By Leena Sen
As a child, I grew up watching a number of television shows, from Nickelodeon to PBS and on. Many of us grew up watching Zoboomafoo, a show of the Kratt brothers (Chris and Martin Kratt) and their lemur, a Coquerel’s Sifaka, to be more detailed, named Zoboomafoo. With a number of repeat animal guests, the show would start at the “Animal Junction” where wild animals would play. The show ran from 1999 to 2001 with 65 episodes, shown on PBS until 2004 when it was pulled from its weekday airing.
On November 10, 2014, Jovian, the male lemur who played Zoboo on Zoboomafoo, died of kidney failure at the age of 20 years. “He was very social and calm,” said Martin Kratt, in memory of Jovian, “He was young and good-looking and very gentle.” The Duke Lemur Center (also known as Jovian’s home) says that he is survived by his partner Pia, his brother Julian, seven children and four grandchildren.
