The Electric Company vol. 2
The Electric Company DVDs
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Product Description:
Studio: Uni Dist Corp (music) Release Date: 11/14/2006
Amazon.com:
Each episode was an explosion of creativity. From 1971-1977, The
Electric Company made learning to read not just fun, but
downright hip. Designed more as a complement than an
alternative to Sesame Street, that means skits, animated
segments, musical interludes, and funky fashions--always a plus.
(Dig those fringed jackets and snakeskin stretch pants.) The cast
includes Emmy winner Bill Cosby, Oscar winner Rita Moreno, Fame
star Irene Cara (a member of the Short Circus), and a skinny
beanpole named Morgan Freeman, who would pick up his own Academy
Award a few decades later. In this 20-episode set, cast members Judy
Graubart, Luis Avalos, Skip Hinnant, Jim Boyd, and Hattie Winston
provide introductions. In addition, pop-ups dispense fun facts, like
the show's original title: The Reading Program. As in the
first four-disc collection, episodes appear out of sequence, but
work fine as stand-alones--although it would be nice to have all of
them available at some point. Musical highlights include Freeman's
hobo lament "Shoo Shoo Sunshine" (episode 12), Short Circus funk jam
"Knock Knock Rock" (35A), and let's not forget that "empowering"
theme: "We're gonna turn it on / we're gonna bring you the power!"
Watch carefully or you'll miss quick-as-a wink cameos from the likes
of I Dream of Jeannie's Barbara Eden (150), Bonanza's
Lorne Green (223), and All in the Family's Carroll O'Connor
and Jean Stapleton (166). Other notables to contribute their talents
include Tom Lehrer, author of the "Silent E" song, Mel Brooks, voice
behind "Blond-Haired Cartoon Man," and Producers pals Gene
Wilder and Zero Mostel, voices behind The Adventures of Letterman
(with Joan Rivers as narrator and Mostel as the evil Spell Binder).
The Electric Company set its sights on children aged 7-10,
but there's plenty of fast-paced fun here for younger kids and
adults, too. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
