| Schoolhouse Rock! | |
|---|---|
| Format | Educational, Animated, Musical |
| Created by | David McCall |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 7 |
| No. of episodes | 64 (60 aired) (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 3 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Original run | January 6, 1973 – March 31, 2009 |
Schoolhouse Rock! is an American interstitial programming series of animated musical educational short films that aired during the Saturday morning children's programming on the U.S. television network ABC. The topics covered included grammar, science, economics, history, mathematics, and civics. The series' original run lasted from 1973 to 1985, and was later revived with both old and new episodes airing from 1993 to 1999. Additional episodes were produced as recently as 2009 for direct-to-video release.
Contents |
Schoolhouse Rock! began as a commercial advertising venture by David McCall, half of famed Madison Avenue advertising agency McCaffrey & McCall . The idea came to McCall when he noticed one of his sons, who was having trouble in school remembering the multiplication tables, knew the lyrics to many current rock songs. The first song recorded was Three Is a Magic Number, written by Bob Dorough. It tested well, so a children's record was compiled and released. Tom Yohe listened to the first song, and began to doodle pictures to go with the lyrics. He told McCall that the songs would make good animation.
When a print workbook version fell through, McCall's company decided to produce their own animated versions of the songs, which they then sold to ABC (which was already the advertising company's biggest account) based on a demo animation of the original "Three Is A Magic Number" for its Saturday morning lineup. They pitched their idea to Michael Eisner, then vice-president of ABC's children's programming division. Eisner brought longtime Warner Bros. cartoonist/director Chuck Jones to the meeting to also listen to the presentation.
The network's children's programming division had producers of its regular 30- and 60-minute programs cut three minutes out of each of their shows, and sold General Foods on the idea of sponsoring the segments. The series stayed on the air for 12 years. Later sponsors of the Schoolhouse Rock! segments also included Nabisco, Kenner Toys, Kellogg's, and McDonald's.
Thirty-seven episodes were recorded and produced between 1972 and 1980. The first season of Schoolhouse Rock, "Multiplication Rock," debuted in 1973 and discussed all of the multiplication tables from two through twelve, with one episode devoted to powers of 10 (My Hero Zero) instead of multiples of ten. This original series was followed in short order by a new series which ran from 1973 to 1975, entitled "Grammar Rock," which discussed nouns, verbs and adjectives along with one of the most well-known title of the series, Conjunction Junction.
To coincide with the upcoming United States bicentennial, a third series, entitled "America Rock", airing in 1975 and 1976, had episodes covering the structure of the United States government in another well-known episode I'm Just a Bill along with important moments in American history such as Sufferin' til Sufferage and The Shot Heard Round the World
A fourth series entitled "Science Rock" followed in 1978 and 1979, and included a broad range of science-related topics such as Do the Circulation and The Body Machine (a play on The Body Electric), The Energy Blues, Electricity, E-Lec-Tri-City, to the most well-known of the series, Interplanet Janet (which is about the solar system).
A fifth follow-up series, entitled "Computer Rock," featuring the characters Scooter Computer and Mr. Chips (the only episodes in the series to feature any recurring characters), premiered in the early 1980s and comprised just four segments about personal computer technology, then just emerging onto the scene. As the references and depictions became quickly outdated, due to the rapid advance of technology, the series was never rerun after 1984.
After leaving the airwaves in 1985, the original team reunited to produce two more Grammar Rock segments ("Busy Prepositions" and "The Tale of Mr. Morton") for television in 1993. This was followed in 1995 by a brand new series, "Money Rock," which discussed topics related to money management on both the personal and governmental scale. Episodes from the new series aired in rotation with the original segments from 1994 to 1996.
Schoolhouse Rock as a whole ceased airing on television in 2000 with newer episodes released directly to home video. Starting in 2002, the team once again reunited to produce a new song, "I'm Gonna Send Your Vote To College" for the release of the 30th Anniversary DVD. For the new song, Tom Yohe Jr. took over as lead designer for his father, Tom Yohe Sr., who had died in 2000.[1] Another contemporary song, called "Presidential Minute", which explained the process of electing the President of the United States in greater detail, was included on the 2008 DVD "Schoolhouse Rock! Election Collection", which centered on songs relating to American history and government.
