CAPTAIN KANGAROO

'''Captain Kangaroo''' was a children's television series which aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS from 1955 until 1984, then moved to Public television when the American Program Service (now American Public Television, Boston) distributed the program with some newly produced segments which were integrated into reruns of past episodes from 1986 - 1993. The show was conceived and the title character played by Bob Keeshan, who based the show on "the warm relationship between grandparents and children." Keeshan was the original Clarabelle the Clown on the Howdy Doody Show when it aired on NBC.
It had a very loose structure, built around life in the "Treasure House" where the Captain (whose name came from the big pockets in his coat) would tell stories, meet guests and indulge in silly stunts with regular characters, both humans and puppets. The show was live for its first four years, and was in black-and-white until 1966. In 1983, CBS shortened the hour-long show to a half-hour and moved it to an earlier time-slot. It was cancelled by CBS at the end of 1984.
In the TV season of 1997-1998, an ''All New Captain Kangaroo'' was attempted, starring John McDonough. Keeshan was invited to appear as "The Admiral", but after seeing sample episodes declined to appear or have any association with it. The show inspired a spinoff, ''Mister Moose's Fun Time''.

Contents

Cast

Hugh 'Lumpy' Brannum

Cosmo 'Gus' Allegretti

The Banana Man

Bill Cosby

Debbie Weems

James Wall ("Mr. Baxter")

Carolyn Mignini

Kevin Clash

John Burstein

Cartoons

Special guests

"Good Morning Captain!"

Regular features

Theme song

Schedule history

Urban legend

Popular culture

References

External links

Cast

Other actors in the show included:

Hugh 'Lumpy' Brannum

Hugh Brannum played the Captain's main sidekick ''Mr. Green Jeans'' and other less-frequently seen characters, such as the ''New Old Folk Singer,'' who played a double bass (or "bass fiddle") as if it were a guitar, ''Mr. Bainter, the Painter'', ''Percy'', and ''Uncle Backwards''.

Cosmo 'Gus' Allegretti

Cosmo Allegretti created and performed several of the show's best-known puppet characters, including ''Bunny Rabbit'', who always tricked the Captain into giving him carrots, and ''Mr. Moose'', whose riddles and knock-knock jokes invariably ended with hundreds of ping-pong balls cascading from above and hitting the Captain on the head. Allegretti was also the actor portraying the ''Dennis the Apprentice'', ''Miss Frog'', ''Mr. Whispers'', ''Dancing Bear'',''Grandfather Clock'' and ''Uncle Ralph'' characters.

The Banana Man

Sam Levine played an unusual, mostly mute character known as The Banana Man, who produced huge bunches of bananas from within his coat. He would also magically pull watermelons from his pockets. [1] (Although he was mute, he would continually hum in a falsetto voice, and when finding several bananas at once in his pocket, would exclaim "Wow!", again in a falsetto voice.

Bill Cosby

Bill Cosby was a regular on the show from 1980 - 1984, when he did Picture Pages educational segments (as had the Captain himself, from 1978-1980).

Debbie Weems

From 1973 until 1978, the late Debbie Weems was a regular on ''Captain Kangaroo''. She played many roles, including Debbie the newspaper reporter, and was also an active puppeteer who did the voice for Baby Duck. Weems also sang on many episodes and recorded an album of songs from ''Captain Kangaroo''.

James Wall ("Mr. Baxter")

Jimmy Wall (credited also as 'Larry Wall') was a regular on the show from 1968 until 1978. Playing kindly, African-American "Mr. Baxter", he added a sense of calm to the show when all others around him may have been caught up in the silliness. He also starred with the Captain and Mr. Greenjeans in a serialized production entitled "The Missing Paint Mystery" (shown on the program from December, 1969 until 1977; with the exception of 1976) in which the trio travels to Curacao (a Caribbean island) to confront the playfully evil villain, Garumph (played by Cosmo Allegretti).

Carolyn Mignini

Carolyn Mignini played herself and all the women's roles on Captain Kangaroo from 1981 until the program went off the air in 1993.

Kevin Clash

Kevin Clash was discovered as a puppeteer on a local Baltinore television program and began appearing regularly on Captain Kangaroo from 1980 through1984. He was the puppeteer for the puppet character Artie (a voice he later used on Sesame Street as Elmo) in puppet segements featuring Ralph and Artie. He also appeared as himself and as an actor in many of the costume sketches on the program.

John Burstein

John Burstein joined the show in 1980 as ''Slim Goodbody'', a man wearing a bodystocking which showed the internal organs of the human body painted on it in their appropriate locations.

