Welcome to the Good News Fridays segment! Each week here on Geek Alabama, Good News Fridays will feature something good, wholesome, positive, and overall something great. After a long and stressful week, we all need something good to read or watch on Fridays! Enjoy a heartwarming post below!
Post by Michael Sznajderman from Alabama NewsCenter
Bless his brilliantly lit backside: Louie the Lightning Bug – arguably the most famous firefly on the planet – is 40 years old.
Created for Alabama Power in 1983, Louie has undergone a few cosmetic changes over the years. But his popularity remains steadfast.
Indeed, electric utilities across the country, and beyond the border into Canada and the Caribbean, continue to draw on Louie’s talents to educate youngsters about being safe around electricity, especially during National Electrical Safety Month, which is commemorated every year in May.
“There was a lot of thought that was put into the character before he was introduced,” said Pam Moore of Birmingham-based Moore Syndication, Louie’s exclusive marketer for Alabama Power and Southern Company. Moore has known Louie from the start, having worked for the Atlanta advertising agency that created him before beginning her 40-year career of representing Louie on behalf of the company.
Cosmetically, Louie has made it a point to keep up with the times and with changing technology. Originally, his glowing abdomen was the shape of a classic incandescent bulb. But when the world turned to more efficient compact fluorescents, he underwent a little plastic surgery and began sporting a twisted compact fluorescent lightbulb tail. Nowadays, following the advent of LED bulbs, Louie’s bottom looks more like a traditional bulb, only brighter and even more energy-efficient.
On the other hand, Louie’s other body parts haven’t changed as he approaches middle age. He still manages to manipulate four arms tipped with white-gloved hands. His wings are still a shimmering green, and his frog-like face a lemony yellow topped by two bright, bulbous eyes and antennae. He occasionally dons what, at first glance, appears to be a slightly uncomfortable pull-chain around his neck. And he’s still got those oversized, happy feet, which have him prancing and dancing when he doesn’t feel like flying.
And then there’s the voice. Thank the late American actor, musician and singer Jack Sheldon, who was the first voice bestowed upon the cartoon insect. The raspy tone was closer to another famous Louie – last name Armstrong – than what you might expect to emerge from a tiny cartoon bug’s mouth. When Sheldon was chosen to voice Louie, he was already famous for crooning on the popular “Schoolhouse Rock!” cartoons of the 1970s.
After Sheldon’s death in 2019, Mississippi advertising executive Reed Guice was chosen as the new voice of Louie, which premiered in a series of commercials unveiled in December 2022. Moore said Guice has done a wonderful job of “mimicking the energy” of the original Louie while contributing his own distinctive sound to the character.
Meanwhile, the new commercials address some contemporary electric safety issues that didn’t exist when Louie was created, such as warning people about flying drones near power lines.
Moore said the new commercials underscore how Louie “isn’t the same old same old” and has stayed topical and relevant. And while Louie continues to evolve, “one thing doesn’t change: how customers associate him with electric safety,” she said.
“He really has, and continues to have, an influence – helping people understand, both children and adults, about staying safe around electricity. I really think he’s had an influence on saving children, and adults, and that’s a really positive reflection on Alabama Power,” Moore said.
In fact, it was a group of children from Atlanta, ages 6 to 11, who chose Louie – favoring the glowing, happy lightning bug over two other potential safety-focused cartoon characters (Mr. Electrix and Leon the Neon Dragon) – to help build the buzz around electrical safety.
The Atlanta advertising agency went on to create three television commercials featuring Louie, and his image soon took flight in activity books and an educational video. So popular did Louie become in Alabama, he was swiftly adopted by Alabama Power’s sister utilities in the Southern Company family. The following year, Louie was syndicated and on his way to informing children coast to coast and beyond about electrical safety.
Since those early days, Louie’s messages have continued to resonate and have been translated into Spanish and French. “You can go to Montana – there’s Louie. He’s really big up there. Go to Texas, to Canada, to Barbados, there’s Louie,” Moore said. And after 40 years, Moore said, grownups haven’t forgotten their childhood infatuation with Louie.
“Mention Louie, and adults start singing the jingles. It’s good stuff,” Moore said.
On the other hand, over the years, not everything tied to Louie has held the same sustained fascination. About 15 years ago, the company toyed with creating a female companion to Louie, a fluorescent floodlight named “Floressa,” who never took off. And for a brief time in the late 1990s, a Louie “baby” doll was created – a spinoff from the Beanie Babies craze of the day. The Energizers, Alabama Power’s retiree service organization, sold Louie babies for a time to raise money for charity.
Moore said her company has sold Louie dolls in the past, but pandemic-related supply chain issues disrupted the pipeline and the entire stock has long been sold out. But utilities can still buy an adult-sized Louie costume. The lightweight inflatable costume is an update from the old, heavy cloth-and-felt version. She said many utilities still put employees in Louie costumes at parades and other special events, to rousing response.
The new Louie commercials are introducing the lovable lightning bug to a new generation, with fresh messages about being safe around electricity every day, as well as during special times of the year, such as Christmas.
“Louie is my earliest association with Alabama Power as a child,” said Alabama Power Advertising and Creative Services Manager Erin Searson, who has been involved in the new Louie campaign. “I remember the coloring books and, of course, the songs. It’s been fun to see the nostalgia people have for Louie and to ensure he’s a part of the next generation. My own two boys love Louie.”
Moore said although Louie has been known sometimes to speak about energy efficiency, as well as protecting the environment, his ongoing, primary focus on electric safety has kept Louie relevant and resonating with young and old. One of Moore’s responsibilities is to approve any use of Louie and his image in any campaign, to “maintain Louie’s integrity.”
And after 40 years, the formula continues to work. Louie’s staying power, Moore said, is undeniable. For those now craving a Louie fix, check out Alabama Power’s website, where he has his own educational page: “Learn with Louie.”
“You’ve now got a couple of generations that have grown up with Louie, and they still love him,” Moore said.
Categories: Good News Stuff
