Updated: February 14, 2024

They're the Jetsons! They can rocket to the future, they can rocket to the moon, they can work on Jupiter, or play on Neptune. Machines do the working, machines do run, if they need anything they push a button and it's done. Their house is in the heaven, the free way is in the sky, but their feet are on the ground 'cause they're just regular guys. Judy's got a boyfriend, Elroy's got his theme, Jane's shopping and George has got mister Spacely. They're the Jetsons!

For those who don't know the series, it is like The Flintstones of the future. Even to date the ideas about the future are smart and creative. The Flintstones are fun because of the animal-household-appliances, the Jetsons is fun because of all electronic gadgets.

Meet the Jetson family:

George Jetson:

Loving family man who always seems to make the wrong decision. Makes long three hour working days at Spacely's Sprockets. Aged 38. Dad of Elroy and Judy. Man in the house. Starts his day with a refreshing ultra-sonic shower ( which is much more convenient than a wet shower as one does not need to go trough the hassle of taking one's cloths of anymore ). A man to love. Likes to watch Hill Stars Blues and spaceball together with Elroy. When George was a kid he went through 10 miles of asteroid storms to go to Orbit High School, where he was the Star Pitcher of the spaceball team. Sweater size 40 x 40 cm

Jane Jetson:

George's spouse. Always looking for a new look and finding ways to make life as pleasant as possible for poor George. Dials a great dinner daily, for example beetle juice and lunar locks. She's a member of the Galaxy Women Historical Society. Enjoys the work of Leonardo de Venus and Picasso Pia. Wears size 8. Loves to go shopping at Mooning Dales. Sweater size 42 x 33 cm

Elroy Jetson:

George's son. He's about 10 years old and a genius in all space sciences. Attends Little Dipper School. Straight-A student studying space history, astro physics and star geometry. Won't do anything wrong. Devoted to space adventures with Nimbus the Great on television and playing with his Nimbus zoom-bot. Watches House of the Planet on television with Judy. Sweater size 30 x 21 cm

Judy Jetson:

George's daughter. She's about 16 years old. Prime interests: boys, clothes, boys, dating, guys and going out. Previous dates: Space Hawk Mike, Vinny van GoGogh, Rocky Retro and Jet Screamer. Reveals every secret to her digital diary DiDi, lives by the directions of her Micro Processor Personal Organizer. Wants a Moonseratti to impress the boys. Studies cyborg biology and astro mathematics. Loves to shop at Laser's Department Store. Sweater size 37 x 28 cm

Rosie:

The house-hold robot. She's an out-dated model but the Jetsons love her and would never trade her for a newer model.

Astro:

The dog, once known as "Tralfaz" in a former life. Not always so smart but smart enough to be able to talk ( oh well, at least something that sounds like talking ). Astro just loves George and shows it every time George gets home. Sweater size 36 x 17 cm

Orbitty:

Unidentified alien pet. A little furry animal with a built in slinky. Elroy found it on a field trip to mars and took it home. Orbity is a friendly pet, incredibly smart and always in a good mood. Never ever make it angry tough. Introduced in the 80s series. Changes colors with moods: yellow is scared, pink is affectionate, white is neutral

Meet the others:

Cosmo Spacely:

George's boss. All of his life George is offered vice presidency if he does whatever Spacely's got on his mind. Just as many times George gets fired if he doesn't do whatever's on Spacely's mind. Cosmo's life time competitor is "Cogswell". While Cosmo is there almost every episode, Cogswell is used now-and-then. Biggest client: Mr. Spendwell. Wife: Petulia.

R.U.D.I.

"Referential Universal Differential Indexer": George's computer at work. RUDI doesn't like the 3 day 2-hours-a-day work week as well. Jetson can go home every day, RUDI can't get out as he's part of the building. Presumably a member of S.P.C.H. ( Society Preventing Cruelty to Humans ).

Henry Orbit and his Robot Mack:

The sky pad appartment's repair man. Always helpful and always in a good mood. His robot Mack fell in love with Rosie and married her. Henry services the building, cleans cars and looks after the garage. Always good for a quick word of advice to George just before leaving the car park.

Cogswell:

Spacely's big competitor. Owns the Cogswell's Coggs company, the biggest competitor of Spacely's Space Sprockets. Cogswell's scientific assistant is called Mr. Moonstone, his special agent Collin uses code X-73145. The two corporate raiders have a life of cut trought competition. Cogswell has a dart-board with Spacely's face on it in his office. Like to play golf at the Moonside Country Club. George Jetson and his family welcome you to the 21st Century!!!

"The Jetsons" premiered in primetime on ABC on September 23, 1962. In trying to design a follow-up to their smash hit "The Flintstones", took this family sitcom in the opposite direction by setting it in the ( then ) far off 21st Century. The family consisted of the beleagured bread-winner George, loving wife Judy, hip daughter Judy, fun-loving Elroy, and loyal dog Astro. Also in the cast were robot maid Rosie, George's irritable boss Mr. Spacely, Mr. Spacely's rival Mr. Cogswell, and handyman Henry.

