Legendary Philadelphia Children's TV Personality Dies

"Red and yellow and pink and green, purple and orange and blue.." Generations of Philadelphia area kids learned to "sing a rainbow" with Captain and Mrs. Noah.

Pat Merbreier, who often preferred to be called by her beloved character's name, died Thursday night according to multiple media reports, including a report on the WPVI-TV /6ABC website. Pat and Carter Merbreir broadcast "Captain Noah and His Magical Ark"  from the Channel Six studios weekday afternoons from the late 1960's and into the 1908's,  in an era before Oprah, judge shows and news ruled the after school airwaves. The show continued as a weekend children's show until 1994 when the Merbreiers decided to retire.

Captain and Mrs. Noah were honored by many organizations for their work in children's programming over the years. The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia have a detailed obituary on the organization's homepage.