SLR2016 5x7 LED OSRAM Opto Semiconductors and the Arduino code to run them

Well that is interesting...

My "random characters" is the whole row 6 starting with "P" and ending with "_".

Is there a way to check the output ports on the Arduino?

I've wired this three times, I've moved the display to different areas of the breadboard, and I've used different jumper wires.

Mike