Although only one season's worth of episodes was initially produced for primetime, the show eventually aired on and off on all three networks on Saturday mornings from 1963 to 1983. Additional episodes ( featuring new family pet Orbitty ) were produced for syndication in 1985.

Voice Cast: George Jetson - George O'Hanlon, Jane Jetson - Penny Singleton, Judy - Janet Waldo, Elroy - Daws Butler, Astro - Don Messick, Cosmo Spacely - Mel Blanc

On September 23, 1962, ABC premiered an all-new prime time series - The Jetsons. After 16 months in development Hanna-Barbera showed America their vision of our country in 2062. The story goes that The Jetsons had no chance at survival because it was scheduled against Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color and Dennis the Menace. Both of these shows had built up an audience in previous seasons. However, the original 24 episodes of The Jetsons repeated for 15 years until 1984 when production began on 41 new episodes. In 1987 another 10 episodes were made to make a 75 episode syndication package. Over the years, The Jetsons has aired on ABC, NBC and on CBS. A made-for-television movie, Rockin' With Judy Jetson, and a full-length animated feature, Jetsons: The Movie, have also come along since the late 80's.

The Jetsons Character Actors ( Classic ) George - George O'Hanlon Jane - Penny Singleton Judy - Janet Waldo Elroy - Daws Butler Spacely - Mel Blanc Rosey - Jean Vander Pyl Astro - Don Messick Cogswell - Daws Butler

Those Amazing Jetsons:

The Odd Facts You Always Wanted To Know??? -George Jetsons works 3 hours a day, 3 days a week. However, he still calls Spacely a slave driver. Poor George! -Rosey ( re-named Rosie in the 1080s ) was quite popular despite only appearing in two classic episodes ( excluding her cameo in the original closing credits ). She appeared in Episode 1 ( Rosey the Robot ) and Episode 8 ( Rosey's Boyfriend ). -The Jetsons have a three bedroom apartment in the Sky Pad Aparment building which houses 2,000 tenants. Eep Opp Ork Ah Ah! That Means I Love You? Not really. Judy Jetsons originally created this phrase so Elroy could communicate with his friend secretly. Eep Opp Ork Ah Ah really means "Meet Me Tonight." Start Singing: Eep Opp Ork Ah Ah, That Means Meet Me Tonight. Actually, we'll let them slide on this one. -Wages sure have gone down in the future. Who wants to tell Elroy he got ripped off for doing "Space Boy, Zoom and His Dog Astro" in Episode 9. Reports say he got a measely $5,000 a week as the star of his own television show. Could this be an omen? Is there some truth to the fact that the general population wants sports and entertainment salaries to be greatly reduced? For 2062, you'd expect that to be the price of Astro's dog food.

-There appears to be a ripple effect with lower costs in the future. Dr. Ken Racey's house visit to check on Elroy in Episode 10 only cost $100. That is pretty much what we pay now. -While we are on the topic of money. Space Sprockets records indicate Uniblab cost $5 billion dollars! A computer with a brain. It could be worth it. -Didn't you hate it when your little league coach sent you to the outfield? There's no need to fear. Next time remember that Elroy Jetsons played "left sky" for The Space Cubs.

Talk about machines breaking down. Don't worry it happened to The Jetsons too. Episode 23 ( Dude Planet ) was the only episode that featured kitty-cat, a robot cat that lived with The Jetsons. Kitty didn't even last a whole week before she was gone. Maybe there is something to the good ol' fashioned dog. Right Astro? -What rerun number are we on now with The Flintstones? Kenny Countdown ( in Episode 24 ) was watching the billionth rerun of everyone's favorite stone age family. This just goes to show you that true classics never go out of style. -The Flintstones isn't the only Hanna-Barbera cartoon that will remain alive and well in the future. Episode 20 brings us the opportunity to see George do an impersonation of Yogi Bear.

The Jetsons Timeline 1952: Montague Jetson ( Grandpa ) Is Born 2027: Approximate Birth of George ( Not specified past mid-thirties ) 2029: Jane Is Born 2044: George and Jane Fall In Love 2047: Judy Is Born 2055: Elroy Is Born 2057: Trawlfaz ( Astro ) Is Born 2062: Rosey Becomes A Member of the Family

The Jetsons Theme

Meet George Jetson His Boy, Elroy Daughter Judy Jane, His Wife

While the Jetsons Theme did not have many lyrics, the score used for the opening minute of the show can be instantly recognized by a large portion of the population. Many people consider the opening theme to be more popular than the show itself. The space scene that the camera zooms through in the opening sequence was reused in the opening sequence for Space Ghost shorts in 1966.

