJustin2rue 4 months ago
Gen X
211bill 4 months ago
HEY YOU GUYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
retro80s70s 4 months ago
didnt they take out the new electric company?
navi1007 5 months ago
This was the best show that Public Television has ever produced in the 1970s. Long live the Electric Company!
RobertoLopezstudyis 5 months ago 2
Morgan Freeman was my favorite actor, of "The Electric Company" troupe. In the current Batman franchise, "Driving Miss Daisy", "Lean On Me" and "Alex Cross" franchise; he still proves to be the greatest actor.
14DaveHunter 8 months ago 2
I always loved those cryptic show numbers...as a kid I thought they had some strange significance.
999manman 9 months ago 2
I LOVED this show when I was a baby, and always made believe I was on the show every episode. Back then, shows like this were fun. Children couldn't WAIT to watch them. ^_^
schildno5 10 months ago
Season 5 opening song is by far the best opening ever, the characters changing into their true life actor counterparts, Fargo, Jennifer of the Jungle, Easy Reader, etc....Love Rita Moreno's yell, "Hey you guys!' My cousins and I still talk about it and I'm 46 years young! Can't replace memories like this, it was entertaining as well as educational.....a rare and successful combination in any decade!
SoundDeva5 10 months ago 6
@SoundDeva5 , I agree 100% this show was great, I enjoyed it as a kid. I'm now 43 yrs old and have great memories of this show.. your right it was entertaining as well as educational. this kids of today should have this Classic show.
Astraldragon1 8 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@SoundDeva5 Fargo North, Decoder (Skip Hinnant); Jennifer of the Jungle (Judy Graubart) and Paul the Gorilla (Jim Boyd); Easy Reader (Morgan Freeman); Valerie the Librarian (Hattie Winston); J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd); Pandora the Brat (Rita Moreno); Dr. Doolots (Luis Avalos); and of course the Short Circus.
VentrueCapital 6 months ago
Still think the theme song is WAAAY too epic for this show...Sounds like something out of a Wagner opera.
RideMyBMW 10 months ago 4
min 0:27 Morgan Freeman doing his best "Panic in Needle Park" jog... XD! Coolest dude on TV.
RideMyBMW 10 months ago
Easily the best intro of all the seasons with the characters phasing from their skit characters to reality. The song is catchy and like everyone else says it throws you back into the past with fond memories of the show. I liked the whole show, including Spidey and The Adventures of Letterman (he quickly took the G off his sweater and changed the goat...into a coat!!!). Thank you, Morgan Freeman, for always being one of the coolest actors of all time!
donniebuehrig 10 months ago 3
now i am not sure what i remember
MichaelHansenFUN 11 months ago
The Original Electric Company was THE best...and the Stars that perfom in it were the tops. (Rita Mareno, Bill Cosby> Morgan Freeman..etc.....)and it was strange to me that Skip Hennson (Fargo Noth, Decoder) was the voice of Fritz the Cat
wraith13 11 months ago
@wraith13 I hate myself. I just NOW got the "Fargo North Decoder" joke. Thank you anyway.
BaronVonSchtupp88 11 months ago
...to which the woman answers, "Depends on my hefty windfall in the settlement, I reckon."
mikeysaur65 11 months ago
Jim Boyd was on a recent episode of Law and Order
MrJacMac1986 11 months ago
Judy who played Jennifer of the Jungle looked soo sexy in that outfit.A lot like Betty Page.I think i might have got my first hard on looking at her when i was 6 or so.
MrJacMac1986 11 months ago
Wonder if this would be an E! True Hollywood Story? Especially that 2011 is the 40th anniversary of this great PBS gem.
269848 1 year ago
This is why so many young adults do drugs nowdays.
mccarrpo 1 year ago
This whole show is like a psychotic nightmare. i will never forget the chilling experience of watching this thing, and being pulled into a Moog-synthesizer world with wires everywhere and the smell of instant coffee and pencil shavings. A place where you look out the window and see a blazing sun and realize that sometimes, children will die so suddenly.
brandonok10 1 year ago
A kids show or a 70's adult pornographic freaky fantasy?
ivegotamagicstix 1 year ago
This brings back memories. I was confused because I wasnt sure why they were changing clothes if they are already in the same outfits as the bigger screen.
superman93994 1 year ago
The memories.
psxwarrior 1 year ago
this is f*cked up
bremolincolin 1 year ago
The Eeeeassy Reader - Morgan Freeman was the man even back then.
