Mister Rogers' Neighborhood

The Mr. Rogers you saw pay a television visit to your house was the same Mr. Rogers in real life should you ever have run into him. On the night of writing this we lost Fred Rogers who passed away at the age of 74 years of age. His show took the basics of 1950's TV production and stayed with it even since. It was all about having a conversation with his TV friend. In broadcasting you may speak to many people, but speak as only one person was talking to you.

His first show was the Children's Corner (1953-61) which featured a woman by the name of Josie Carry. Although he got hosting credit, he never appeared in front of the camera, but rather was the puppeteer. The Children's Corner developed most of his puppet characters including Daniel Stripped Tiger, Henrietta Pussycat, X the Owl, and King Friday XIII. The Children's Corner was done live at Non-Commercial TV station WQED in Pittsburgh. It was a fun show if anything, and Josie and the puppets talk about Mr. Rogers a lot.

After Children's Corner he moved to Canada and did a show simply called Mister Rogers (1962-64), and it was first time he was on camera. The show was 15 minutes but it developed something which we know now as the Neighborhood of Make-believe. This Neighborhood was the majority of this short show, but Fred Rogers would appear at the beginning and ending of the program, and he would show off a few things before he had "make-believe" with the viewers. Usually it was some kind of vehicle that takes us to the Make-believe world.

In 1966 Fred returned to WQED and all that he developed would come together and Mister Rogers Neighborhood signs on the air for the first time. Fred wrote and sang shows for the show, and he showed fun things to the audience. His trips to the Neighborhood of Make Believe incorporated storylines about how people (and puppets) no matter how hard they try they should just try to be themselves and deal with live life issues in the fantasy world. Mr. Rogers also took us around the TV neighborhood on soundstages at first but the post 1979 shows took us to actual places in the real world.

Fred Rogers never liked TV for himself, but he knew how to use it to make an impact on people, and impact he did. He did most of the writhing on the show, nobody would dare tell him what to do, not saying they would. I would have loved to meet him myself, but I will never get that chance. He didn't care about being a celebrity. Just someone who cared about people and try to a "neighbor" to them.

Rest In Peace.

Never underestimate the power of Public Television. Fred Rogers makes children feel comfortable and loved, even if their home life isn't perfect. They don't really show the oldest episodes on PBS, but even back in 1968, Mr. Rogers was having episodes about difficult topics, one episode from the aforementioned year about the assassination of Bobby Kennedy. One might jeer at Mr. Rogers' style of taking his fancy jacket off and changing into a sweater, or changing from his business shoes into tennis shoes, but it gives the feeling comfort in a weary world.

Mr. Rogers was and is a huge positive influence in the lives of small children. His passing away leaves a huge emptiness in the hearts of those who grew up watching him.

In what is all to often a violent and unsure world, Mr. Rogers was the voice of stability and kindness that children could rely on. He always stressed the importance of learning, responsibility, and caring for yourself and others. His kind and gentle demeanor and slow, pronounced way of speaking were absolutely perfect for small kids, making them feel as if they were in the presence of another parent. In fact, Mr. Rogers WAS a kind of third parent to many children, particularly for many during the late 1970s and 1980s, when former at-home mothers were increasingly working outside the home and had less time for them.

Mr. Rogers' greatest legacy was his continuous reminder that he "likes you just the way you are" or "thinks you're great just for being you". This is such an important message for small children who are still forming their ideas about who they are and how they fit into a society that is very often not as kind (and too often, horribly cruel). Individuality and imagination were celebrated gifts.

To this day, I don't have the slightest idea how Fred Rogers came to know children so well, where he got this gift to communicate with them and speak to them on their level. I do know that he is a national treasure who will never be forgotten by millions of people. Mr. Rogers was the ultimate combination of a teacher and a best friend, and is utterly irreplaceable.

At age 52, I have fond memories of watching Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood when public television was in its infancy. Fred Rogers not only talked about feelings, but he also addressed young people in a way that respected us as intelligent people in our own right. Sure, he had the Neighborhood of Make Believe, and the entity he referred to as his "television house." The best part is that on one episode he addressed us and said, "Here's why you won't see me in the neighborhood of make believe" and went on to describe how he works with the puppets behind the scenes. In another episode, he shows the studio and how they put the show together.

One memorable episode dealt with Mr. Rogers getting a traffic ticket and going before the judge - he's human, too.

Mr. Rogers always made it clear that it is good to play and to pretend. I strive to be the kind person that Mr. Rogers was - I want to have that same calm demeanor.

Long live Fred Rogers in our hearts. I wish I could have met the man.

Fred McFeely Rogers. A brilliant man. In a time when children were largely ignored (and even feared at times by adults) this man had the good sense to realize one simple fact: children are people too! I am 20 years old and I am PROUD to claim that I watched Mr. Rogers every day growing up. All I watched when I was little was Mr. Rogers, Sesame Street, and Today's Special. Those were children's shows that made a child feel good. Unlike the wave of horrible children's shows that came in a few years ago (any show ending with -mon comes to mind), these shows were real. Mr. Rogers was real. You could almost believe that he really was your neighbor. He seemed like the kind of man you would see every day. But there was a huge difference: he loved and cared about children. Mr. Rogers has taken a lot of flack for his feelings towards children. How sad is it that feelings such as kindness, love, and sympathy are regarded with suspicion? Despite hundreds of attacks, despite cries of "pedophile" or "child raper", this man never wavered in his beliefs. He never backed down from what he felt was right. Some people (including 1 person on here) have wondered about the origin of the name McFeely. Well, I will tell you. It's not a hidden reference to a supposed desire to "feel" children. McFeely is his middle name, his mother's maiden name, and his maternal grandfather's name. His grandfather was responsible for some of Mr. Rogers' trademark lines: "I like you just the way you are", among others. Some people may know the song "Mr. Rogers" by Korn. Jonathan Winters, the lead singer and songwriter, screams at him "I hate you!" "I wish I never would have watched you" and "child f----r" to name a few. The reason Winters had so much hostility towards him is that as a child when he heard Mr. Rogers' kind words, he thought it meant that if you were nice to people, they would be nice to you. He thought everyone in the world was like Mr. Rogers. Unfortunately, he was wrong, and Winters was molested on many different occasions by a neighbor. Very sad, yes, but he was only projecting his anger onto this kind man. I think even Winters realizes that he really doesn't blame Fred Rogers for what happened to him. In conclusion, I'd just like to say thank you to Fred Rogers for giving so much of yourself to us and asking so very little in return. God bless you, Mr. Rogers, and my prayers go out to his family and friends.