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Tom Yohe Conjunction Junction

Artist: Tom Yohe (All)

3 Comments - 4,053 Views - 0 Like

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Artwork Details

Title:	Tom Yohe Conjunction Junction
Artist:	Tom Yohe (All)
Media Type:	Marker
Art Type:	Other
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	4,053
Likes on CAF:	0 1
Comments:	3
Added to Site:	12/4/2010
Comic Art Archive:

Description

A generation of children picked up the fundamentals of grammar and how the world works from the animated three-minute segments of “Schoolhouse Rock,” squeezed in among ABC’s Saturday morning cartoon shows. Some 40 segments were produced from 1973 through 1985, and the series enjoyed a resurrection in the 1990’s when it attained cult status on some college campuses.“Schoolhouse Rock” featured catchy tunes and words that laid out the basics of sentence structure, math, science and American history. Among the golden oldies were “Conjunction Junction,“ “Three Is a Magic Number” and “I’m Just a Bill,” in which proposed legislation explained its travails on Capitol Hill before it might become law.The concept was born when Mr. Yohe (pronounced YOH-ee) and Mr. Newall were executives at the McCaffrey & McCall advertising agency in New York. A colleague asked Mr. Newall, a sometime jazz pianist, if he could set the multiplication tables to music because his son was having trouble with them in school.
What resulted was a ditty about counting by the magic number 3, for which Mr. Yohe supplied the animation. At the time ABC, an agency client, was trying to compete against an acclaimed CBS children's series called “In the News.”Michael Eisner, then the head of ABC children’s programming, bought the cartoon idea at first sight, and “Schoolhouse Rock” was on its Emmy Award-winning way. It turned into a television icon that shared top ratings with shows like “The Brady Bunch” and “Sesame Street.”In the 1990’s Theaterbam Chicago, a small Midwestern troupe, created “Schoolhouse Rock Live!,” a musical based on the series, with actors taking the parts of cartoon characters. It included 20 favorite segments and traveled to schools and libraries as well as theaters. This year the theater produced “Schoolhouse Rock Live Too!”Mr. Yohe was born in Queens and graduated from Syracuse University, where he majored in fine arts. He started his career as an art director at Young & Rubicam in 1961 and moved to McCaffrey & McCall three years later. In 1984 he joined Grey Advertising, where he continued in senior creative positions.

Early in my career I worked at Grey Advertising catching the tail end of the heyday of Madison Avenue and the period glorified by shows like MadMen. Truth be told, it wasn’t anywhere near as glamorous but I did have the opportunity to work with some of the best of a generation and Tom Yohe was head and shoulders above the rest. They are very few I can say I’ve run across since who had the talent or the good natured demeanor of this graceful man. I feel privileged to have known him, to have worked with him and even more so to possess some of his art given to me.

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About the Owner

	PJ MUNGIOLE
Joined:	November 2006
Last Login:	May 2025
On CAF:	PJ's Want List Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF

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Comments on this Artwork

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Ken Z
Member Since 2006

Posted on 12/4/2010

GREAT! Now I'm going to spend the rest of the day walking around singing "Conjunction Junction, What's your Function"! Joking aside, I loved those little shorts and no matter how many times they came on, the tunes would just catch your attention. I look at this art as a piece of history and congratulate you on owning it!

PJ MUNGIOLE
Member Since 2006

Posted on 12/19/2010

Ken Z wrote:

Thank you, I feel privileged for having worked with the two men responsible for bringing the series to life - George Newell and Tom Yohe both very classy and talented guys!

Thomas Rosko
Member Since 2007

Posted on 1/28/2011

I love this. The second I saw it, the words "What's your function" started running around my head. Wonderful story and a serious thanks for sharing this and taking me back to childhood. Very cool piece.

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