C5Rigzz 1 year ago 2
Memories of yesteryear!!! I love it!!!
reesecups100 1 year ago
Yep...Morgan Freeman. Wow. I totally forgot about this intro. Once I saw it again it totally took me back! Seeing those opening scenes with the actors really just made me feel like a kid again.
I had heard Morgan Freeman was on the show, but it didn't click until I saw the intro after all these years. I haven't seen this since I was a kid!
hockley91 1 year ago
me to im young and happy again ....
Lordie, growing old is SO depressing !!!
apatheticempathy 1 year ago
HEY YOU GUUUUUUUYYYYYYSSSSS
JohannaGotTalent41 1 year ago
I enjoyed THE ELECTRIC COMPANY a lot. Although, I liked this opening credit the best because it showed the friendly atmosphere - characters showing greeting facial expressions everytime they turned back into themselves.
BIG7THHEAVENFAN 1 year ago
@BIG7THHEAVENFAN
well said, i noticed that too
jcfbell3001 1 year ago
ahh yes , this was and still for me was the best season opener!
ufo5440 1 year ago
Crank for President!
Wellch 1 year ago
@Wellch
LOL excellent
jcfbell3001 1 year ago
LOVE IT!!
Bluzey30 1 year ago
One of the BEST iconic intros of ANY tv show. Aww, gotta love EZ Reader, Crank, Spidey, Letterman, and Fargo North. The new show is DOGSHIT and an insult to the original. THIS is the REAL deal, back when people gave a crap about producing quality kids shows. What a shame.
boofdfast 1 year ago
Wow, hard to believe I'm 42 now....time has passed by so quickly.....hard to believe I was watching this over 35 years ago in the early and mid 1970's. I thought the music was catchy and now I have a new appreciation of how cool the show was for its time. It brings me back to a much more simple, carefree and happy time.
MrRoland1967 1 year ago
@MrRoland1967 : I'm 41 and ditto what you said.
oakland2949 1 year ago
I'm with Bigbadben7. We must be the same age because I felt the same way when I saw this.
thebluetornado 1 year ago
@thebluetornado i turned 40 in may and this takes me back to a time that was TOTALLY CARE FREE. i remember crying over the last episode of giant robot LMFAO!! i thought my teenage yrs were awesome but seeing this reminds me of what pure happiness was really like
lawrenze13 1 year ago
I love the music after the credits-mega cool.
phantassm 1 year ago
This is when is was fun to be smart.
dolphinbuc 1 year ago
ahhh memories
Toocards 1 year ago
Crank is ...electricity for the brain???
stephaniesparkles 1 year ago
believe me, starwarsrebel2006, the new "Electric Company " is NOT worth watching....
skingerskanger 2 years ago 24
I just watched the New electric company
I think it's fun
harleykman 2 years ago
@skingerskanger AGREED. I just saw it...what a way to disgrace the original :(!
BoomBoomStockings1 1 year ago
@skingerskanger I agree with you wholeheartedly! Boo to the new version!
269848 1 year ago
@skingerskanger I don't know... I like it, but not in the context of this version. It's okay if you look at it as a separate show.
But yeah, compared to this, it's crap.
purplewowies 9 months ago
@skingerskanger I agree
puppyshoes2 5 months ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I remember smokin some 18A.. Morgan always got the good shit...those were goon times!
jjpeterson1 2 years ago
As a white boy from suburban philly in the 70s, I knew there was no one cooler or more hip than Morgan Freeman. Hey, almost 40 years later and he is a huge movie star. I called it back in the day.
Rocky2Math 2 years ago 11
These are great educational shows!
frei2006 2 years ago
I watched this when I was a little kid from 1971 to 1977. I keep hearing there is a new Electric Company out now but I've never seen it. Are there any clips of it here on YouTube because I couldn't find any?
starwarsrebel2006 2 years ago
@starwarsrebel2006, I checked Wikipedia and it said:
"Unlike the 1970s series, where the Electric Company refers to a troupe of actors in comedy sketches, the new series refers to a group of super heroes who battle villains in the name of literacy."
