Captain Kangaroo-The Banana Man

[missrayrayrocks]

lols. how old r these vids?

[katamichi8003]

when my family elders talked about this show, this BS did not come to mind

[JayTVdotcom]

I hate that guys sing

[Jim5150jvc]

2:46 Hey, Banana Man's playing "Eruption"!

[rawndean]

Yeah, I remember this as a kid. Scared the hell out of me!

[MsPandaRosa]

@EZO411

Banana man porn? No doubt someone just got a horrible idea...

[123soccadude]

gay

[budgrant69]

@123soccadude Not as gay as soccer...

[itsumama47]

OK...I'm OFFICIALLY a kid again.

[guyactor]

Ok, how could he freakin' fit all those bananas, let along 2 watermelons in his pants!

[larpsim]

@guyactor

The bananas and watermelons were not real -- just look closely. It did fool the kids back in the day. It sure fooled me. The dude makes sounds like Curly of The Three Stooges if you listen carefully.

[urariotalice]

OPENED THE DOOR TO PEEWEE

[zachsplep]

@CarlsBarkley I think I caught it: watch for the shiny metal washer around his nose glisten at around :40 to 43, then notice he removes it at :57. That's when the sound changes to a more normal vocal without the buzz.

[CarlsBarkley]

His singing and that odd circus music creep me out. LOL It is strangely fascinating to watch. It does remind you of Carrot Top, Curly from The Three Stooges and maybe Itchy & Scratchy from The Simpsons. Though this guy's act is probably as old as The Three Stooges' act, it's hard to tell who borrowed comedy bits from whom.

[mwillblade]

I remember him slapping a black kid and said "Good Times" is taping in the next building .

[gforce4all]

Quite annoying.

[zachsplep]

@TheCountAlucard If you take out the round washer with the paper diaphragm of a kazoo and put it in your mouth, you will get that same buzzing sound that's in his voice. They do make waterproof ones. The sound of the clarinet stays the same when he takes it out of his mouth-- a dead giveaway that he's using one.

[CarlsBarkley]

@zachsplep I don't think he had anything in his mouth. I believe it's the audio distortion in this old video. I don't know if he could open his mouth wide enough to sing and laugh and keep such a device in his mouth.

[TheCountAlucard]

I can still recall the feeling of being creeped out by the sound of the banana-man while watching the Cap't. before school in late '50's. I just got the same feeling. I think it was the sound of his voice - if that's what it is.........I wish that I never watched this U-tube.

[MsPandaRosa]

@TheCountAlucard

You are not the only one.

[oie8uw63]

Wow!, I was born in 1952 and haven't seen the Banana Man since the late 50's on Captain Kangaroo. I can't believe the old guy was still doing it in 1969. Thank you so very much for stirring some memories!

[opticalguy1954]

The ORIGINAL Banana Man (Adolf Proper 1886-1950) turns up in a mid 1930s comedy short (SEEING RED) that occasionally turns up on Turner Classic Movies. He was an old Vaudevillian and his prop coat apparently couldn't be replicated … or cleaned … so it really did stink up the place when they taped the Banana Man segments. For CAPTAIN KANGAROO Sam Levine performed in the outfit. Yes … he was VERY odd.

[inkey2]

@opticalguy1954 one way to get the stench out of a a coat is to hang it outside in cool weather like in october and november for like 3 days....all the negative ions etc are pretty good at stench removal

[BenitaStuart]

I remember this guy but nmot from Capt. Kangaroo.I remember him from an ad for banana Maypo.

[joanneschullo]

my 26 year old daughter would look at me like i was crazy when i would tell her about this guy. glad there's evidence now.

[Cml725]

@joanneschullo My dad used to tell me about him, too. I believed him, even though I never saw him til this clip. "Wowwwww" lol

[jln55]

I remember him from watching CK in the 60's. This guy was a little scary. This is where I learned the word 'annoying'.

[143AC]

"The Banana Man"also appeared on an NBC TV Network holiday tv special in the mid 1950's"Babes In Toyland"..featuring an all star cast,the music of Vic Herbert and Glen MacDonough and produced and staged by Max Liebman..the creative genius behind Sid Caesar.

[143AC]

1985? Oh Come On! "CK"went off the air on CBS TV in 1984.

[CatThatHasNoName]

@143AC Yes, but this clip comes from one of the video releases that Bob Keeshan released in 1985, containing segments from the show mixed with new introductions, as in this clip.

[NBachers]

I remember The Banana Man. From some alternate vaudeville universe he entered our reality to reflect us to ourselves. I'll take the Banana Man over the tea baggers any day.

