James Wall, Longtime CBS Stage Manager, Has Died

James Wall served as a stage manager for CBS for nearly 50 years and appeared on camera as teacher "Mr. Baxter" on Captain Kangaroo.  It was Wall's idea that Captain Kangaroo should feature an African-American regular, and after serving as the show's stage manager for six years, he was given the on-screen role starting in 1968.  Wall was semi-retired for the last two decades, but frequently came back to CBS as a fill-in stage manager— a job he continued to do until 2009.

James Wall's Archive interview was conducted on October 21, 1999.

Interview description:

James Wall was interviewed for four-and-a-half hours in New York, NY. Wall candidly discussed his experiences as an African-American actor and stage manager in early television. He worked on entertainment programs, sports and news programs including The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. Mr. Wall also spoke of his work on Captain Kangaroo, first as stage manager, and later as “Mr. Baxter,” a teacher on the program. The interview was conducted by Michael Rosen.

Wall was given a tribute on the CBS Evening News, link.