In other words, it sucks big time (at least to us old head REAL PBS vets...lol)
polobear1975 1 year ago 2
Yeah the new one completely failed to meet my expectations.
glitchvid 1 year ago
@polobear1975 You better you bet!
SnugglySara 1 year ago
Now I have to look for Zoom opening songs.
mezzofondo 2 years ago
@mezzofondo Just what I was thinkin'.
I loved Zoom too.
DJRckwl 1 year ago
Can never get over Morgan Freeman. Awesome!!
indeck77 2 years ago
Arent you glad we were kids when we were our shows we grew up on FTW!!!!!
Kelski1998 2 years ago
the claasics never die out they get on youtube
mzbobbi 2 years ago 4
man i learn english fromet
i love the 70ts
abook2008 2 years ago
let's bring it back!
HeatherAlison 2 years ago 2
the best kid show of all time!!!!
PALIMOST 2 years ago
classic TV at it's best!! Groovy!
mooky9669 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Nice work. keep it up. mean time come for social media marketing for esteembpo**com
lyndonsilva 2 years ago
From 1975.
kungfujiapple 2 years ago
Morgan Freeman was so groovy...jogging thru the park in street clothes and dare I saw I never knew Rita Moreno was so hot till now! LOL!
squidman22 2 years ago
Ah, now THIS is the intro I love and remember!
coffycup75 2 years ago
Damn right! My goodness! I couldn't even stand the new one. It's not even the good kind of sounding hip-hop too!
Zoloft77 2 years ago
That was awesome!
pipecub83 2 years ago
Ah, the good ol' days of REAL television programming!
reyguel 2 years ago 2
Love the porn underscoring music at the end
(bow chikkum bow bow!!)
latinhands 2 years ago
THAT GUITAR IS FUNKY-MAN i WAS ABOUT 6 YEARS OLD
djoeandlav 2 years ago
Yes!!! There's my 'HEY,YOU GUYYYYYYS!'
goodoldbill 2 years ago
@goodoldbill Reminds me of my sweetie's scream in "won't get fooled again".
SnugglySara 1 year ago
Why oh why are there no kids shows like this anymore?? I loved this show when I was little. And what a talented cast - Rita Moreno (Grammy and Oscar winner already by then), Morgan Freeman (a great talent even then), Bill Cosby and everyone else.
paktype 2 years ago 2
Wow... takes me right back. Ok, now I'm looking for my PB&J cut into triangles and a juicey box. HA!
CyberianHusky74 3 years ago 2
I love the wah guitar.....
Tamaslammer 3 years ago
HEY YOU GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now I get where thats from, TEC, then goonies, now...immobilized in the english language lol
mrbones102 3 years ago
Yes, I remember seeing from "The Goonies" that guy (I think his name was Sloth Fratelli) saying "Hey You Guys." As soon as he said that, it reminded me of "The Electric Company."
afriendofbean 2 years ago
When Morgan Freeman walks up to the screen after changing from his Easy Reader outfit to his suit and points at teh camera, i swear to God I fealt like i was six years old again.
It was more than a memory it was almost a reality of me being trasported back in time for a few moments.
This may sound gay but I almost cried and I am almost 40.
Bigbadben7 3 years ago 46
Makes perfect sense to me! I loved this show as a kid - never missed an episode.
Janet1968 3 years ago 2
not silly at all-same for me, and I'm almost 40, too!
trixiepepper7 3 years ago
dude, NOTHING gay about that at all! i felt the EXACT same way when i heard that theme song - more than a memory for sure! if you had asked me to sing the melody or even remember the intro at all, i couldn't have done it. those images and sounds were kind of shoved to the back of memory i guess, but they all came flooding right back when i heard that music and it was VERY cool indeed to be a kindergartner back in my old house again...even if it only was for a few seconds! peace!
awilds02 2 years ago 2
Same here. I was instantly transported to my childhood as I was watching this. Sesame Street then right after, the Electric Company. Watched both without fail!
