Did You Know This About the Jetsons? Unbelievable!

This is one of our favorite cartoons of all time.

When we talk about a futuristic new gadget or a new technology that may change our daily lives, what’s the first thing we think of? The first comparison that often gets made is with The Jetsons. This lovable color cartoon was innovative and entertaining. Don’t remember it in color? There are some very good reasons for this. The Jetsons was a cartoon centered around bright and shiny products and an ultra-futuristic vision of the future. The animators very much thought that color was the best way to present this. But, of course, in 1962, not every TV was color. It would be some time before black and white televisions were a thing of the past. But, many television stations did not broadcast in color yet. So, even if you were watching this cartoon filmed in color on a color TV, you might have been only able to see it in black and white.

Because of this discrepancy between color and black and white, The Jetsons was, unbelievably, only on air for one season. The addition of color and the near-constant syndication may have contributed to our collective perception that the show ran for more than one season (there was another round of episodes produced in the 1980s, but they do not look the same at all). How many TV shows had that much impact after only being on one season? You have to wonder: if there had been more demand for color TV and broadcasts, could The Jetsons have gone on to future seasons? We’ll never know, but we do enjoy a good cartoon! Whether you watched it in color or in black and white as a kid, it’s safe to say that this show became the basis for most of our many comparisons about the future, even as we have developed so many amazing new technologies. What a show! Enjoy this clip from 1963 of The Jetsons.

https://archive.org/embed/Promo_Jetsons_ABC-TV_1963

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