The Electric Company is one of an educational programming which aired in 1971-1977 on PBS. PBS Kids was expected to air the 2009 version on PBS Kids GO! and it was produced by Sesame Workshop.
Fargo North, Decoder (played by Skip Hinnant), the detective who specializes in deciphering scrambled messages, receives a visit at his office from Big Bird (played by Caroll Spinney). Big Bird repeatedly refers to Fargo as Mr. Furpo (in reference to the bird's mangling of Mr. Hooper's name). Big Bird recalls how he absentmindedly ripped up a message (and as he demonstrates, Fargo tears up a dollar bill). Fargo is eager to help, but keeps thinking he's seen the yellow fowl somewhere before. After running the words through a machine, Fargo helps Bird use capitalization and punctuation to reveal that the message was "Don't lose your way." Big Bird thanks Mr. Furpo, but having failed to read the message beforehand, he is now lost. The Muppet asks, "Could you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?" Fargo tells him to go to Vi's Diner and take the No. 4 bus (Big Bird knows the driver, who's a person in his neighborhood). Following his client's departure, Fargo finally guesses that his famous visitor was Mr. Rogers.
Episode 453, from January 15, 1975
J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd) shuts the door on a salesman (Luis Avalos), explaining that he has company. Crank after the peddler asks why he's so nasty anyway, Crank sings an extended musical tribute to His role models, Oscar the Grouch (Spinney again), with the vowel sound ou emphasized. The grouch himself pops up from under the table: "Crank, if you say anything nice, I'm going to get sick." He joins in for a duet, with musical asides SUCH as "You know, you've got an aaaaawful voice." Oscar Crank also teaches the finer points of scowling.
Episode 491, from March 10, 1975
J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd) is trading repartee with Vi (Lee Chamberlin) at Vi's Diner, when Grover (Frank Oz) enters. The lovable furry one greets Vi with "Hello there, pretty lady" and gives Crank a hearty slap on the chest. Grover tearfully explains that he is lost and unable to remember where he lives. Vi brings out a map to help Grover, featuring such locations as Skin Street, Skit Street, and Mask Avenue.
Crank: (pointing) Listen, do you live up here.
Grover: What, on that piece of cardboard?
Grover becomes increasingly upset and fears he may have to live on Vi's floor. Vi asks the monster for details about his neighborhood, and he recalls his friends Ernie, Bert, and Gordon. Crank interjects, "All these friends you got, don't they got any last names?" Grover also remembers that his neighborhood has a big bird (Crank: "An eagle!") Vi puts two and two together and asks Grover if he lives on Sesame Street. Grover is ecstatic in his relief. When the "pretty and smart lady" diner owner asks if he'd "like to find out how to get to Sesame Street," Grover replies, "No. I'd like to see a menu."
Note: This skit originally aired during the second season, from 1972 to 1973.
Big Bird and Fargo North, Decoder
J. Arthur Crank and Oscar
Grover with Crank and Vi
Vi to Grover: "You're as sweet as they come, sugar."
References[]
The static bumper ident features a parody of the show where Dash scrubs the static balloon until Dot gets a
PBS Kids' Spoof of The Electric Company from 2008.
little shock.
Mentions[]
In a sketch appearing in the final aired episode, the Mad Scientist (Morgan Freeman) calls his assistant Igor (Luis Avalos) a "misshapen little Muppet."
In the Short Circus song, "Why?", one lyric asks "Why ain't it easy being green?"
In a cartoon where a reptile uses a machine to make the word "trip", he hums bits of the "Sesame Street Theme" as he pours the letters in.
