Electric Company, The


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About

The Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced by the Children's Television Workshop (now called Sesame Workshop) for PBS in the United States. PBS broadcast 780 episodes over the course of its six seasons from October 25, 1971 to April 15, 1977. After it ceased production that year, the program continued in reruns from 1977-1985. CTW produced the show at Teletape Studios Second Stage in Manhattan.

The Electric Company employed sketch comedy and other devices to provide an entertaining program to help elementary school children develop their reading skills. It was intended for children who had graduated from CTW's flagship program, Sesame Street. Appropriately enough, the humor was more mature than what was seen there.

The original cast included Morgan Freeman, Rita Moreno, Bill Cosby, Judy Graubart, Lee Chamberlin, and Skip Hinnant. Most of the cast had done stage, repertory, and improv work with Cosby and Moreno already well-established performers on film and television. Ken Roberts, best known as a soap-opera announcer, was the narrator of some segments during Season One.

Jim Boyd, who was strictly an off-camera voice actor and puppeteer during Season One, began appearing on-camera in Season Two, mostly in the role of J. Arthur Crank. Luis Avalos also joined the cast at that time.

Bill Cosby was a regular in Season One, and occasionally appeared in new segments during Season Two, but left afterward. Nevertheless, segments that Cosby had taped in the first two years were repeatedly used for the rest of the run, and Cosby was billed as a cast member throughout. Similarly, Lee Chamberlin also left after Season Two, but many of her segments were also repeatedly reused; consequently, she was also billed as a cast member for the rest of the run.

Added to the cast at the beginning of Season Three was Hattie Winston, an actress and singer who later appeared on the show Becker. Beginning in Season Four, Danny Seagren appeared in the role of Spider-Man.

 

Starring

Morgan Freeman

Judy Graubart

Skip Hinnant

Rita Moreno

Jim Boyd

Lee Chamberlin

(1971–1973)

Bill Cosby

(1971–1973)

Luis Avalos

(1972–1977)

Hattie Winston

(1973–1977)

Danny Seagren

(1974–1977)

 

The Short Circus

June Angela

Irene Cara

(1971–1972)

Douglas Grant

(1971–1973)

Stephen Gustafson

(1971–1975)

Melanie Henderson

(1971–1975)

Denise Nickerson

(1972–1973)

Bayn Johnson

(1973–1975)

Gregg Burge

(1973–1975)

Janina Mathews

(1975–1977)

Réjane Magloire

(1975–1977)

Rodney Lewis

(1975–1977)

Todd Graff

(1975–1977)

 

The Adventures of Letterman

Gene Wilder

Mel Brooks

Joan Rivers

Zero Mostel

 

Country of origin United States

No. of seasons 6

No. of episodes 780 (List of episodes)

Production

Running time 30 Minutes

Broadcast

Original channel PBS

Original run October 25, 1971 – April 15, 1977

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Highlights
Joan Ganz Cooney on the show, The Electric Company
01:26
Stanley Ralph Ross on the development of The Electric Company
01:59
Roscoe Orman on Morgan Freeman on The Electric Company
01:00
Thad Mumford on writing for The Electric Company
03:42
Who talked about this show

Frank Biondo

View Interview
Frank Biondo on working on the Children's Television Workshop program The Electric Company, a show with difficult camera work
04:00

Joan Ganz Cooney

View Interview
Joan Ganz Cooney on the show, The Electric Company
01:26
Joan Ganz Cooney on the origin of the program to promote reading, The Electric Company
07:45
Joan Ganz Cooney on planning the program to promote reading, The Electric Company
08:49
Joan Ganz Cooney on the show, The Electric Company
01:26

Rita Moreno

View Interview
Rita Moreno on appearing as a regular cast member on The Electric Company
02:46
Rita Moreno on why The Electric Company was a special show, and important for her to do
08:39

Thad Mumford

View Interview
Thad Mumford on writing for The Electric Company
03:42
Thad Mumford on learning from Tom Whedon on The Electric Company, and on the process of writing for the show
04:52
Thad Mumford on favorite sketches and characters of The Electric Company, and on Joan Ganz Cooney
04:02
Thad Mumford on winning an Emmy for The Electric Company
01:29

Roscoe Orman

View Interview
Roscoe Orman on Morgan Freeman on The Electric Company
01:00

Stanley Ralph Ross

View Interview
Stanley Ralph Ross on the development of The Electric Company
01:59

Jeremy Stevens

View Interview
Jeremy Stevens on how he came to help create The Electric Company
03:16
Jeremy Stevens on co-creating The Electric Company
04:31
Jeremy Stevens on writing episodes of The Electric Company
04:54
Jeremy Stevens on the cast and characters of The Electric Company
05:04
Jeremy Stevens on winning an Emmy for The Electric Company
01:47
Jeremy Stevens on the end of The Electric Company and moving to Los Angeles
02:05

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