Although a vigorous fan of Captain Kangaroo when I was a child, I was genuinely creeped out (yet also fascinated) by the clown who had seemingly endless strings of bananas emerging from his pockets. To this day, I still think about them (the bananas, not the pockets) and shiver.
The show had other sources of terror. “Dancing Bear,” intended to be funny and adorable, seemed to my 5-year-old self to be instead a mutated and dangerous life form. Also, the “aw-shucks” innocence of Mr. Green Jeans clearly was manufactured to conceal all manner of moral turpitude, the imagined nature of which kept me awake nights.
What was the creepiest part of the Captain Kangaroo Show for you?
The Terrifying Banana Clown
Mr. Green Jeans and Dancing Bear
Past the Isle of Dogs 
I probably started watching Captain Kangaroo around 1959 when I was 4. I don’t remember The Banana man. Either I blocked him out or he came later since I don’t remember it being in color. But now that I see the Dancing Bear, I don’t have good feelings about him. His eyes were creepy. I liked the animals coming on and Mr. Moose, and loved The Magic Drawing Board. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
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Thanks JoAnna. The thing I liked most about the show was the regular shower of ping pong balls on Captain Kangaroos head. Although even they were a little creepy.
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He was a good sport. 🙂
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