Bob Keeshan played the beloved children's
entertainer Captain Kangaroo for decades. But off-camera,
he sometimes engaged in pranks with Mr. Green Jeans that would have shocked the children.
Not only did Bob Keeshan serve in the United States Marines towards the end
of World War II — although the war ended before he saw combat – he was already a
veteran of children's television when "Captain Kangaroo" launched. By the show's debut in 1955,
Keeshan had already spent several years performing as various clowns on TV.
It was on the "Howdy Doody Show'' that Keeshan accidentally found himself on screen for the first
time. A cue-card boy for the show, he wandered in front of the cameras and was promptly put in
a clown costume — the only outfit immediately on hand — by the producer. He took to it well,
developing himself into the character Clarabell by 1948. Famous Clowns reports that Keeshan was
summarily fired in 1950 because he couldn't play a musical instrument. The show's audience
of kids didn't like the replacement Clarabell, however, and Keeshan was quickly rehired into
the role before being fired a second time in 1952 — right around Christmas.
Keeshan went on to play Corny the Clown on a show called "Time for Fun" in 1953. And later
that year, Keeshan was cast in another children's program, "Tinker the Toymaker." So when "Captain
Kangaroo" hit TV screens on October 3, 1955, Keeshan was an old hand at children's television.
If you have memories of "Captain Kangaroo" on television, you know that the Captain always
seemed like an old man, particularly due to his light hair. As noted by The National Herald,
this image of the Captain as a grandfather was reinforced by his demeanor, which was
always patient and gentle. The fact that Captain Kangaroo always had grandpa energy is remarkable
when you realize that Bob Keeshan was just 28 years old when the show debuted in 1955.
As Keeshan himself noted in his autobiography "Growing Up Happy," that grandpa energy was
always part of the concept. His early experiences on children's television
shows like "Howdy Doody" had convinced him this warm, pleasant persona would
be the best approach to bonding with juvenile audiences. Having observed his own father as a
grandparent and how quickly he had built a relationship with Keeshan's young son,
Keeshan decided to base his Captain Kangaroo character on that relationship,
to try to be a fun, affectionate grandfather to all the kids tuning in.
"I couldn't just come out as a 28 year old and do what I do. So
that became a wonderful device for me."
The result was a TV show that was essentially a safe space for all the kids watching. Keeshan
never raised his voice or became angry, and the lessons "Captain Kangaroo" taught were focused
on building up self-esteem, tolerance, sharing, and other positive attributes.
Even though the technology to broadcast television in color existed as far back as the early 1950s,
it wasn't until the mid-1960s that television networks in the United States began switching
over to full-color broadcasts. And "Captain Kangaroo" was pretty late to the color revolution.
While many people's memories of "Captain Kangaroo" may be in color,
the show was actually broadcast in black and white for the first 14 years of its
existence. The show was finally retooled in 1969 to give it a modern look and feel, which
included switching from outdated black-and-white broadcasts to color. A couple of years later,
the Captain's original blue coat was switched to his more iconic red coat.
Keeshan always intended his show "Captain Kangaroo" to be a safe space,
free from the violence and noise that defined so much programming on television. In fact,
The Washington Post reports that Keeshan actually testified before Congress about
the danger he perceived in violent TV programming,
noting that watching violence on TV can have a harmful effect on a child's development.
"On these programs that I speak of on commercial television,
problems are solved with a karate chop."
Keeshan did more than just talk about his commitment to educational programming and to
fighting violence on TV. As noted by author David Kamp in the book "Sunny Days," Keeshan refused
to allow commercials for violent toys during the broadcast. In fact, in the early 1960s,
Keeshan came under severe pressure from CBS to run a commercial for a toy called Johnny Seven
O.M.A., which stood for "one-man army." This was a realistic toy that had several
weapons in one — a gun, a grenade launcher, and a rocket launcher.
As author Michael Davis reports in his book "Street Gang," CBS informed Keeshan
that he was contractually obligated to air the commercials, and if he refused,
they would cancel the show entirely. Not only did Keeshan hold his ground, he won:
The network not only agreed to not air the commercials during "Captain Kangaroo," it also
agreed that shows would be given the option to sign off on advertisements in the future.
While Bob Keeshan was adamantly against advertising violent toys on "Captain
Kangaroo," he wasn't generally against using the show's influence to sell things to children.
"If you'll be watchful, you'll see the Captain give me a bowl full of Kellogg's Rice Krispies!"
"Why, I'd be delighted, Mr. Moose!"
In fact, "Captain Kangaroo" was a key part
of bike maker Schwinn's marketing campaigns in the 1950s and 1960s.
As noted in the book "Schwinn," the company's bikes began appearing on "Captain Kangaroo"
in 1958 — not just as advertisements, but also on the show itself. Mr. Green Jeans
would bring a different model of Schwinn bike onto the set, and Captain Kangaroo would talk
about how great the bike was. Schwinn was soon the show's exclusive sponsor,
and there's little doubt that the brand's association with "Captain Kangaroo" made
it a household name, considering up to eight million children were watching each episode.
In fact, in an article published by the Conference on Historical Analysis and Research in Marketing,
Ross D. Petty notes that Schwinn touted its association with "Captain Kangaroo" in its
communications with dealers, emphasizing its market reach. When the Federal Trade Commission
changed its guidelines around advertising on children's shows in 1971, "Captain
Kangaroo" solved the problem by creating a new character — Mr. Schwinn Dealer — in an effort
to separate the sales pitch from the beloved characters of the Captain and Mr. Green Jeans.
Few performers are as tightly associated with a single character as Keeshan with
Captain Kangaroo. But if you were a kid watching children's television in the 1960s,
you might remember that Keeshan hosted a second show: "Mister Mayor."