[bebillious]

bring him back to save america

[Flgaljane]

The Banana Man! I used to ask people who watched The Captain if they remembered The Banana Man and they'd look at me like I was insane. Glad he wasn't a hallucination after all!

[kenmackow]

This guy used to scare the hell out of me.

[Ayumiessence]

Kaptain Kangaroo used to wake me up every morning for kindergarten in the 1960's. Loved seeing him again. thx

[HomefrontwDonZeman]

I loved the Banana Man! He always made me laugh...and the train got longer. I loved Captain Kangaroo.

[momsteroni]

I so remember this LOL

[michellelabrecque]

creepy.

[RandomActs58]

OMG...looking back now as a 52 year old, I understand why my mother HATED the BANANA MAN,,,,WTF is up with the falsetto wailing? I think i just peed my pants I am laughing so hard. Memory Lane is awesome!

[Enofrappini]

.....haven't seen the banana man since I was maybe 10, I'm 57. My brother would freak!

[bobbybrady8]

now that was entertainment!

[SkivMarine]

I remember him well. Especially that "wow!!" he'd let out when he found something new.

A very accomplished clown, with great wit and originality.

[masseffect56]

omg that was 7 min of terror he is so scary

[RanetkiFan]

1969>?? He was still on then? I remember him from the mid 50s

He came on every now and then, never a regular, when he came on I used to race from the kitchen to the living room screaming for my sister to come in and YELL BANANA MAN!! u never knew when he had hiding in his jacket!! good memories, thanx for posting

[JDPelzy]

This was always a favorite segment of Captain Kangaroo for me as a child. Loved the Banana Man but freaked by the Town Clown. I watched them all. Through measles and mumps the Captain seemed to make everything better.

[JDSquire]

I remember as a kid liking Banana Man but his "voice" always freaked me out.

[MeIancholyMan]

DAMN THAT'S A LOT OF BANANAS!!!! hehehe

[ia57man]

The Banana Man was a favorite of mine growing up in the 50's.

[TR8thetoy]

Big time Flash Back! I loved the Captain. The Banana Man was my first hero. The Captain was our baby sitter..

[comedyfunguy]

He was an original..never been anything like this.

[puntagordy]

And I thoght Shakes the clown was bad!

[educatexan]

Oh, the memories that this brings back! Vaudeville is the perfect way to describe what the Captain did. I miss those times. For me, nothing today reaches that level of humor.

[thesixtiesguy]

I believe the Banana Man first appeared on an episode of Mister Mayor. He even had a song called "The Banana Man". Mister Mayor also featured the Homan Family with Bill McCutcheon as Dudley. I have a video of him on youtube on a Tootsie Roll commercial, Rollo the Hippo, and other characters I can't remember now.

[SenorZorrozzz]

The Banana Man from 1969 in color? I remember him in the50s!

[rentatrip1]

This is a second generation Banana Man- The First Banana Man dates back to around 1919 ? - Vaudeville Performer - All these "gags" are a copy of the original -

[Carycomic]

Well, the gentleman who appeared on CAPT. KANGAROO was the first one I ever heard of. So, I'll always have a special fondness for him.

And, here, I thought the Captain had deep pockets (hence, his "nickname"). Wow!

[Vekxx]

Hey, it's Carrot Top's great uncle.

[NYRFEP]

best there ever was

[maggie94306]

I have been looking or this for YEARS! My memory of Banana Man is intense...the first of a life long fascination with the eccentric and strange.  Thanks to whomever found and posted it....

[1voxpopuli]

i wonder if this wasn't the inspiration for elmo's voice on sesame street...the laugh, the little noises and little singing voice all sound like elmo...

sesame street premiered in november of 1969...so elmo came after this banana man skit...

[maytag1964]

SOOOO RARE!!!!!! What a wonderful video. He used to be on "Super Circus"..zoowie

[sprygeoffreya17]

So nice to see my brother and I weren't the only kids in the late fifties-early sixties who loved and, were a little creeped out by this wonderful man !

[misospecial]

i dream of the banana man, one of the lost pleasures of my childhood. this is incredible. thanks!

[MiristWurst]

Oh thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!!

He never said a WORD! (except "WOW!") and COULD he sing.

This is one of the secrets, the wonders of childhood,hidden to the minds and ears of all but a few fortunate adults.

Thanks again! (Where'd you find it?)

Well, on Saturday (I think) they had Mighty Manfred, Tom's ever faithful companion, "exhausted from the rigors of our last adventure.."

[Mklhorvath]

I used to drive my sisters crazy singing like the Bananaman. I'm laughing so hard thinking about it, I can barely type.