RocinanteSWS 2 years ago
We're the same age and I feel the same way. For me it was Rita Moreno's transformation. I love the music change there - the chimes, the timpani, the trumpets, the modulation - just a great song! Amazing how revisiting something you have seen or heard in 30 years resonates in your mind afterward. This song was stuck in my head for days!
txtumbler 2 years ago
@Bigbadben7 I felt the same way. This is literally the first time I've seen this since I was 5 or 6. I could picture myself sitting in my babysitter's living room watching this. It really was a strange but pleasant experience watching this again. I couldn't have told you what the intro was before seeing it, but as I watched it, I recogized each person and remembered it.
falconflyer34 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 no shame in that. I'm 34 and I owe a slice of my childhood to Morgan Freeman and TEC. I still find myself singing the Easy Reader song and getting the odd looks.
maziebunny 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 I know!!! The rush of joy is overwhelming! These opening credits (Seasons 5 & 6) perfectly capture the sense of empowerment and energy that made the Electric Company must-see kid's TV in the 70's. My progressive little elementary school-without-walls in MD let us watch it every single week in class. Teachers loved it; we'd all laugh together and groove together, and then apply the concepts immediately after. We adored the cast. This show was dyn-o-mite!
ikenbrodt 1 year ago
@ikenbrodt
Agreed. I remeber watching PBS as a kid and somtimes after Seasme Street they would alter the programing and would show either Mr. Rogers which I liked or The Electric Company which I loved. This may sound silly but I have often told people that I knew I was never a Racist because of how much I was diggin Morgan Freeman back then as a child when I was innocnet with no outside influences.
Bigbadben7 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 Don't feel bad, I felt the same way. So we can both celebrate being too old farts together
moderadonna 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 I think it was the theme song that got me. So many fond memories of this show, the cast and the catchy themes throughout the show. Such a classic!
phantassm 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 ...and I dare ANYONE to poke fun at you. My first year of the 3d grade was in '78-79, and we used to watch this in class. After The Electric Company, this is how I identified Freeman and Moreno!
PatrioticPirate 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 This is the kind of kids' programming that PBS lacks these days. I hope someone puts the episode with the egg/eggs segment. I don't know why(maybe I have a weird mind), but I'd like to see that again.
269848 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 watching this made me emotional too so you are not the only one. It brings back so many great memories . I loved this show more than sesame street and was so disappointed when it got cancelled. Of all the cast, I would always remember Morgan Freeman being cool, confident and smooth, I didn't realize Rita Moreno was on the show though.
truserenity1 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 youre not alone when you say almost cried and being in your 30s, I have so many memories of this show... and some others like it from my childhood..aww the memories
datothachic 1 year ago
@datothachic That's good to know!
Bigbadben7 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 Does not sound gay at all. I remember the shows back then and wish I could relive them.
blva888 1 year ago
@Bigbadben7 Ya, but Crank was the BEST!!
Oceanpacifica1968 1 year ago
God this brings back memories. This is the version I remember!!!
bethshair 3 years ago
THIS IS SPIDER MAN BIRTH
baone91 3 years ago
"Faster than a Rolling "O". Stronger than silent "E". Able to leap Capital "T" in a single bound" It's a bird, it's a plan, IT'S LETTERMAN!!" (da,da,da...). The Spellbinder was funny. Always causing trouble.
reyguel 3 years ago
a plan? my friend, do you mean a plane?
thevisualboy37 3 years ago
Nope. They say "plan" . It's a play off of Superman's "it's a plane". They remove the silent "e"
reyguel 3 years ago
Good ole Joan Rivers
txtumbler 2 years ago
Marckymarc71 3 years ago
Thank you! For over 30 years I've wanted to know what they were saying!
thornydalemapco 2 years ago
These opening credits are much more familiar to me. Great, great children's program. It was a good companion to The Big Blue Marble.
jhutch524 3 years ago
This is the beginning I remember. We got this program from USA to New Zealand as we were too dumb to make our own programs
watchitnz 3 years ago
modulation alert at 30 seconds
trent100100 3 years ago
This was the intro I remember when I was a little girl. Morgan Freeman as Easy Reader was and is beyond cool!
hobbitbuddy 3 years ago
oh man this was the intro that I grew up with!! remmeber Spider Man and Morgan Freeman as the Count??
yellofury 3 years ago
oh for the love of EC hope they bring back my favorite singer.. for the old Silent E and LY song.. Mr. Lehrer we salute you and also LETTERMAN
LiLuLung 3 years ago
I was borin 1969, so I remembrr the Electric Company pretty well..Not so much Season 1 or 2, but around season 3, 4, 5..Especially the part where Rita Moreno goes "Hey you guys"!!!!