Cartoons

A cartoon starring a funnel-capped shape-shifting boy named ''Tom Terrific'' was part of the show in the 1950s and 1960s. Tom had a sidekick named ''Mighty Manfred the Wonder Dog'', and a nemesis, ''Crabby Appleton''. Other cartoons included ''Lariat Sam.''
The Canadian-British cartoon "Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings," appeared in the 1970s, featuring a child with magic chalk who could create all sorts of short-lived creations in short adventures. ''(the original version from the U.K. featured a British narrator, but Keeshan's voice was superimposed onto the cartoons by the time they were aired in the U.S.)''
The UK-produced cartoon ''Ludwig'' about a magical egg-shaped robot was also included about that time. The cartoon's musical score was selections from the works of Beethoven.
Also appearing in the 1970s was ''The Most Important Person'', a short series of five-minute segments on the importance of life. Interestingly, these segments would later be incorporated into most syndication prints of ''The Underdog Show''.
There was also a cartoon series called ''"The Toothbrush Family"''. Based on an extended family of hygiene utensils as the name suggests, they would embark on adventures based in the bathroom, like water skiing in the tub, or rescuing friends caught in the drain. Episodes were just a couple of minutes each.
A silent cartoon in the 1970's named ''"Crystal Tips"'' featured the adventures of a young girl. Later reruns were narrated by the voice of Mr. Moose.

Special guests

Among the special guests who made periodic appearances were ventriloquist Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop, Mister Rogers (Fred Rogers) appeared in a 1975 episode, where he and the Captain try to restore an old gramophone. Comediennes Joan Rivers, Imogene Coca, Phyllis Diller, Charlotte Rae, Ruth Buzzi, and Minnie Pearl made guest appearances, as did opera star Roberta Peters, talk show host Phil Donahue (in 1978), his wife actress Marlo Thomas, actor and folk singer Theodore Bikel, game show host Bill Cullen, singers Pearl Bailey (several appearances), Dolly Parton, and John Denver and Television performers Penny Marshall, Cindy Williams, Lorne Greene, Bonnie Franklin, Andy Griffith, The Smothers Brothers, Rita Moreno, Arte Johnson, Fannie Flagg, Gale Gordon, Lucie Arnaz, Ken Berry, Mike Farrell, Dick Shawn, and John Ritter as well as these Broadway actors: Eli Wallach, Anne Jackson, Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara, Jack Gilford, Paul Sorvino, Hal Linden, Mary Kay Place, Walter Slezak, and Carol Channing, plus there were several appearances by Alan Arkin and one when his son Adam Arkin played Alan's father..

"Good Morning Captain!"

Beginning in the mid 70s and continuing through the decade, the show would open with several different people wishing the Captain 'good morning'. Many of the openings featured non-celebrities, but also featured stars from hit TV shows, most of which broadcast over CBS. The montage of 'good mornings' would always end with the Captain himself returning the greeting before the opening credits ran.
Among the celebrity greeters:

★ Shari Lewis (and Lamb Chop)

★ Mister Rogers

★ Joan Rivers

★ Imogene Coca

★ Phyllis Diller

★ Charlotte Rae

★ Ruth Buzzi

★ Minnie Pearl

★ Roberta Peters

★ Phil Donahue

★ Marlo Thomas

★ Pearl Bailey

★ Dolly Parton

★ John Denver

★ Penny Marshall

★ Cindy Williams

★ Andy Griffith

★ The Smothers Brothers

★ Arte Johnson

★ John Ritter

★ Eli Wallach

★ Stiller and Meara

★ Carol Channing

★ Alan Arkin

★ The cast of The Bob Newhart Show

★ Charlie Brown (animated, of course)

★ Bob Barker

★ Gavin MacLeod

★ Jamie Farr

Regular features

Other regular features included ''The Magic Drawing Board'' and the Captain's "Reading Stories" sessions, which introduced kids to stories such as ''Curious George'' and ''Make Way for Ducklings''. The Sweet Pickles books were featured.
Keeshan also had a recurring role as "The Town Clown," a pantomime piece that took place in and around the exposed wagon home of a tramp-like circus clown. Like the character of Clarabelle that he played on Howdy Doody, the Town Clown never spoke.

