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'Schoolhouse Rock!' Co-Creator George Newall Dies at 88

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George Newall
George Newall

Everett

George Newall, co-creator of Schoolhouse Rock!, has died. He was 88.

News of Newall's death was first reported by The New York Times on Wednesday. Lisa Maxwell, Newall's wife, told the outlet her husband died of cardiopulmonary arrest on Nov. 30 at a hospital near his home in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

The animated educational ABC series ran from 1973 to 1985, teaching kids about science, math and grammar. Newall was the last surviving member of the team that produced the Generation X cartoon, which was revived in the '90s.

Newell famously helped come up with the idea for Schoolhouse Rock when working as a creative director at the McCaffrey & McCall advertising agency, and agency president David McCall vented his frustrations about the fact that his young sons "can sing along with Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones" but couldn't multiply.

Not two weeks later, Newell' partner Bob Dorough came back with "Three Is a Magic Number," Newall told The New York Times Magazine in 2018.

Thus, the concept of putting educational lessons to music took off. The show went on to feature songs like the beloved government-explainer tune "I'm Just a Bill," penned by the late Dave Frishberg, as well as "The Preamble," "Interjection!" "The Tale of Mr. Morton," and "Unpack Your Adjectives" — the latter named a favorite of Newalls.

Agency art director and cartoonist Tom Yohe illustrated the ditties. He and Newall later co-authored The Official Schoolhouse Rock Guide, which included lyrics, pictures, and trivia from all forty-one episodes.

RELATED: Schoolhouse Rock Songwriter Dave Frishberg Dies at 88

Yohe died in 2000, Dorough in 2018, and Frishberg just last year.

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To commemorate the series' 50th anniversary, The Walt Disney Company will reportedly air a primetime singalong early next year in early 2023, according to the New York Post, who also reported that a celebration of life for Newall will be held on Dec. 10 at the St. Andrews Golf Club in Hastings-on-Hudson.

In addition to his wife, Newall is survived by his stepson, Lake Wolosker; and his sisters, Jessie Newall Bissey, Kathy Newall Hogan and Anne Newall Kimmel.