Captain Kangaroo (TV)

Identification Children’s television show

Date Aired from 1955 to 1984

Popular program for preschoolers, combining live action, puppetry, and animation.

In 1955, twenty-eight-year-old Bob Keeshan, previously known as Clarabell the Clown on the Howdy Doody Show, launched this gentler, slower-paced CBS weekday morning program, aiming to entertain and educate preschool children. Keeshan’s grandfatherly character wore a jacket with large, pouch-like pockets, thus giving rise to his name.

Keeshan’s sidekick, Mr. Green Jeans (Hugh Brannum), played guitar, sang, and introduced viewers to gardening and many different animals. Puppeteer Cosmo Allegretti played the other regulars: Bunny Rabbit, who bamboozled the Captain into giving him carrots; Mister Moose, who tricked the Captain into speaking words that triggered a cascade of Ping-Pong balls; Grandfather Clock, who woke up only long enough to recite a poem; and Dancing Bear.

Regular segments included “Reading Stories” and the animated Tom Terrific and Mighty Manfred the Wonder Dog. A picture was “magically” drawn on Magic Drawing Board to fit an accompanying song. Skits and musical performances included both regulars and guest stars.

Captain Kangaroo’s twenty-nine years on CBS made it the longest-running children’s show on television. Keeshan followed it with a Public Broadcasting System (PBS) version combining new footage with clips from the older program. An updated 1997 version with a new Captain Kangaroo failed to find an audience.

Impact

Captain Kangaroo was a favorite among young baby boomers and their parents, whose letters forestalled a threatened cancellation during the late 1950’s. Its slow pace and direct involvement with its viewers stood out amid the trends in children’s television, and it served as a touchstone in the development of the first “television generation.”

Bibliography

Keeshan, Robert. Good Morning Captain: Fifty Wonderful Years with Bob Keeshan, TV’s Captain Kangaroo. Minneapolis: Fairview Press, 1996. Keeshan’s memoir of his career in children’s television.

Woolery, George W. Children’s Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow, 1985. An encyclopedic listing of live-action television programs for children.