Theme song

The original theme song to ''Captain Kangaroo'' (titled ''Puffin' Billy'') was used from 1955-1974. It was an instrumental, written by Edward G. White. The track was from a British stock music production library known as the ''Chappell Recorded Music Library'' which was sold through a New York agency called Emil Ascher. The tune's original title referred to a British steam locomotive. (This tune was used on other programs on both sides of the Atlantic. For example, two years before Captain Kangaroo, it served as the wrap-up music for an episode of the radio program Rocky Fortune called "Murder Among the Statues", starring Frank Sinatra.) The "Puffing Billy" theme played as the opening of each episode, with the music continuing until the Captain hung his large ring of keys on a nail (which seemed to act as a switch to turn off the music). If the Captain's keys ever slipped off the nail, the music would begin playing again.
In 1957, lyricist Mary Rogers penned lyrics to the tune, creating a newly titled ''Captain Kangaroo'' song.
In 1974, a new theme song was composed for ''Captain Kangaroo,'' written by composer Robert L. Brush. As the new theme used similar melodic elements from the original theme, Edward G. White's name was added to the song credits.
The lyrics to the second ''Captain Kangaroo'' theme song were simple, consisting of two sets of rhymed couplets:
:''Good morning, Captain, let's come on out and play!
:''Good morning, Captain, it's going to be a perfect day!
:''Get your crayons and your paper and your pencil, too
:''And come on out and play with Captain Kangaroo!''
Much later, around the 1980s, Schoolhouse Rock mainstay Lynn Ahrens (who composed (and even performed) a few CK songs herself), composed a new theme, entitled "Here Comes Captain Kangaroo", which sounds like it was inspired by her Schoolhouse Rock tune, "Interplanet Janet". The lyrics went like this:
:''Colorful, magical, wonderful, WOW!''
:''The Captain is coming- just look at him now!''
:''Super, sensational, special and new,''
:''The Captain is coming with something for you...''
:''Here comes Captain Kangaroo!''
:''Take a look... gonna love it...''
:''Havin' fun... so much of it...''
:''Captain Kangaroo is new--''
:''He'll make this day so great for you!''
:''Colorful, magical, wonderful, WOW!''
:''The Captain is coming- just look at him now!''
:''Super, sensational, special and new,''
:''The Captain is coming, and you're gonna love it...''
:''CAP-TAIN KANG-A-ROO!''

Schedule history

While ''Captain Kangaroo'' was still in planning stages, CBS executives had the idea of hiring Al Lewis, a very popular kids' show host in Cincinnati ''(ABC was running Lewis' show at that time)'', to host their show, but Lewis' managers refused to release him from his contract. ''(Lewis' local kids show went off the air in Cincinnati a year after ''Captain Kangaroo'' left CBS.)''
For the first three months, ''Captain Kangaroo'' was only seen on weekday mornings. Thereafter, the successful Captain was also seen on Saturday mornings. Except for pre-emption for news coverage, notably the three-day continuous coverage of the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, and a few shows that were 45 minutes, the show aired a full 60 minutes on weekday mornings and Saturday until 1981. One exception was the 1964 to 1965 season, which saw the broadcast replaced on Saturdays by a Keeshan vehicle called ''Mr. Mayor''.
The audience of children could never compete in the ratings with such entertainment/news shows as The Today Show, although it won Emmy Awards three times as Outstanding Children's entertainment series in 1978-1979, 1982-1983 and 1983-1984. But in the fall season of 1984, to make more room for ''CBS Morning News'', the Captain was moved to an earlier time slot and cut to 30 minutes, sporting a new title '''Wake Up with the Captain'''. By the end of the year, it was canceled.
Just over a year later, ''Captain Kangaroo'' ran on PBS television stations from 1986-1993, with funding from PBS stations and from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. American Public Television, then known as the "Interregional Program Service", who distributed the show, along with Britder Associates ''(Bob Keeshan's production company)''.
The show was on the air for 29 years, making it one of the longest-running network children's program series. ''Sesame Street'', insulated from the Nielsen Ratings wars, holds the record for 38 years ''(as of Fall 2007)'' and still counting. Several of the original ''Sesame Street'' writers and producers were hired from the ''Captain Kangaroo'' staff to help produce and direct the "Sesame Street" program when it went on the air in 1969.
The original director of the program was Peter Birch who helmed the program for its first 25 years. Producer Jim Hirschfeld took over as director following Birch's heart attack in 1980 and continued directing as well as producing throughout the rest of the history of the show which finally went off the air in 1993.

Urban legend

Rock musician Frank Zappa wrote a composition named "Mr. Green Genes" on his album ''Uncle Meat'' and a sequel, "Son of Mr. Green Genes" on his album ''Hot Rats''. This led to the urban legend that Zappa was the son of the actor who played the character Mr. Green Jeans on Captain Kangaroo.

Popular culture

Many popular songs make reference to ''Captain Kangaroo'', including the Statler Brothers' 1965 hit song ''Flowers on the Wall'' (later covered by Eric Heatherly); the "Weird Al" Yankovic song "The Brady Bunch"; the Bloodhound Gang's ''Your Only Friends Are Make Believe''; and the VeggieTales song, ''The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything''.
In the ''Doctor Who'' episode "Remembrance of the Daleks", the ''Captain Kangaroo'' theme music is clearly heard during a café scene.
A Sunday ''Shoe'' strip shows Skyler watching TV and admiring a certain man's charm: "He looks great for his age", "He's a great communicator", etc. With all that he says, the reader is led to believe he was referring to President Ronald Reagan, especially when his uncle Cosmo Fishhawk believes him to be a Reagan fan. But in the last panel it turns out Skyler had been referring not to President Reagan, but to Captain Kangaroo!

References

1. http://www.fiftiesweb.com/tv/captain-kangaroo.htm

External links

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