Sadly, no footage of the show is known to have survived. But according to author Wesley Hyatt
in his book "Short-Lived Television Series, 1948-1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000
Flops," Keeshan conceived of "Mister Mayor" because he was worried he might lose his gig
playing Captain Kangaroo due to a dispute over rights. He launched "Mister Mayor"
on Saturday Mornings in 1964, so he'd still have a job if things went poorly.
Behind the scenes, though, "Mister Mayor" was full of strife. Keeshan brought over the writing team
from "Captain Kangaroo" to work on "Mister Mayor," but he didn't offer them any extra pay despite
asking them to work on two shows at once. That sparked a bitter confrontation that ended with
the writers walking off the show. In the end, though, it didn't matter: Keeshan settled the
dispute over Captain Kangaroo's rights, and he gave up on "Mister Mayor" after just one year.
One persistent criticism of "Captain Kangaroo" in its early years was Bob Keeshan's refusal
to engage with darker, more complex subjects. After falling out with Keeshan over the pay on
"Mister Mayor," many of the people behind the scenes on "Captain Kangaroo" set out
to help create a new show that would go where Keeshan wouldn't. The result: "Sesame Street."
Yes, a number of the writers who worked on "Captain Kangaroo" from its debut in 1956
left the show to work on "Sesame Street," which was not only a more dynamic show,
but also one intended to bring a bit more reality into children's
programming. Leading the charge was Jon Stone: after serving as "Captain Kangaroo's" writer,
producer, and director for years, he went on to write the pilot script for
"Sesame Street," and was that show's head writer and principal director until 1996.
While Keeshan always kept things gentle and respectful with the children on the show,
behind the scenes, it could be a different story. The show's one-time stage manager
Daniel Morgan wrote in his memoirs "Last Stage Manager Standing" that Keeshan could
be temperamental and difficult to work with. He would also indulge in some adult pranks
that were absolutely inappropriate for a beloved children's program.
Morgan writes that while Keeshan was waiting offstage for Mr. Green Jeans actor Hugh Brannum
to finish his introduction at the beginning of the show, Keeshan would sometimes pull out
his junk and wave it at Brannum. Then, later, when Keeshan was doing his final voiceover,
Brannum would get revenge by urinating on his leg, all just out of sight of the camera.
Luckily, none of the kids were aware this was going on. And Morgan also writes that Keeshan
could be an extremely generous boss,
often giving everyone on the "Captain Kangaroo" staff lavish holiday gifts.
While "Captain Kangaroo" was a calm, gentle presence in millions of children's lives on the
screen, behind the scenes Keeshan battled with the TV network that aired the show, CBS, for years.
According to the show's stage manager Daniel Morgan in his book "Last Stage Manager Standing,"
a lot of the conflict stemmed from what Keeshan perceived as a cheap attitude towards the show.
Things came to a head in the early 1980s. The television landscape was shifting: morning news
programs were becoming dominant, and CBS needed to make room for more of them. That meant making
changes to "Captain Kangaroo" over Keeshan's protests. First, the show was cut from an hour
to a half hour, and the show was also moved to a much smaller studio. Then, The Washington Post
reports that it was moved to a much earlier time slot, often airing at 6 a.m., long before most of
its core audience was awake. And finally, the show was shifted from the weekdays to the weekends,
reducing its presence dramatically. Keeshan felt the show just wasn't getting the time it deserved.
"It'll be a good day for your young person if you'd give a little of your time. Yeah,
that's important. That's what young people want more than anything else in this world, is time."
In 1984, when Keeshan's contract with CBS expired, he stepped down from the show.
Though PBS would eventually air some episodes in reruns, the age of "Captain Kangaroo" was over.
It wasn't just the show that ended. Bob Keeshan stopped appearing anywhere as
Captain Kangaroo after the show was canceled in 1984,
and stopped using the name as well. This wasn't out of bitterness; even though he
created the show, Keeshan didn't actually own the rights to the name or the program itself.
It's true that Keeshan had won the rights to "Captain Kangaroo" after settling a lawsuit
with his agent in 1965. But according to The New York Times, Keeshan sold the rights to the
character to his talent agency, International Creative Management, in 1969. It made a certain
amount of sense: the founder of ICM, Marvin Josephson, had counted Keeshan as one of his
first clients in the 1950s, and built a business empire with "Captain Kangaroo" as a foundation.
The reason Keeshan sold off the rights to his claim to fame was financial: He had three
children to support, and hosting a children's program wasn't making him rich. As a result of
this decision, though, Keeshan was not able to use the name or appearance of the character after his
contract expired in 1984, and never had any say in whether Captain Kangaroo returned to television.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the last time the original "Captain
Kangaroo" aired on television was in 1993. Despite its cancellation,
people have been trying to find a way to bring the Captain back ever since.
In 1997, someone succeeded — briefly. "The All New Captain Kangaroo" premiered that year,
starring John McDonough in the title role. The Chicago Tribune reported that Keeshan
was initially asked to take part, acting as a consultant and making occasional
guest appearances. But Keeshan demanded artistic control over the program he'd created so long ago,
and declined the offer when he was refused. Perhaps because of his absence,
the new version wasn't a success, and was canceled after just one season.
It wasn't the last attempt to bring back the Captain. According to the Asbury Park Press,
by 2016, a professional clown named Pat Cashin had bought the rights to "Captain Kangaroo" and
intended to revive the show again, but died before he could get it off the ground. And as recently as
2018, actor Mark Wahlberg was reportedly trying to revive it again, envisioning a modern version of
the Captain as a scientist who taught kids about cool science and technology topics.
So far, though, nobody has managed to replicate Keeshan's original "Captain Kangaroo" magic.