[Chsrles62]

I saw this starting when I was probably 5 or 6. I remember the Captain would talk about it for days that the Banana Man was coming, and I could not WAIT til he was on. But I could never really remember what he actually did -- I've just had this vague memory of him screaming a lot and there being bananas all over the place. Now I see why I looked so forward to it and what he was really doing, and I can appreciate it so much more now.

[finylvinyl66]

I barely remember seeing Banana Man on the good Captain's show. Although I think B.M. was great, that so many baby boomers saw his act on TV at a young age might explain why we screwed up the world as bad as we have.

[GasCityGuy]

Guess we have Bob and Tom to thank introducing us to Banana Man. lol Just saw them talking about it on their TV show this evening

[rljundt]

haha! i heard this on bob and tom yesterday morning too!!!

[MikeyParks]

My memory of the Banana Man goes back to circa 1952. I think there was a show called The Big Top with circus acts and this guy used to come out in a little car, which at the end he'd fold up into a suitcase and walk off. Or vice versa. I loved the guy!

[asijohns]

I loved the Banana Man when I watched him on Capt Kangaroo and love it still. I heard Tim Bedore mention the Banana Man on the Bob and Tom Show yesterday and thought I needed to check YouTube to see if I could find him. So glad I did. Still love the act. Have a great day.

[bergiebits]

Waddayano! The illegitimate father of Carrot Top!

[finylvinyl66]

Carrot Top wishes he could be this good!

[schlesmail]

The Banana Man! One of my very favorite TV characters--his antics held me spellbound in front of the screen.

[TooleMan87]

I vaguely remember being scared by the Banana Man when I first saw him, but later enjoying his bizarre shtick. Seems to me he delivered a watermelon from "down there," like it was a baby, with an especially loud "Hah hah, WOW!"

[JoeySunB]

WE WERE CRAZY! I loved the Capt . -and l am a BIG fan of Frank Zappa . ( Do you think green genes was an accident ) Banana Man's responses to questions are DIFFERENT /his music was funny . We were little kids in the '50's & we were being taught to CONFORM -- he was weird/cool . getting your hair cut in the 1950's /1960's --- pre - Kennedy & pre -Beatles --- You had 2 choices : WET or DRY !. I always remembered & loved the Bman as much as Green Jeans or Mr. Moose ! Capt K 4ever

[jpix52]

I was begining to question my memory, here the banana lives. None of my contempories believed me that he exists.

Thank you!

[shadowchasinut]

I SO remember the banana man!! What an awesome video!! Thank you from the botttttttom of my heart!!

[rainy255]

Oh. My. Holy. God.

THIS is the guy that my friend will have to try to pretend to be for our history skit. This INSANE CREEPY little THING. It even wears a TRENCHCOAT. What IS this madness?!?

[PandaMishima]

The Banana Man's humor is definitely not for everyone.

[RobinJM24]

Quite possibly the oddest act of daytime children's television. Utterly memorable..and creepy. I can imitate BM's sounds fairly decently and have endured blank stares for years. Everyone thought I was nuts. Until now.

No..it wasn't my nightmare. You Tube proves this actually penetrated network television, big time, in the 60's.  Saw this at least 4 times, never in color. CK always gave it a several day lead up..."And in a few days...The Banana Man!"

[myeckwaters]

Oh, they'll still think you're nuts. Now they'll know the cause.

[satweavers]

Well, Sam Levine certainly didn't have the nuance that A. Robins did, even though he was using the same props and material. Still, it's all very surreal and brings back powerful memories. Thanks for posting!

[kariswg1]

Thanks for posting this. I sent the link to my friend, who is the same age:59. We used to watch Captain Kangroo, and as adults talked about the Banana Man. You tube rocks.

[PandaMishima]

My mother used to say how great the Banana Man was, how funny he was with his song and dance... I never saw him until recently, and frankly he gives me the creeps, the kind of guy I'd warn my children to stay well away from. His voice sounds like Curly on crack and I can see that his fur coat must have smelled, as others have pointed out.

I guess you either got his humor or you didn't, and I know I am a Didn't.

[petegib7]

I'm afraid that I'm old enough to have seen the Banana Man on Captain Kangaroo in the late Fifties and I can tell you that all the kids I knew loved him.

[PandaMishima]

Well, I guess you hadda be there.

[mrsbrown333]

no one ever believed me when I told them about the Banana man. Now, they will.thank you.

[cornermoose]

I so well remember the Banana Man! He also put in at least one appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.

