So many good children's programs start out of local TV stations and Picture Pages was no exception to that rule. The show started as a short segment on a Pittsburgh kids show in 1974 but soon moved to the nationally-broadcast Captain Kangaroo in 1978.

Picture Pages aimed to teach preschoolers basic lessons using colorful pictures, games and other activities. The host of the show would have a large version of the picture book on screen and the audience followed on their copies at home. When the segment joined up with Captain Kangaroo, comedian Bill Cosby took over hosting duties and worked on the pages using Mortimer Ichabod, a magic marker.  The opening animation sequence for Picture Pages featured a cartoon Bill Cosby holding the red Mortimer.

In 1984, Captain Kangaroo left the air but the fun and educational Picture Pages soon found a home with Nickelodeon's Pinwheel and when that show was canceled, Picture Pages would pop up occasionally as filler programming well into the 90s.