Captain Noah and His Magical Ark
Encyclopedia
Captain Noah and His Magical Ark was a television program for children and was generally broadcast around the Philadelphia area. The series aired from 1967 to 1994. It was film and produced at the WPVI-TV
, Channel 6 (then called WFIL when the program began) studios in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
.
Captain Noah and His Magical Ark, was created by W. Carter Merbreier, an ordained Lutheran minister and former Philadelphia police chaplain, and produced by the Philadelphia Council of Churches. The show initially aired as a religious program beginning in 1967 before switching to a childrens program in 1970. The show starred Merbreier as Captain Noah and his real life wife, Patricia Merbreier
, as Mrs. Noah.
At its height, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark was syndicated to twenty-two television station
s in markets
throughout the United States. During the early 1970s, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark attracted a larger local audience in the Philadelphia region than Sesame Street
and Captain Kangaroo
combined.
Show. The show also featured four cartoon shorts per day during the week. These included Gumby
, Popeye
(the made for TV cartoons from the 1960s only), Porky Pig
(pre-1940 and post-1947 episodes), and Bugs Bunny
(post-1948 episodes).
In 1975, when ABC began their morning show Good Morning America
, WPVI-TV opted to preempt that in favor of Captain Noah and His Magical Ark. Starting in September 1976, WPVI began running the 7:00 a.m. hour of Good Morning America and scaled Captain Noah back to the 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. slot. The format remained the same.
While Captain Noah, a former Lutheran minister, was the main "host" of the show, Mrs. Noah was the puppeteer
and a trained singer. Famous Philadelphian entertainer Larry Ferrari
provided the music. Favorite puppets included Maurice the Mouse and Wally the Walrus.
In 1978, when the Popeye cartoons moved to WTAF-29 (now WTXF, Fox-29) and the Warner Brothers cartoons moved to Channel 17 WPHL-TV
(later to 48 WKBS and then back to WPHL), WPVI dropped the weekday edition of Captain Noah and began running Good Morning America in its entirety. Captain Noah continued as a weekend program. It would run an hour on Saturday mornings and on that showing often contained the 8 AM cartoon (when it was a half hour offering) offered by ABC within the show. On Sunday mornings it now ran for 30 minutes before Kids Are People Too. For a while a 15-minute edition was inserted into the showing of Kids Are People Too. In 1981 Captain Noah was scaled back to 30 minutes on Saturday mornings and ran this way until 1994 with no cartoons inserted. The staples of the show were the puppets, cartoons and songs.
The theme song was, "I Can Sing a Rainbow" sung by Andy Williams
. Another notable song that was played every episode was "Send Your Pictures to Dear Old Captain Noah". Celebrity guests on the show included Elvis Presley
, Charles Barkley
, Jon Stewart
, Jim Henson
, Martina Navratilova and Frank Perdue
. The Phillie Phanatic
, mascot of the Philadelphia Phillies
, debuted to the public on the show in 1978.
Carter and Pat Merbreier jointly decided to retire and end the show in 1994. Captain and Mrs. Noah were both inducted into the Philadelphia Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2001. A 35th anniversary show was aired in 2005 on WPVI from the Please Touch Museum
.
The set of the show has been preserved at the Philadelphia's Please Touch Museum
's new home at Memorial Hall
in Fairmount Park
, which opened on October 18, 2008.
The show is now repeated every Saturday at 8:30 am on one of Channel 6's (WPVI) digital feeds. The reruns generally consist of the last few seasons the show aired (1993 or 1994). Captain Noah was grand marshal of the "Night In Venice" boat parade in Ocean City, NJ, on Saturday July 24, 2010. Patricia Merbreier passed away at age 86 on June 23, 2011 in Philadelphia.
WPVI-TV
WPVI-TV, channel 6, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. WPVI has its studios located on the border between Philadelphia and Bala Cynwyd, and its transmitter is located in the...
, Channel 6 (then called WFIL when the program began) studios in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
Captain Noah and His Magical Ark, was created by W. Carter Merbreier, an ordained Lutheran minister and former Philadelphia police chaplain, and produced by the Philadelphia Council of Churches. The show initially aired as a religious program beginning in 1967 before switching to a childrens program in 1970. The show starred Merbreier as Captain Noah and his real life wife, Patricia Merbreier
Patricia Merbreier
Patricia "Pat" Merbreier was an American television personality and actress. She was best known for playing Mrs. Noah on the Philadelphia-based WPVI syndicated children's program, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark, for approximately 3,600 episodes between 1967 and 1994. Her real life husband, W...
, as Mrs. Noah.
At its height, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark was syndicated to twenty-two television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
s in markets
Media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
throughout the United States. During the early 1970s, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark attracted a larger local audience in the Philadelphia region than Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
and Captain Kangaroo
Captain Kangaroo
Captain Kangaroo is a children's television series which aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for nearly 30 years, from October 3, 1955 until December 8, 1984, making it the longest-running children's television program of its day...
combined.
Background
Started as a religious-oriented program, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark became a daily children's program in 1970. The show aired from 7:00 a.m. to 9 a.m. on weekdays and for 30 minutes on Sunday morning leading out of ABC Sunday-morning cartoons and into the Al AlbertsAl Alberts
Al Alberts was a popular singer and composer. -Biography:Born Al Albertini in Chester, Pennsylvania, he went to South Philadelphia High School, whose alumni included many others who would become famous in show business, such as Joey Bishop, Buddy Greco, Al Martino, Mario Lanza, Chubby Checker,...
