Mr. Rogers was a huge part of my childhood. To this day I can sing the theme song, and the basic lessons he taught about being kind to people and staying forever intrigued by the world around you are absolutely ingrained in my psyche. (Yes, I still get annoyed from time to time. We're none of us perfect, as Mr. Rogers taught us. So be tolerant, dammit!)
Mental Floss has a list titled "15 Reasons Mister Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever." Some things I knew ("He got into TV because he hated TV", "He composed all the songs on the show"), some I didn't ("Michael Keaton got his start on the show" as a puppeteer). Some I had forgotten about, like the fact that he testified before Congress about the VCR, which was in danger of being banned by paranoid Hollywood lobbyists.
Then there's this tidbit: "Mr. Rogers weighed in at exactly 143 pounds every day for the last 30 years of his life." He liked weighing that number, because "the number 143 means ‘I love you.’ It takes one letter to say ‘I’ and four letters to say ‘love’ and three letters to say ‘you.’ One hundred and forty-three." If anyone else on the planet said that you would have them committed, and you certainly wouldn't want them hanging around your children. But since Mr. Rogers said it, it's fine. He really meant all of that stuff, and it was great.
Some of his advice, which was always delivered in a kind, caring way, applies to everyone. "You can't make it work by sitting and thinking about it. You have to do it." I mean, what's wrong with that? I'm including three videos below, all of which really brought me back to my childhood, in a good way.
Does the show still hold up today? To me it does, but the lack of new episodes (for the obvious reason that Fred isn't around to make them anymore) definitely hurts in terms of kids catching on to the show. Sesame Street still works, but neither of my kids ever got into Mr. Rogers, although I tried both times. I'll throw this out to the group – do your kids watch ol' Fred change his shoes, zip up his sweater and sing about what a neighborly day for a beauty it is?
image: Wikipedia
Mr. Rogers Videos
Mr. Rogers Goodbye: I'd never seen this. It's sad but in a nice way.
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, "You Did It" Song
Mr. Rogers sings "It's You I Like"