MrMojoRisinII 3 years ago
I remember this intro very well. I used to watch this show when I was a little girl.
Morgan Freeman before he became a big movie star now...Cool...
LeanaJo76 3 years ago
I was born in 1974 and this was my favorite show even though I had no idea what was going on some of my first memories in life are from this and other shows from that time...the best music ever. It had such a creative, talented, diverse, and original casts of people and I am proud to have been able to grow up in such a unique world. Now everthing pretty much sucks but this show is like an old friend to me...thanx for reading this...get a job!
sexualpervert 3 years ago 2
Ahhhhhhh, 1975 The good old days!
TheLizardKing1967 3 years ago
The sound effect (1:15-1:18) sounds a bit like R2D2.
80zdude4 3 years ago
When I was very young, I used to be very scared of the very beginning hearing the loud shouting of "HEEEY YOOOOU GUUUYYYS" and seeing the title card vibrating. I know this is a crazy question but, does anyone know the reason why they had the loud shouting of "HEEEY YOOOOU GUUUYYYS" instead of just showing the title card with someone softly saying in the background "Welcome To The Electric Company" then the actors on the show could've then sang the intro song? The loud shouting has scared kids.
afriendofbean 3 years ago
It was from a skit and they producers liked that line so much they threw it into the opening credits. I found it annoying as a kid but then my friends and the other kids in the neighborhood starting saying it so it grew on me and for the last 29 years it has been relooping into my head so "Youtube" thanks for allowing us to revist our child hood.
smilleydunc 3 years ago
I didn't know the producers wanted to put that line into the intro song. When I was very young, I used to be very scared to watch The Electric Company because I was afraid if that loud shouting was going to come again sometime during the show when I used to cry hearing it as a very young child. I always watched Sesame Street and Mister Rogers Neighborhood, and after Sesame Street ended, I thought Mister Rogers Neighborhood would come next but instead, The Electric Company came and I cried.
afriendofbean 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Don't you have a fucking blog to tell this shit too?
bodhitaichi 3 years ago
I posted a comment a week ago about "The Electric Company" intro and a few days ago I got a response from someone here and I responded back to that person and somehow my comments got posted at the top instead of under that person's response!
afriendofbean 3 years ago
@afriendofbean Scared the hell out of me!
SnugglySara 1 year ago
Yes, the loud shouting scared me too. Sometimes first was Sesame Street, then Electric Company, then Mister Rogers, or after Mister Rodgers then came Electric Company. I was always scared whenever Sesame Street or Mister Rogers ended because I was afraid if Electric Company came. (I know that smilleydunc here mentioned that the producers loved the shouting of "Heey Yoou Guuys" so much but, I still think it would have been best to have someone softly say "Welcome To The Electric Company.")
afriendofbean 1 year ago
One other thing, the reason I think it would have been best to have someone softly say in front of the camera or in the background "Welcome To The Electric Company" while showing the title card is because, the directors and producers should have known a lot better that shouting is a very bad thing for little kids to hear because "The Electric Company" is a young childrens show for kids to want to watch not have fear of. (Sesame Street, Mister Rogers, etc. didn't have shouting in the intros).
afriendofbean 1 year ago
Is that spiderman in 1:05?
ayesha12383 3 years ago
Yes, it sure is Spiderman (one of the superheros I have always liked). I'm not sure if Spiderman was part of "The Electric Company" show or not because I never actually watched "The Electric Company" on PBS when I was very young. On PBS when I was very young, I mostly watched "Sesame Street", "Mister Rogers Neighborhood", and "Today's Special."
afriendofbean 3 years ago
Yes Spider Man was part of the Electric Company. I was first introduced to Spider Man because of this show....LOL! Ahhh, the memories. :)
oltlghfan2008 3 years ago
@afriendofbean Today's Special, bow that one rocks!
SnugglySara 1 year ago
Yes I agree. I loved Today's Special more than Sesame Street and Mister Rogers Neighborhood. (I was told that the reason Today's Special went off air was because it wasn't a PBS program. It was a Nickelodeon program).