A new series entitled "Schoolhouse Rock!: Earth"[2] was created by the original production team, premiered in 2009, and featured eleven environmentally-themed songs.
| Episode title | Subject | Music by[3] | Lyrics by[3] | Performed by[3] | Animation & design | First aired[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| My Hero, Zero | Multiplication by 0 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Focus Design / Tom Yohe | January 13, 1973 |
| Elementary, My Dear | Multiplication by 2 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Jack Sidebotham | January 20, 1973 |
| Three Is a Magic Number | Multiplication by 3 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Focus Design / Tom Yohe | January 6, 1973 |
| The Four-Legged Zoo | Multiplication by 4 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough (and chorus of children) | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Bob Eggers | January 27, 1973 |
| Ready or Not, Here I Come (a parody of "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" by Jay and the Techniques) | Multiplication by 5 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Tom Yohe | February 3, 1973 |
| I Got Six | Multiplication by 6 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Grady Tate | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Tom Yohe | February 10, 1973 |
| Lucky Seven Sampson | Multiplication by 7 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Rowland B. Wilson | February 17, 1973 |
| Figure Eight | Multiplication by 8 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Blossom Dearie | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Tom Yohe | February 23, 1973 |
| Naughty Number Nine | Multiplication by 9 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Grady Tate | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Tom Yohe | March 2, 1973 |
| The Good Eleven | Multiplication by 11 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Focus Design / Jack Sidebotham | March 9, 1973 |
| Little Twelvetoes | Multiplication by 12 | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Phil Kimmelman & Associates / Rowland B. Wilson | March 9, 1973 |
No shows were produced featuring the numbers 1 or 10 explicitly, though "My Hero Zero" and "The Good Eleven" do include those numbers.
In 1973, Capitol Records released a soundtrack album of Multiplication Rock, featuring all 11 songs. Two tracks, "My Hero, Zero" and "Three Is A Magic Number" had been edited for TV to keep each video within three minutes. This LP features both songs in their full, unedited forms. Also, the album version of "The Four-Legged Zoo" has a slightly different ending than the television version.
| Episode title | Subject | Music by[3] | Lyrics by[3] | Performed by[3] | First aired[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conjunction Junction | conjunction | Bob Dorough | Jack Sheldon and Terri Morel | Jack Sheldon | 1973 |
| Unpack Your Adjectives | adjective | George R. Newall | George R. Newall | Blossom Dearie | 1975 |
| Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here | adverb | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | 1974 |
| Interjections! | interjection | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Essra Mohawk | 1974 |
| Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla | pronoun | Bob Dorough | Kathy Mandary | Jack Sheldon | 1977 |
| Verb: That's What's Happenin' | verb | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Zachary Sanders | 1974 |
| A Noun Is A Person, Place Or Thing | noun | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | 1973 |
| Busy Prepositions | preposition | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Jack Sheldon and Bob Dorough | October 24, 1993 |
| The Tale of Mr. Morton | subject and predicate | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Jack Sheldon | December 1993 |
"Busy Prepositions" (aka "Busy P's"), "The Tale of Mr. Morton", and "Dollars and Sense" were produced for Schoolhouse Rock's return to ABC in 1993 with J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, Inc. producing the animation.
