Villa Alegre

It's always amazing to me to find others have actually seen this show because, like the writer of the above comment, I never found anything on it on the web. Not even YouTube has any clips :( I loved this show and have very fond early childhood memories of the opening credits with the miniature amusement park/fair rides. The theme song still sticks in my head every time I say or type the show's title. I wonder why it's so hard to find footage of this show if other 70's shows were recorded. I just went on YouTube and found clips of every 70's children show I could think of. There are even multiple pages of clips from another favorite of mine, "Vegetable Soup" - also a diversity-themed children's show from that seemingly Utopian time of creativity in that arena.

It was Byron Meyers. Every so often, I would come along with him to the studio where the show was shot and edited. I remember the time they had to complete ten shows (if I recall correctly) in three weeks in summer during a flea invasion of the studio. The Captain was a cool dude, the theme song was the best on PBS, and the animation (which my step-father produced during the last years) was really neat. It is really too bad that this show has not made a reappearance on DVD at least. Though the show was definitely of its' time, the 1970's, it has a lot of positive messages in it that could certainly be helpful during this era. Byron would have been gratified to have known of the positive impact the show he helped to make with those whom have posted here.

My name is Kenia Hernandez Cueto, I played the role of Maria on Villa Alegre for five years. I was one of the oldest child actors on the show therefore, had a better understanding of the positive impact the show had on our society. The creator and producer, Rene Cardenas (may he rest in peace) was a pioneer who was beyond his years in regards to education, diversity, music and technology. Unfortunately, when he died, so did Villa Alegre. Even as a child, I felt his urgency to want to educate children. My dream has always been to revive the show because there has NEVER been anything like it. Sesame Street is a wonderful educational program however, lacks the depth that Villa Alegre had. The reason why Villa Alegre is no where to be found is because I believe, Dr. Cardenas solely owned the rights to the show. His family has not touched it since his passing. The plethora of shows are locked up in a vault never to see the light of day. All I can say is that Villa Alegre taught me the meaning of diversity and love for education. It was the reason for completing a Masters in Education. I found my calling as a child due to the show and my very first mentor, Dr. Rene Cardenas. Who knows, maybe before my passing, I can find some of the shows that meant so much to us all and share them with you. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Funny to say but, Villa Alegre will always be a part of me. Adios Amigos.

Hola, Amigos...de Villa Alegre...la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la la-la-la...Villa Alegre! Born in Puerto Rico 37 years ago. In the 1970's, I'd come running home from school to watch "Villa Alegre" on PBS. An only child raised by my grandparents, there weren't other kids around to talk to. I spoke English at school and Spanish at home. "Villa Alegre" helped me make sense of that duality. I adopted Villa Alegre as MY community, MY bilingual neighborhood. I moved to the US at 17. "Villa Alegre" prepared me to understand in my own skin and heart what it means to be a Latina in a multicultural society. Whereas "Sesame Street" gave me the NYC perspective of my own immigrant family, "Villa Alegre" blessed me with something completely new and beyond my litte world. Hussssshh...I still sing the uplifting theme song in the shower and in my car. Thank you, Villa Alegre, gracias! You will always be a part of me. Does anyone know where I can find that beautiful song?

My sister and I used to watch this show on our PBS station. It followed "The Electric Company" and had "ZOOM" (our favorite) right after it...so we kinda had to watch it. Odd how we actually sat through it, learning Spanish and all. I remember the beginning vividly. It had sort of a paper maché rotating carnival with a spinning ferris wheel, and then fireworks came shooting out of it. If I recall correctly, the first half of the show was in English, then it repeated the whole show in Spanish. I remember there being a village, where people interacted with each other, and little vignettes where the would explore different things. I remember one of them being where popcorn came from. This is an early memory, so it would have to be in the early 70's when we watched it. Would love to see a compilation on DVD.