Editing The Electric Company (section)

==Revivals==
===1999 rebroadcast===
The earlier shows did not resurface until February 2, 1999, when the [[Noggin (brand)|Noggin]] network, which was partly owned by Sesame Workshop and PBS at the time, rebroadcast the show as a result of its co-ownership of the network. Noggin created a two-hour compilation special to re-introduce the series to a new generation. The special was aired on [[TV Land]] as a way to promote Noggin.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.deseret.com/1999/4/26/19442234/tonight-on-tv | title=Tonight on TV | date=April 26, 1999 }}</ref>

Noggin ran 65 select episodes until mid-2003, when they were pulled from the program lineup because Sesame Workshop sold its half of the network to [[Viacom (2005–present)|Viacom]], which already owned the other half. The shows were cut subtly to fit Noggin's shorter running time and free up time for various interstitial segments produced for the network. These deletions included the episode numbers, the [[Scanimate]] word animations, the segments of up to 15 seconds, and the teasers of the next episodes (in seasons 2–6).

During the same period as the Noggin rebroadcasts, numerous fans of the program produced [[QuickTime]] and [[MP3]] clips from the Noggin rebroadcasts, old over-the-air recordings, and, in some cases, from [[master recording]]s. These were hosted online at various places and received heavy attention from the [[blogosphere]] (e.g., [[Boing Boing]])<ref name=boingboing>{{cite web|last = Doctorow|first = Cory|title = Electric Company video and audio|publisher = Boing Boing|date = April 15, 2004|access-date = May 1, 2009|url = http://www.boingboing.net/2004/04/15/electric-company-vid.html}}</ref> until a [[cease and desist|cease-and-desist]] letter took down the [http://www.wohmart.com/tec/ most prominent] of these sites in 2004.

===DVD releases===
The series was not seen since it was pulled from Noggin's schedule until Sesame Workshop, under license to [[Shout! Factory]], released a DVD boxed set on February 7, 2006, called ''The Best of the Electric Company'' that included 20 uncut episodes{{Citation needed|date=April 2010}} from throughout the show's run, including the first and last episodes, plus outtakes and introductions and commentary by Rita Moreno and June Angela.

Due to the overwhelming—and somewhat unexpected—popularity of the initial DVD release, a second boxed set was released on November 14, 2006 (''The Best of the Electric Company: Volume 2''). This second volume contained 20 episodes from seasons one through five plus a 30-minute documentary on the effects of in-school viewings of ''The Electric Company'' from 1975. Cast members Luis Ávalos, Jim Boyd, Judy Graubart, Skip Hinnant, and Hattie Winston provided commentary and reflected on their years on the show. However, the original content of nine episodes presented in this set were altered. In some cases, material that was originally broadcast in a particular episode was removed completely while material from other episodes was included. For example, 60A originally contained the Spider-Man episode "Spidey Meets the Prankster" and used a scene from that sketch as the opening teaser, which was removed completely (due to [[Marvel Entertainment]] licensing) after the opening credits, leaving only the episode number. Also removed following the ''Letterman'' sketch in this episode was the clip of the Short Circus singing "Stop!" and a Road Runner–Wile E. Coyote cartoon (due to [[Warner Bros.]] licensing). These altered episodes also contain special effects used to segue from one sketch to another that were not used in the show's original run. The other altered episodes are 197, 227, 322, 375, 35A, 57A, 77A, and 105A.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}}

It is believed that these changes were probably made to avoid repeats of segments that were on the first DVD set, but it is more likely that it was due to ownership rights—the segments that were used to cover up the material not under Sesame Workshop's control (Spider-Man, Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, etc.) were longer than the excised segments, so the episodes were cut further to get them down to their required 28-minute length.

An hour-long television show called ''The Electric Company's Greatest Hits & Bits''<ref>''[http://www.aptvs.org/catalog.nsf/vTitle/ELECTRIC+COMPANY'S+GREATEST+HITS+&+BITS The Electric Company's Greatest Hits & Bits]''</ref> was broadcast on many PBS stations in late 2006. It included interviews with cast members, voice talent, and creator-producer [[Joan Ganz Cooney]]. The special was produced by Authorized Pictures and distributed by [[American Public Television]], and was designed to be seen during pledge drives. It was released on DVD on March 6, 2007.

===iTunes===
In early 2007, [[Apple Inc.]], through its [[iTunes Store|iTunes]] service, started selling 15 previously unavailable episodes of ''The Electric Company.'' "Volume 1" contained Episodes 5, 13, 23, 128, 179, 249, 261, 289, 297, 374, 416, 475, 91A, 8B, and 32B.

In late 2007, another collection of 15 episodes dubbed "Volume 2" became available from iTunes. The new additions were Episodes 2, 36, 40, 75, 142, 154, 165, 172, 189, 218, 245, 290, 337, and 350. Repeated from ''Volume 1'' was Episode 8B, erroneously labeled as 658, even though it ''is'' correct if the A–B designations were disregarded (1A–130A are 521–650, 1B–130B are 651–780).

It is unclear if these episodes were altered from the versions originally shown on television. Shout! Factory representatives indicated that it had no plans for another DVD set, implying that episodes distributed via iTunes would not be available in another format.