The Jetsons is a prime-time animated sitcom that was produced by Hanna-Barbera for Screen Gems (and later Worldvision Enterprises). The original incarnation of the series aired Sunday nights on ABC from September 23, 1962, to March 3, 1963. It was Hanna-Barbera’s space age counterpart to The Flintstones.
Like the former show, it is a half-hour family sitcom projecting contemporary American culture and lifestyle into another time period. While the Flintstones live in a world with machines powered by birds and dinosaurs, the Jetsons live in a futuristic utopia in the year 2062 of elaborate robotic contraptions, aliens, holograms, and whimsical inventions.
The original series, comprising 24 episodes, was produced between 1962 and 1963 and was re-run on Saturday morning for decades. Its continuing popularity led to further episodes being produced for syndication between 1985 and 1987. The series was extensively merchandised and followed by two made-for-TV movies and two theatrical feature films. The Japanese dub is associated with Toei Animation.
George Jetson works three hours a day and three days a week for his short, tyrannical boss named Cosmo G. Spaceley, owner of the company Spacely Space Sprockets. Typical episodes involve Mr. Spacely firing and rehiring George Jetson, or promoting and demoting him.
Mr. Spacely has a competitor, H. G. Cogswell, owner of the rival company Cogswell Cogs. The Jetson family live in Skypad Apartments in Orbit City, where all homes and businesses are raised high above the ground on adjustable columns in a style reflective of the architecture of Seattle's Space Needle or the distinct Theme Building of the Los Angeles International Airport. George commutes to work in an aerocar that resembles a flying saucer with a transparent bubble top. Daily life is characterized as being comically leisurely because of the incredible sophistication and number of labor-saving devices, which occasionally break down with humorous results. George's work day consists of pressing a single computer button. Despite this, characters often complain of exhausting hard labor and difficulties of living with the remaining inconveniences.
Other Jetson family members include Jane Jetson, the wife and homemaker; teenage daughter, Judy, and genius preteen son Elroy. Housekeeping is seen to by a robot maid, Rosie; she only appears in two episodes of the original 1960s show, excluding her appearance in the closing credits, but makes many appearances on the 1980s show.
The family dog Astro can mumble and say his words beginning with R's. Astro's catch phrases are "Ruh-roh!" and "Right, Reorge!" or "Rats Rall Right Reorge!" Later Hanna-Barbera cartoon dogs, including Scooby-Doo and Muttley, would have the same speech impediment; voice actor Don Messick played all three. In the first episode of the 1980s show, an alien named Orbity joined the family.
Names of locations, events and devices are often puns or derivatives of contemporary analogs with explicit futuristic or space-age twists. The same technique was used in The Flintstones with archaic or stone-age twists.
Characters
George Jetson: age 40, is a loving family man who always seems to make the wrong decision. He works full time, 15 hours a week at Spaceley's Sprockets as a computer engineer. He is married to Jane and together they have two kids, Elroy and Judy. George is the protagonist of the show.
Jane Jetson: age 33, is George's spouse, mother of their two children, and homemaker. Jane is obsessed with fashion and new gadgetry and her favorite store is Mooning Dales. She is also a dutiful wife who always tries to make life as pleasant as possible for her family. Outside the home, she is a member of the Galaxy Women Historical Society and is a fan of Leonardo de Venus and Picasso Pia.
Elroy Jetson: age 6½, is the younger of two children in the Jetson family. He is highly intelligent and an expert in all space sciences. Elroy attends Little Dipper School where he studies space history, astrophysics and star geometry. He is a mild mannered and good child.
Judy Jetson: age 16, is the older child in the Jetson family. She is a stereotypical teenage girl whose prime interests include: boys, clothes, dating, going out, and revealing secrets to her digital diary.
Rosie: age unknown, is the Jetsons' household robot. She's an outdated model but the Jetsons love her and would never trade her for a newer model. Rosie does all the household chores and some of the parenting. She is a strong disciplinarian and occasionally dispenses advice to the family.
Astro: age unknown, is the Jetsons' family dog. Before being a Jetson, Astro was known as Tralfaz and belonged to the fabulously rich Mr. Gottrocket. Astro is George's best friend, and is able to speak.
Orbity: age unknown, is the family pet who also happens to be an alien. He is a furry animal, resembling a monkey, but with a built in slinky/spring. Elroy found Orbity on a field trip to Mars and brought it home. Orbity is a friendly pet, incredibly smart and always in a good mood. This character was Introduced in the 1980s version of the series.
Cosmo Spaceley: age unknown, is George's boss and owner of Spacely Sprockets. He is a "little person" with brown hair and a bad temper. Cosmo is the antagonist in the series.
Mr. Cogswell: age unknown, is Spacely's big competitor. He owns the Cogswell's Cogs company and causes a lot of trouble for Cosmo and George.
R.U.D.I.: is George's work computer. His name is an acronym for Referential Universal Differential Index. He has a human personality and is a member of the Society Preventing Cruelty to Humans.
Henry Orbit: age unknown, is the Jetsons' apartment repairman. He is always helpful and always in a good mood. His robot, Mack, has a crush on Rosie.
Music
The 1962 episode "A Date With Jet Screamer", in which daughter Judy Jetson wins a date with a rock star, provided the song "Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah (Means I Love You)" written by Hoyt Curtin, William Hanna and Joseph Barbara. The episode was a surrealistic Busby Berkeley-in-space affair which prefigured conceptual MTV videos by decades.
A cover of "Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah (Means I Love You)", mistitled "Eep Opp Ork (Uh, Uh)", performed by The Dickies, is included on the 1988 album Killer Klowns from Outer Space, produced by Leonard Graves Phillips and Sir Ronald Powell Hitchcock for Enigma Records.
A cover of "Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah (Means I Love You)", performed by Violent Femmes, is included on the 1995 tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, produced by Ralph Sall for MCA Records.