Show. The show also featured four cartoon shorts per day during the week. These included Gumby
Gumby
Gumby is a green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey, who also created Davey and Goliath. Gumby has been the subject of a 233-episode series of American television as well as a feature-length film and other media...
, Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
(the made for TV cartoons from the 1960s only), Porky Pig
Porky Pig
Porky Pig is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many critically acclaimed shorts using the fat little pig...
(pre-1940 and post-1947 episodes), and Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
(post-1948 episodes).
In 1975, when ABC began their morning show Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, WPVI-TV opted to preempt that in favor of Captain Noah and His Magical Ark. Starting in September 1976, WPVI began running the 7:00 a.m. hour of Good Morning America and scaled Captain Noah back to the 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. slot. The format remained the same.
While Captain Noah, a former Lutheran minister, was the main "host" of the show, Mrs. Noah was the puppeteer
Puppeteer
A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, such as a puppet, in real time to create the illusion of life. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden from the audience. A puppeteer can operate a puppet indirectly by the use of strings, rods, wires, electronics or directly by his or...
and a trained singer. Famous Philadelphian entertainer Larry Ferrari
Larry Ferrari
Larry Ferrari , born Lazarus Louis Ferrari, was an American organist who hosted The Larry Ferrari Show from 1954 to 1997 on WPVI-TV in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, a weekly Sunday morning half hour program of organ music.-Biography:Ferrari was born in Boston. He changed his name to "Larry" when...
provided the music. Favorite puppets included Maurice the Mouse and Wally the Walrus.
In 1978, when the Popeye cartoons moved to WTAF-29 (now WTXF, Fox-29) and the Warner Brothers cartoons moved to Channel 17 WPHL-TV
WPHL-TV
WPHL-TV, channel 17, is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, owned by the Tribune Company and currently affiliated with the News Corporation-owned MyNetworkTV television network. This makes it the largest non-O&O station of the network...
(later to 48 WKBS and then back to WPHL), WPVI dropped the weekday edition of Captain Noah and began running Good Morning America in its entirety. Captain Noah continued as a weekend program. It would run an hour on Saturday mornings and on that showing often contained the 8 AM cartoon (when it was a half hour offering) offered by ABC within the show. On Sunday mornings it now ran for 30 minutes before Kids Are People Too. For a while a 15-minute edition was inserted into the showing of Kids Are People Too. In 1981 Captain Noah was scaled back to 30 minutes on Saturday mornings and ran this way until 1994 with no cartoons inserted. The staples of the show were the puppets, cartoons and songs.
The theme song was, "I Can Sing a Rainbow" sung by Andy Williams
Andy Williams
Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams is an American singer who has recorded 18 Gold- and three Platinum-certified albums. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials, and owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri,...
. Another notable song that was played every episode was "Send Your Pictures to Dear Old Captain Noah". Celebrity guests on the show included Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, Charles Barkley
Charles Barkley
Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...
, Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
, Jim Henson
Jim Henson
James Maury "Jim" Henson was an American puppeteer best known as the creator of The Muppets. As a puppeteer, Henson performed in various television programs, such as Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, films such as The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper, and created advanced puppets for...
, Martina Navratilova and Frank Perdue
Frank Perdue
Franklin Parsons "Frank" Perdue , born in Salisbury, Maryland, was for many years the president and CEO of Perdue Farms, now one of the largest chicken-producing companies in the United States.-Career:...
. The Phillie Phanatic
Phillie Phanatic
The Phillie Phanatic, is the official mascot of the Philadelphia Phillies Major League Baseball team. He is a large, furry, green creature that somewhat resembles a bird from the rear view with a cylindrical beak containing a extendable tongue.-Creation:...
, mascot of the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
, debuted to the public on the show in 1978.
Carter and Pat Merbreier jointly decided to retire and end the show in 1994. Captain and Mrs. Noah were both inducted into the Philadelphia Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2001. A 35th anniversary show was aired in 2005 on WPVI from the Please Touch Museum
Please Touch Museum
The Please Touch Museum is a children's museum located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. The museum focuses on teaching children through interactive exhibits and special events, mostly aimed at children seven years old and younger.-History:...
.
The set of the show has been preserved at the Philadelphia's Please Touch Museum
Please Touch Museum
The Please Touch Museum is a children's museum located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. The museum focuses on teaching children through interactive exhibits and special events, mostly aimed at children seven years old and younger.-History:...
's new home at Memorial Hall
Memorial Hall
Memorial Hall may refer to:in the United Kingdom* Memorial Hall is part of Workingman's Institute and Memorial Hall also called "Memo"* Memorial Hall, Manchesterin the United States...
in Fairmount Park
Fairmount Park
Fairmount Park is the municipal park system of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It consists of 63 parks, with , all overseen by the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, successor to the Fairmount Park Commission in 2010.-Fairmount Park proper:...
, which opened on October 18, 2008.
The show is now repeated every Saturday at 8:30 am on one of Channel 6's (WPVI) digital feeds. The reruns generally consist of the last few seasons the show aired (1993 or 1994). Captain Noah was grand marshal of the "Night In Venice" boat parade in Ocean City, NJ, on Saturday July 24, 2010. Patricia Merbreier passed away at age 86 on June 23, 2011 in Philadelphia.
External links
- Captain Noah Anniversary Special wpvi.cpm Retrieved on March 18, 2007
- Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia: W. Carter Merbreier as Captain Noah Retrieved on March 18, 2007
- Philly Local Kid Shows: Captain Noah Retrieved on March 18, 2007
- Broadcast Pioneers: Clips from Captain Noah Retrieved on March 18, 2007