RIP Mr. Rogers

[JonathanLB]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/27/rogers.obit/index.html

I used to watch that as a kid, of course. Probably most people did.

[Sejah Haversh]

Mr. Rogers was one of the coolest people I've ever heard of. Soft-spoken, yet still firm wen makign a point, andalways takign into consideration another's opinion. His show is possibly one of the best out there for kids, because it's wholesome, good, and fun.

His personal character was the likes of few we will probably ever see again in this sensationalized world. Most never knew he was one of the USA's top snipers in the Korean War, and probably only a few others knew he was aslo an ordained minister.

But, to start a children's program on live television that was an hour long with nothing but a box of puppets is one of the most courageous things I can think of. Sure, it seems hokey and lame to some of us now, but to kids it was magic. They trolley really did go to the lad of Make Believe, where Good King Friday ruled, and his son Tuesday went to school with a tiger, among others.

I will never be able to forget Mr. Rogers because he was able to show me that people can truly be good in their heart, and nothing is wrong with being polite and friendly. I'll miss him, he was a man I did want to meet in person. On a side note, his last episode of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood was no different than any other. He came in, changed his sweater and put on his sneakers in the beginning, had a wonderfully simple little show, and then, at the end, shanged his shoes back, put on his jacket, and walked out the door. What courage it is to go out so quietly, to not make a fuss about yourself.

Fred Rogers was truly a good, honest man. One of the last of a dying breed, and it is a sad thing to know he is gone now.

[Darth Viscera]

:( I'll miss him, even though I haven't watched him since I was like 5 or 6.

I always liked his train.

[Jinn Fizz]

Bravo, Sejah, very well said.

The child inside me is distraught right now. Absolutely distraught. I think a part of me felt that Mr. Rogers was immortal. This just ain't right, you know?

:cry :cry :cry :cry :cry

[JonathanLB]

He is immortal in that he will never be forgotten, hehe :)

The Mexicans believe in a third death, apparently, and that is when you are totally forgotten.

Our film horror teacher told us about this on Tuesday in relationship to "Day of the Dead," which we were relating to Romero's movie called that. Anyway she said that and I was like, "Haha, yeah that'll never happen." :D

[JMK]

What crappy news to wake up to. :( He was amazing.

[CMJ]

I saw it on the news, a really sad thing to hear.

[Jedi Master Carr]

Yeah it is sad, I remember watching him as a kid too.

[Jedieb]

It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood,
A beautiful day for a neighbor,
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

It's a neighborly day in this beautywood,
A neighborly day for a beauty,
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you,
I've always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you.

So let's make the most of this beautiful day,
Since we're together, we might as well say,
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?
Won't you be my neighbor?

Won't you please,
Won't you please,
Please won't you be my neighbor?

Goodbye Mr. Rogers.:angel

[CMJ]

I think I'll stop by his star today and lay out a candle with all the other remembrances.

[Anthony Scott]

This is a sad day indeed -- he will be missed. :(

[Xazor Elessar]

Very well stated Sejah, I agree fully with what you said. :)

I grew up watching Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and I'll never forget the lessons I learned on there as a little girl. Instead of watching violent television shows that seemed to (and still do) fill the stations, I preferred to watch this wholesome show that taught about more than just the alphabet or numbers. It was about friendship and love -- ways to be a good neighbor, not just to the people that live around us, but to everyone we must coexist with daily.

Sure others made fun of the show and thought it was corny or what have you, but honestly -- I doubt we will see another show like that. Maybe imitations will be manufactured, but none will ever be able to hold a candle to the work of Fred Rogers.

I will miss him and his goodness -- the wonderful messages he put forth for years. The child inside of me will miss him because of everything he taught me, even though it was only through the screen of a television.

God bless you Mr. Rogers -- may you always be remembered.

Barbara
:angel

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Ah I posted in the other thread first...but Sejah I totally agree with everything you said, and I'm glad to see I was right when I said he was a minister. My memory has been the first thing to go in my old age.

See you later, Mr. Rogers. :)

[Figrin D'an]

I, like many others here, watched two shows in my early youth that taught me the basics of life. One was Sesame Street. The other was Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

Fred Rogers was like another father or grandfather to multiple generations of America's youth. He had a profound influence on my life, and on the lives of countless others. Perhaps what I admired most about him was that he lived his life by the same morals that he taught on his show. He wasn't just a face for some corporation to make money off of while under the guise of being an educational kids show. His show was real... it showed the real Fred Rogers, doing what he enjoyed the most... having fun with kids and teaching them some important lessons of life along the way. When he left his TV home after every episode to go to his actual home, nothing about him changed. He was as honest and good a person as Fred Rogers as he was as "Mr. Rogers."

A few years ago, I remember reading an AP news article about how a rather unassuming man stole a car... an older model station wagon... from a parking lot in a Pittsburgh suburb. As it turned out, the car belonged to Fred Rogers. When the man, who had watched "Mr. Rogers Neighborhood" as a child, found out whom owned the car, he returned the vehicle, wrote a sincere apology to Mr. Rogers, and subsequently turned himself into the police. That's the kind of effect Fred Rogers had on people.

He will always be remembered, and I hope that PBS will continue to run his shows so that younger generations can learn from him, just as so many of us did.

[JMK]

I hope PBS goes right back to the beginning with his series. And continually plays them until I'm 74 years old. I think what I like best about him and his show is that it NEVER changed. The only thing that changed was the black hair on his head going gray. Same set, (mostly) the same characters and same music throughout.

[Jinn Fizz]

:)
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/cx/uc/20030228/bs/bs030228.gif

(sorry, tried to attach the file, got goofed up :o )

[JonathanLB]

Did Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers Neighborhood play back to back or something? I seem to remember always watching them both each day, or at least when I was quite young those were the two shows I was allowed to watch basically, haha, and I did.

[Wei Wu Wei]

I don't remember. Man, even in high school, I'd be sitting at home during summer vacation or whatever, and sometimes I'd turn the channel to PBS to watch Mr. Rogers. You can call me a dork, but in 11th grade, at age 16, I still watched Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. I just wish I could still keep on watching it today. College schedules suck.

[Jinn Fizz]

I think Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers were on pretty much back-to-back, or at least really close to each other. I watched not only those 2 shows, but Zoom and The Electric Company as well.

Oh, and no worries on the edit, JMC! :)

[Admiral Lebron]

I watched Mr. Rogers then Gilligans.

[RogueLeader]

It is sad that Mr. Rogers died. May he rest in peace. My prayers go out to his family....