Spongebob Squarepants Debuted 22 Years Ago Today

On May 1, 1999, Nickelodeon premiered Spongebob Squarepants, Stephen Hillenburg's cartoon about a sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea with his pet snail Gary. Four Emmy Awards, three movies and a Broadway musical later, the show is still going strong into its 13th season.

This clip is the first five minutes of that very first episode, featuring Spongebob (Tom Kenny) getting encouragement from Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) and discouragement from Squidward (Rodger Bumpass) as he applies for his dream job at the Krusty Krab, the eating establishment established by Mr. Eugene Krabs (Clancy Brown). 

Spongebob Squarepants still airs on Nickelodeon and is now streaming on Paramount+.

Andy Hunsaker has a head full of sitcom gags and nerd-genre lore, and can be followed @AndyHunsaker if you're into that sort of thing.