Saban executives said they decided to revive the show because today's parents are the Baby Boomers who watched "Captain Kangaroo" while growing up, providing the show with instant, built-in marquee appeal. He also has recorded more than 40 titles for Recorded Books Inc., including "Heidi" and "Hans Brinker," and has performed across the country in preschools, kindergartens and elementary schools.
#Bunny rabbit captain kangaroo series
His acting roles have included playing a priest on NBC's daytime soap "Another World," a recurring role on ABC's old "Spenser: For Hire" series and parts in films such as "The Preacher's Wife" and "I.Q." The actor, who has an extensive background in children's theater, is well known around the Hartford area for his local stage performances and appearances in radio and television ads. McDonough said he tries to avoid all the controversies, and didn't want to talk about the show's cost or his contract, other than to say, "This is the first time in my life I've got a regular salary.
Most of the show is being filmed in the Tampa studios of public television station WEDU, but some of it will be taped at Busch Gardens, a Florida amusement park owned by the brewery.
There's also a potentially awkward alliance with co-sponsor Anheuser-Busch, the No. Saban acquired the Captain Kangaroo rights from Keeshan in 1993 and is producing the new show at a cost of $10 million-making it one of the most expensive syndicated children's shows ever. It was Saban Entertainment, a Los Angeles production company that specializes in children's television and is best known for "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers," that made the decision. Producers say that when focus groups composed of children and adults watched tapes of McDonough and other finalists, the children in particular responded overwhelmingly to McDonough.īut the actor says he was still as surprised as anyone that he was chosen. "If I read a poetry passage from John Milton, or play a beautiful piece of chamber music, I believe I am entertaining and educating children at the same time and sharing things that I truly love." "I can only be myself," said McDonough, who wants to retain the same sense of trust children had in Keeshan, while carving out a niche of his own. McDonough said he is already comfortable in the role-having filmed parts of more than 13 episodes this summer. It won't take long for him to feel comfortable as the Captain." "He'll just find ways to make the character unique because he's got this special quality that draws people in."Ĭhildhood friend Robert Kiel said that "when I heard he was chosen as the new Captain Kangaroo, I just smiled because if you know him, you know there's no one else better for the part.
She said that if anyone can handle the pressure of succeeding a television legend like Keeshan, it's her brother. There's no doubt in my mind that being Captain Kangaroo is it." "I always felt that at some point in his life he would find his niche. both children and adults," said one of his sisters, Trudy, who shares the Connecticut farmhouse where they grew up. "He's always had a zest for life that is contagious he loves to share his knowledge of the arts with everyone. He embodies the spirit, the wonderment and the pure joy of this beloved American icon." "I knew John was the one from the moment I saw him. "John McDonough is Captain Kangaroo," said the show's executive producer, Eric Rollman, who personally sat through more than 1,000 auditions in an effort to find an actor who had a natural rapport with children and the ability to act without coming off as a slick professional. Those concerns don't apply to McDonough, according to producers and others who know him well. He also feared the new show would have more glitz than substance, and that the new Captain would not possess the original childlike spirit that he embodied in the role. Keeshan, whose agent did not return repeated phone calls for comment, has said on several occasions that he was "disturbed" by the nationwide search for a new Captain.
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