[peregrine1010]

The Banana Man used to drive my parents nuts. Showbiz legend has it that the guy was so jealous of his stage secrets that he never had the coat laundered or dry cleaned, so that after 40 years of performances the coat was so ripe that no one wanted to be near the guy when he performed.

[Tuggle]

See what happens when Ronald McDonald lets Liza Minelli apply his makeup and do his hair?

[ihearbeetles]

Me too!I had someone who worked for me say that I was out of my mind. Watching it now though, there's something sort of creepy about it.

[mskathy0724]

Thanks to my daughter, I found Banana Man! Every time I'd asked someone who remembered the Captain Kangaroo show if they remembered Banana Man they thought I was crazy!

[blondex21]

I remember him on early TV - and liked him so much I would always imitate him singing until one day my mom said "If you imitate the banana

man one more time I am putting you on the mental bus"

[3pieceflute]

I had also thought that I was the only one! It was frustrating because for a long time there was almost nothing online and none of my friends remembered him. Its great to finally see the old videos! In '99 I wrote a song about him (at MySpace Music under "gazinkus"). It turns out that there are a lot of banana-heads out there (and a web site!) and its easy to find articles about this icon. What a-peel he has!

[17alwayslate]

I thought I was the only one who remembered The Banana Man!!! I can't tell you how much better I feel now that I know I'm not crazy!!!

[peejay6424]

leave it to one asshole to leave a comment like yours 143AC. Obviously your animals stink somewhat...better take a look around your animal's environment and find out where the smell is coming from. Perhaps it is the owner.

[143AC]

To say that this man stunk to high heavens

would be an understandment! Five will get you ten?

That when "Mr.Green Jeans"came onto the set after

"The BM"left the show he probably said"My God!

Even my animals don't stink as much!".

[peejay6424]

to 143AC: If you were a good animal owner, your animals wouldnt stink at all. Perhaps the smell is coming from the owner. Hmmmm....think? You have too much free time ruining everyones thoughts on this site.

[PandaMishima]

Oh please. Even with the best of care, farm animals have some odor about them, esp goats. Besides, Mr. Green Jeans said the BM smelled much worse!

[kes1963]

i just wondered if this guy was an assistant to the original, or did he just watch him alot

[gscotm55]

How fuckin' great is THIS!?!

[finylvinyl66]

You think Pee Wee Herman might have seen this guy?

[showmesue]

OMG I cannot believe I have just watched the banana man!!! This is awesome! There is only one other person I know who remembers banana man and that was a boss I had a few years back. We would laugh til we cried just talking about it! So guess who is getting this video? LMAO!!

[inkey2]

yes showmesue, I too remember the banana man. I am almost 55 years old and I remember him showing up on various TV shows. The act is totally unique and originated in Vaudeville (i believe). I can't remember the man who originated this BUT I read that he franchised it out to at least one other person. He also did his routine in a few movies as well. To say this guy was talented would be an under statement.

[finylvinyl66]

Was this the birth of performance art?

Genius. (And probably why I'm so messed up after watching this fifty years ago.)

[BillyJackets]

Banana Man rocked! I remember this like it was last year thanks for posting it

[irishcopper1]

I used to watch Captain Kangaroo nearly every morning for about eight years back in the 60's. I liked the Captain and the Banana Man, but I was a weird kid. I loved then and do love comical magic. I'm not sure how kids would deal with them today. Probably not well, not video games, Crocs or fast food involved!

[misharyutubbee]

I watched CK in the 1960s and don't remember the Banana Man.  Don't think I would forget something like that...

[madhypnotist]

creepy then... creepy now....kitschy, but creepy.

[afhickman]

Thank god for ocular proof! I've been telling people about the banana man for years, and they wouldn't believe me.

[mskathy0724]

Me too! Even my sister who used to watch with me didn't remember the Banana Man. After searching I found out the original died before I was born but I remember this one on Captain Kangaroo!

[watsbee]

This guy freaked me out at 9 or 10, whatever I was. It's great stuff now - but then, I found him really disturbing! Thanks for posting! I can stop therapy now. LOL

[judemblackbbc]

Ooooooooh! Hahaha! WOW!

Thank you for posting this. I honestly don't remember the actual performance, but I do remember that the Banana Man usually appeared at the end of the week and for several days beforehand the Captain would promise that he was going to visit, building the anticipation. LOL, Banana Man and Captain.

[synchronic1]

To be able to see the banana man after all these years is truly wonderful. I laughed till I cried. No wonder I remember this skit 50 years later. The Captain was a large part of ny very happy childhood.

[ReubenJamez]

I remember the Banana Man I was about 7. This is so funny, I can't stand it !

[LaughClub]

Great find - great memories! Thanks