Monday, February 27, 2006

The Best of the Electric Company, from Shout Factory

As the cover of the box says, “if you were between six and ten years old during the ‘70s, then there is a good chance you learned to read with help from The Electric Company.” Speaking as someone who turned six in 1974 and ten in 1978, I obviously fall solidly into that group, and can attest to this show’s impact on my reading life. Credit almost certainly can be given to this inventive show, along with Sesame Street and parents who emphasized the importance of reading, for my love of the written word today.

The show was comprised of a variety of sketches that in some way made reading fun. My personal favorite was always The Adventures of Letterman, a superhero who was “Faster than a rolling ‘O’! Stronger than silent ‘E”! Able to leap capital ‘T” in a single bound! It’s a word! It’s a plan! It’s Letterman! Oh, and by the way, the character just happened to voiced by one Gene Wilder. For those who prefer to learn with big-name superheroes, Spider-Man was also a regular guest.



Another popular sketch (and another personal favorite of mine) was Easy Reader, a character portrayed by a before-he-was-an-Academy-Award-winner Morgan Freeman. Easy Reader would read everything he could lay his eyes upon and taught viewers words of the day. Another animated short, known today as Monolith, was set to the Richard Strauss composition known as Also sprach Zarathustra (best known from 2001: A Space Odyssey). It featured a big, monument type feature that crumbled as the music played to reveal a particular sound cluster (i.e. ee, oo, alk). I think it was because I was partial to classical music as a child, but I always looked forward to this portion of the show the most.

And who doesn’t remember Soft Shoe Silhouettes? Two cast members would be featured, as the title describes, in silhouette. The one on the left would pronounce one portion of a word, and the person on the right would finish it. (For example, “th - ing. Thing.”)

Along with the aforementioned Freeman, other regulars on the show included Rita Moreno (hers was the voice that shouted the memorable “Hey you guys!” at the beginning of the episodes), Bill Cosby, Skip Hinnant (known in other venues as the voice of the X-rated Fritz the Cat) and Denise Nickerson (Violet Beauregard from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory).

The good news for people like myself who have extremely fond memories of the show is that Shout Factory has released a “best of” set, which includes all of the wonderful, creative sketches we loved as children. Twenty of the best shows are included, along with special features such as cast interviews, show trivia, episode introductions from Rita Moreno, outtakes, and plenty more. I was especially thrilled to find both the stuff I adored and the things I’d forgotten was terrific in the box. It’s a fantastic set and isn’t simply for the nostalgic. Now those same people who grew up with the show can enjoy it with their children. What a wonderful way to learn.

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