| Episode title | Subject | Music by[3] | Lyrics by[3] | Performed by[3] | First aired[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Body Machine | nutrition and digestive system | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Bob Dorough and Jack Sheldon | 1979 |
| Do the Circulation | circulatory system | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Joshie Armstead, Mary Sue Berry, & Maeretha Stewart | 1979 |
| Electricity, Electricity | electricity | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Zachary Sanders | 1979 |
| The Energy Blues | energy conservation | George Newall | George Newall | Jack Sheldon | 1978 |
| Interplanet Janet | the solar system | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | 1978 |
| Telegraph Line | nervous system | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Jaime Aff and Christine Langner | 1979 |
| Them Not-So-Dry Bones | skeletal system | George Newall | George Newall | Jack Sheldon | 1979 |
| A Victim of Gravity | gravity | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | The Tokens | 1978 |
| The Greatest Show on Earth | weather | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Bob Kalban | not shown on TV [4] |
Sometime after its initial airing, The Greatest Show on Earth/The Weather Show was pulled from broadcast rotation due to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus objecting to its use of their trademark slogan "The Greatest Show On Earth" and filing a lawsuit. However, it was included in the 1987 Schoolhouse Rock VHS release, and in 2002 when it was included on the bonus disk of the 30th Anniversary DVD (see below). Also, the episode was deleted on the "Science Rock" 1995 VHS.
| Episode title | Subject | Music by[3] | Lyrics by[3] | Performed by[3] | First aired[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elbow Room | U.S. territorial expansion | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Sue Manchester | 1975 |
| Fireworks | Declaration of Independence | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Grady Tate | 1976 |
| The Great American Melting Pot | Immigration/Diversity | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lori Lieberman | 1977 |
| I'm Just a Bill | Legislative Process | Dave Frishberg | Dave Frishberg | Jack Sheldon | 1975 |
| Mother Necessity | American inventions | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough, Jack Sheldon, Blossom Dearie, & Essra Mohawk | 1977 |
| No More Kings | American independence | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens & Bob Dorough | 1975 |
| Preamble | United States Constitution | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | 1975 |
| The Shot Heard 'Round The World | American Revolutionary War | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | 1976 |
| Sufferin' 'til Suffrage | Women's suffrage | Bob Dorough | Tom Yohe | Essra Mohawk | 1976 |
| Three Ring Government | separation of powers | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | 1979 |
| I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College | Electoral College | George R. Newall and Bob Dorough | George R. Newall and Bob Dorough | Jack Sheldon and Bob Dorough | 2002 |
| Presidential Minute | Voting For President | George R. Newall | George R. Newall and Tom Yohe, Jr. | Jack Sheldon | 2002 |
"I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College" and "Presidential Minute" were produced for DVD.
| Episode title | Subject | Music by[3] | Lyrics by[3] | Performed by[3] | First aired[4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dollars and Sense | interest and loans | Dave Frishberg | Dave Frishberg | Val Hawk and Bob Dorough | 1994 |
| $7.50 Once a Week | budget | Mark Chapalonis | Dave Frishberg | Dave Frishberg | 1995 |
| Where The Money Goes | paying bills | Rich Mendoza | Rich Mendoza | Jack Sheldon | 1995 |
| Tax Man Max | taxes | Stephen Flaherty | Lynn Ahrens | Patrick Quinn | 1995 |
| Walkin' On Wall Street | stock exchange | Dave Frishberg | Dave Frishberg | Dave Frishberg | 1996 |
| This For That | barter and the history of currency | George R. Newall | George R. Newall | Bob Dorough | 1996 |
| Tyrannosaurus Debt | budget deficit and United States national debt | Tom Yohe | Tom Yohe | Bob Dorough and Bob Kaliban | 1996 |
| The Check's In The Mail | using checks | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Luther Rix | 1996 |
| Episode title | Subject | Music by | Lyrics by | Performed by | First aired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report from the North Pole | Global Warming | Bob Dorough | George R. Newall | Bob Dorough, Jack Sheldon, Bob Kaliban and Barry Carl | 2009 |
