Spidey Super Stories

A live-action, recurring skit on the PBS children's television series The Electric Company. Episodes featured the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man, provided to the Children's Television Workshop free of charge, and was played by puppeteer and dancer Danny Seagren. Stories involved the masked superhero foiling mischievous characters who were involved in petty criminal activities. The cast of The Electric Company played the roles of the various characters in each story, with another serving as narrator. In many of these sketches, viewers were addressed as "true believers." Unlike other live-action and cartoon productions of Spider-Man, this version of the web-slinging hero did not speak out loud, instead communicating only with word balloons, in order to encourage young viewers to practice their reading skills because he was drawn without a mouth. He also never appeared out of his costume as Peter Parker and, given the series' budget limitations, used his web-shooters sparingly.

en
Created By

Stan LeeSteve Ditko

First Aired on

Oct 21, 1974

3 seaons till Nov 07, 1974

Popularity: 7.0725
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Networks
(US)
Production

Children's Television Workshop (US)Sesame Workshop (US)

Status: Ended

Show Ended

Last episode: The Bookworm

Seasons & episodes

Total 3 seasons, 29 episodes

Season 1

Approximately one dozen "Spidey Super Stories" segments were produced during The Electric Company's 1974–1975 season.

Aired

12 Episodes
  • Episode 1Spidey Meets the Spoiler5 min

    The first "Spidey Super Stories" segment. Spidey links clues to the Spoiler (Skip Hinnant), a mischievous villain who aims to spoil people's fun. Spidey defeats him, but the victory is bittersweet: A wall got spoiled when Spidey knocks the Spoiler through it. The opening shot cover features the Spoiler leaping at Spidey. Spider-Man also appeared in the opening sequence of the actual episode (Season 4 premiere). In the scene, Easy Reader (Morgan Freeman) announced to J. Arthur Crank (Jim Boyd) that Spider-Man would be a new recruit on The Electric Company, but Crank only found the idea to be nonsense. However, it isn’t until the real Spider-Man comes and steals Crank’s comic book behind his back, having Crank to believe that Easy stole it.

  • Episode 2A Night at the Movies5 min

    Count Dracula (Morgan Freeman) plans to bite the neck of an unsuspecting moviegoer (Judy Graubart). Spidey is able to foil Dracula's plans. Count Dracula (based on the Bram Stoker character) was a regular character on The Electric Company, appearing in skits with the Werewolf (Jim Boyd) and Frankenstein's monster (Skip Hinnant). It was episode 9B's sketch of the day.

  • Episode 3Spider-Man Meets the Evil Dr. Fly5 min

    Dr. Fly (Luis Avalos), a mutated half-human, half-fly plans to turn the world's inhabitants into the same type of mutant. He disguises himself as a vendor to distribute hot dogs laced with a formula of fleas, flies and other insects. Spidey saves a customer (Jim Boyd) from eating a tainted hot dog and traps Dr. Fly in his web, but gets a ticket from a police officer (Morgan Freeman) for operating Dr. Fly's pushcart without a license.

  • Episode 4Spidey Up Against the Wall5 min

    At a New York Mets baseball game, a mutated half-human, half-wall creature (Jim Boyd) sneaks up behind outfielder "Gumbo" Grace Ivy (Skip Hinnant) and causes him to miss a routine fly ball. The umpire (Morgan Freeman) is also knocked down. Spidey catches the Wall, but is ejected from the ballpark because spectators are not allowed on the field. The opening screenshot shows the Wall bumping Spidey.

  • Episode 5Spider-Man Meets the Can Crusher5 min

    Long ago, a young boy visited a soup factory, but lost his pet frog in a vat of tomato soup. As an adult, the Can Crusher (Jim Boyd, sporting a Don King-type hairdo, a large red nose and wearing a black jumpsuit) visits supermarkets to find the can where his beloved frog may be, smashing them with a large hammer, causing a disturbance and a food shortage whenever he destroys cans in his vain efforts. Spidey is called on to help, and the Can Crusher disguises himself as the store manager. Spider-Man initially smashes the Can Crusher into a can display, but the Can Crusher retaliates and returns the blow, knocking Spidey unconscious. After his victory, the Can Crusher tells the viewer his story as told above, then escapes. Spidey then comes to and begins to contemplate how to defeat the Can Crusher the next time.

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