The Jetsons Filmography

The Jetsons ( 1962 ) The Jetsons ( 1984 ) [ New Episodes ] The Jetsons (1987) [New Episodes]
The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones ( 1988 ) [ Made for TV Movie ] Rockin' With Judy Jetson ( 1989 ) [ Made for TV Movie ] Jetsons: The Movie! (1990)
What A Cartoon!: Wind-Up Wolf ( 1995 ) [ Cameo Appearance ]

When The Flintstones was a big cartoon hit, Hanna-Barbara decided to cash in on its success by creating a space-age futuristic version of the average family: The Jetsons. Much like the Flintstones ( right down to the closing credits ), this cartoon focused on the Jetson family. George Jetson was the bumbling-yet-kind hearted man who worked for Spacely Sprockets under the greedy and mean eye of Mr. Spacely. His wife, Jane, was a homebody who was a whiz around the house ( via buttons that do certain chores ) and a good mother to their two children, Elroy and Judy. Elroy was a very intelligent and industrious inventor, and was an all-out normal little boy. Judy was cute and boy-crazy and a regular teeny bopper. If Jane ever needed help around the house, she could always count on Rosie, their wisecracking robot maid, to pull everyone through.

Just like The Flintstones had a dinosaur for a pet, the Jetsons had a biological dog named Astro. This modern space-age family lived in the Skypad Apartments and were best friends with a Janitor named Henry Orbit and his robot Mac. George even had a friend in the office - a computer naned Rudy.

If there was every one enemy, it was Spacely's competitor Cosmo Cogswell, who owned Cogswell Cogs. Cogswell succeeded in spying on Spacely's plans and making them as his own. Spacely believes that George is a thorn on his side and threatened to fire him in almost every episode! But George always found a way to keep his job and his sanity. This cartoon was cancelled after only one season on ABC, but The Jetsons lived on in Saturday morning cartoons, specials, comic books, games, toys, etc.

Hanna-Barbara then decided to revive The Jetsons in 1984 because of the success of the rerun episodes. They created a mumber of all-new episodes, which were somewhat better and had more current storylines. These episodes even introduced an all new pet for the Jetsons - a furry little gremlin named Orbity, much to Astro's chagrin. These new episodes lasted until 1987.

Also in 1987, Hanna-Barbara created a special that brought both the Flintstones and the Jetsons together simply called The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones. This was a once-in-a-lifetime moment that will be Hanna-Barbara history. The last that we have heard of the Jetsons was in their first feature length self-titled cartoon released in 1990. This was George O'Hanlon's final voice job as George Jetson because he sadly died when the movie was released.

But The Jetsons will not ever die and as long as there are cartoon networks, the Jetsons will still be flying into the hearts of all.

Show Information:

First Aired September 1962 Last Aired October 1987 Status Canceled / Ended Running Time 30 min Country United States Network ABC

Show Stars:

Gregg Berger - Additional Voices Mel Blanc - Mr. Spacely Foster Brooks - Additional Voices Daws Butler - Elroy Jetson / Mr. Cogswell Ruth Buzzi - Additional Voices Phil Hartman - Addiitional Voices Allan Lurie - ( Voice ) Additional Voices ( 1985-1988 ) Don Messick - Astro Lorenzo Music - Additional Voices George O'Hanlon - George Jetson Tony Pope - Additional Voices Avery Schreiber - Additional Voices Penny Singleton - Jane Jetson Jean Vander Pyl - Rosie Robot Chick Vennera - Additional Voices Janet Waldo - Judy Jetson Frank Welker - Orbity ( 1984-1987 )

The animated television series The Jetsons was the futuristic counterpart of The Flintstones. Both cartoon series, created by Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, were family sitcoms projecting contemporary American situations into the far-flung past, or as in this case, the future. George Jetson worked for a short, tyrannical boss named Cosmo G. Spacely, owner of the company Spacely Sprockets. Mr. Spacely had a competitor, W.C. Cogswell, owner of the rival company Cogswell Cogs. All homes and businesses were raised high above the ground on narrow poles, and George commuted to work in a flying saucer shaped like a Volkswagen Beetle, but with a transparent top. In the original closing credits, he came home and tried to walk the dog but got caught in the treadmill while the dog sat by and watched. This was an obvious counterpart to the Flintstones' closing credits in which the cat put Fred Flintstone out for the night. Again, like the Flintstones, much of the show's humor came from the way the cartoon portrayed simple 20th Century living. While the Flintstones lived in a world with machines powered by birds and dinosaurs, the Jetsons lived in a universe of elaborate robotic contraptions, aliens, holograms, and whimsical inventions.

Other Jetson family members included Jane Jetson, the wife and homemaker, raising teenage daughter Judy and preteen son Elroy. Housekeeping was seen to by a robot maid, Rosie. The family dog Astro could mumble, just as Scooby-Doo later on could. This is not surprising as the voice actor for both characters was Don Messick. Astro's best known line indicates impending trouble: "Ruh-ro!" The original series of 24 episodes was made in 1962, but its continuing popularity led to a further 34 episodes being produced in the 1980's. Jetsons The Movie was released in 1990.