| The Little Things We Do | Energy conservation | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens, Jack Sheldon, Bob Dorough, Bob Kaliban, Val Hawk, Vicki Doney and Nancy Reed | 2009 |
| The Trash Can Band | Recycling | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens, Luther Rix, Bob Dorough and Eric Weissberg | 2009 |
| You Oughta Be Savin' Water | Water conservation | Sean Altman and Barry Carl | George R. Newall | Barry Carl, Sean Altman, Elliott Kerman | 2009 |
| The Rainforest | Rainforests | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Tituss Burgess | 2009 |
| Save the Ocean | Oceans | Sean Altman | Sean Altman | Sean Altman, Inna Dukach, Jon Spurney, Patti Rothberg, Barry Carl and Eric Booker | 2009 |
| FatCat Blue: The Clean Rivers Song | Marine Debris | Andy Brick | Andy Brick | Jack Sheldon, Bob Kaliban, Val Hawk, Vicki Doney and Nancy Reed | 2009 |
| A Tiny Urban Zoo | Gardens | George Stiles | Anthony Drewe | Barrett Foa, Shoshana Bean, and George Stiles | 2009 |
| Solar Power to the People | Solar energy | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens | Lynn Ahrens, Val Hawk, Vicki Doney and Nancy Reed | 2009 |
| Windy and the Windmills | Wind power | Bob Dorough | George R. Newall | Bob Dorough, Jack Sheldon, Val Hawk, Vicki Doney and Nancy Reed | 2009 |
| Don't Be a Carbon Sasquatch | Carbon footprints | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | Bob Dorough | 2009 |
| The 3 R's | Reduce, Reuse, Recycles | Bob Dorough | Mitchel Musso | Mitchel Musso | 2009 |
In January 2009, IGN listed Schoolhouse Rock! as the 33rd best in the Top 100 Best Animated TV Shows. [5]
The Schoolhouse Rock! CD-Roms are made by Creative Wonders, a division of The Learning Company and Electronic Arts.
Several tie-ins were released in 1996:
In addition to the above, Rhino Records also released Schoolhouse Rocks the Vote!: A Benefit for Rock the Vote, a tribute album containing covers and original songs in the style of Schoolhouse Rock, all with an electoral theme. It was released on August 18, 1998.
A 1987 production of the series for VHS tape featured Cloris Leachman opening the collection and some songs with child dancers and singers. Three songs (namely "Three Ring Government," "The Good Eleven," and "Little Twelve Toes") were not included on the videos.[1][6]
In 1995, ABC Video and Image Entertainment released two volumes of Schoolhouse Rock on LaserDisc, "Schoolhouse Rock Volume 1: America Rock and Grammar Rock" (ID3245CC), and "Schoolhouse Rock Volume 2: Multiplication Rock and Science Rock" (ID3383CC). For both volumes the first side was in the CLV Extended Play format and the second was in the frame-accessible CAV format, and both contained CX-encoded analog and digital audio soundtracks. The "Grammar Rock" volume included the 1993 shorts "Busy Prepositions" and "The Tale of Mr. Morton."
In 1995, ABC Video re-released four segments of Schoolhouse Rock! on VHS with alternative covers and opening.
In 1998, for the show's 25th anniversary, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment bought the rights to Schoolhouse Rock! and released five segments on VHS in the form of Disney Presents: Schoolhouse Rock!.
On August 26, 2002 Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released a 2-disc DVD set to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the show. The set features 52 of the 53 episodes, including the lost "Computer Rock" segments, with the exception of "Introduction". "The Weather Show" and "Presidential Minute" are found on the bonus disk, the former in modified form with the problematic lyric removed, and the latter viewable only upon completing the "Earn Your Diploma" Trivia Game. An abbreviated VHS, featuring the "top 25" episodes plus "I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College," was released at the same time.
In 2008, DVDs of individual Schoolhouse Rock series were released for classroom use.[7]
On September 23, 2008, the "Schoolhouse Rock-Election Collection" was released, including 14 songs about American history and the government and a "new to DVD" song.[8]
On March 31, 2009, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released "Schoolhouse Rock-Earth", including 11 newly written and animated songs as well as "Energy Blues".[9]
| DVD name | Ep # | Release date | Additional information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schoolhouse Rock!- Special 30th Anniversary Edition | 52 | August 26, 2002 |
|
| Schoolhouse Rock!-Election Collection | 14 | September 23, 2008 |
|
| Schoolhouse Rock!-Earth[10] | 13 | March 31, 2009 |
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