I also know two Today's Special webpages and I will email them to your YouTube email.
afriendofbean 1 year ago
Unfortunately, I was unable to send you the Today's Special webpages to your YouTube email because the message wasn't going through. Sorry.
afriendofbean 1 year ago
Yes, MARVEL donated spidey to help us learn. Too cool, eh?
schroeder8911 3 years ago
Wow, I wasn't born in the '70s, but that, THAT was cool! WHOA!
Americanautistic 3 years ago
HEY YOU GUYYYYYYYYYYYYYS! "The Electric
Company is coming back on PBS in January.
Bdr213 3 years ago
I'll have my tivo on stand-by. Is it the new one or the original series?
smilleydunc 3 years ago
This version that you see here is the original version. Nothing beats the original!
oltlghfan2008 3 years ago
HI.... I am not in USA but living near an american base in my country gave me access to the afrts tv and some kool programs.... this is the one I always remember...OHHH the funky music at the end of the intro I still love it!!
calito44 3 years ago
HEEEEY YOU GUYYYYYYYYSSS!!!!!!
watchutoob1 3 years ago
BTW..
Why was Morgan Freeman running through the park in pimp leisure clothes?
patton303 3 years ago 3
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Ambri121314 2 years ago
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Ambri121314 2 years ago
I love the music on these shows.
Lot of bass slapping ,guitar wah and horns with really dry drums....
I think these 70's shows subconsciously made me love funk and RnB.
patton303 3 years ago 2
This is the intro I remember.
TatumMcNichole 3 years ago
Oh Man I remember this Opener. What a trip. I just went back 30 years.
Drumguy1988 3 years ago
Danny Seagren was Spiderman. Jim Boyd was Paul and Maurice the Plant. He is also remembered as Crank and the Blue Beetle.
sttonknod 4 years ago
Okay nostagla buffs,here is a toughie..."Who portrayed 'Spiderman' and the 'Gorilla'? And remember Morgan Freeman got his start here,but why did Bill Cosby leave?
dxearlmarc 4 years ago
Bill Cosby was one the show to earn college credits for his PhD in Education. He left here to work on and create his doctoral thesis, a semi-autobiographical cartoon called "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids."
cfcantavero 3 years ago
I always wondered what instrument they used when saying the words "are you happy?". Didn't they also have a "Six Dollar and Thirty-Nine Cent Man" segment. I hope someone uploads it.
reyguel 4 years ago
The did...you just do a search saying "six dollar and 39 cent man" and I am sure it will pop up!
dxearlmarc 4 years ago
Sounds like a Theremin
Yurasik 4 years ago
what's a Theremin? Never heard of it.
reyguel 4 years ago
That cool synthy sound on Good Vibrations by the Beach Boys is a theramin. I think they used it at the beginning of Darlin' as well. I think you played it by running your finger over a kind of keyboard, but it didnt have keys... Wiki it you will see what I mean!
WilB1972 3 years ago
Thanks. I Googled it and heard what one actually sounded like. Sounds just like what that electric co. sounds like.
reyguel 3 years ago
Prob was done with a Moog synth.
ZyllAvatar 4 years ago
I agree...definitely a Moog Synth.
Dawgator 3 years ago
Almost certainly done with a moog, since at the time, the theremin was in decline and a moog could be programmed to produce a similar sound with easier tonal control.
Thurifor 4 years ago
I think you must be referring to the Six Dollar and Ninety-Five Cent Man. That was from the short-lived ABC children's series Uncle Croc's Block. That series was so bad, it soured ABC's relations with Filmation Studios. They never ordered a cartoon or series from Filmation again.
towringer 3 years ago
Actually, I did find the "$6.39 man" segment. His "bionic" eye always put a balloon up wit some kind of message in it,but thanks anyway.
reyguel 3 years ago
Oh man, I love the show opening right after the intro sequence - BRING ON DA FUNK!
Yurasik 4 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
HEY YOU GUYS!!!!!!!!!
prayborn 4 years ago
nothing is as important as teaching kids about crank. He looks at her tight leotard and asks, "are you happy?"
bobadork 4 years ago
The skit they announce in this intro where Easy Reader is asking Valerie "are you happy?" is actually a HILARIOUS skit that I haven't seen forever. If anyone has this skit, please post it for an automatic 5 stars! Your fellow TEC fans will greatly appreciate it!