Both children and adults alike have lost a great friend. Two, actually.

As you may have heard already, Bob Keeshan has passed away.

Some remember him as Clarabell from Howdy Doody. Some remember his short stint as Mr. Mayor. Some know he wrote the Itty Bitty Kitty book series. But nearly everyone remembers him as Captain Kangaroo.

Captain Kangaroo was a live-action television show, although “action” isn’t quite the right word. To combat the over-stimulated pace of other children’s shows, Keeshan deliberately kept the show tranquil and languid. The show took place in the Treasure House, which was home to many wonderful characters like Mr. Greenjeans, Grandfather Clock, Dancing Bear, Mrs. Mouse and Mr. Lion (who lived in a mousehole in the baseboard), and of course the pair who made us laugh the most—Bunny Rabbit and Mr. Moose. An obituary may be found here.

Another children’s television host passed away on Wednesday, one Ray Rayner. Rayner was the host of the show “Ray Rayner and His Friends”. It was a show that was only broadcast locally in Chicago, and so he wasn’t known nationally, but Rayner was loved by children growing up in the Windy City. Even though it was filled with cartoons like Bugs Bunny, Clutch Cargo, or The Funny Company, the show’s heart was Ray. He wore colored jumpsuits with little pieces of paper stuck to them (this was before Post-its) to remind him what the next segment was. On Wednesdays Dr. Lester Fisher from Lincoln Park Zoo would visit with some animals, and on Fridays Ray would read viewer mail with a big stuffed animal/dog puppet named Cuddly Dudley.

These two men brought warmth, imagination, and genuine affection to children’s programming, traits that seem to be lacking in the overproduced committee-smothered kids shows of today. The passing of these two men truly signals the end of an era.