The Sun Sets in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe

[andrewgd]

"We are very sorry to deliver the sad news that Fred Rogers died on February 27, 2003 after a brief battle with stomach cancer. We are grateful for the many people, young and old, who have cared about his work over the years and who continue to appreciate Mister Rogers' Neighborhood on PBS. We hope that you'll join us in celebrating his life by reflecting on his messages and taking them into your everyday lives."

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/2 ... index.html

http://pbskids.org/rogers/parents/feb27.html

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/2 ... quotes.ap/

[Megs]

I am very sorry to hear that. He was a great, comforting fixture in my childhood.

[TomSpeed]

I also grew up with Mr. Rogers. It's a sad day in my life as well. He did so much for children. He will be missed.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

I was just reading about this online too. I don't really know what to say, except that it's a very sad day. I remember watching Mr. Rogers even occassionally in college - he was so calm and caring. He never sold out and went to network or even cable tv. He stayed loyal to what the show was about.

[lance]

Hey all,

I was deeply saddened to hear about Fred Rogers passing. Listening to all the tributes dedicated to him on the radio brought back many memories: of Sesame Street, Electric Company and Mr. Rogers.

I remember him always coming into his "house" taking off his shoes and jacket and then putting on his sneakers and sweater. I remember the trolley and the puppets. I remember him always seeming genuinely happy to be doing the work that he did. He will be deeply missed.

Best,

Lance Man

[GaryEA]

So I'm sitting here, gettiung ready to go to work, and for some reason, Mr. McFeely is on CNN.

Now, I had the sound of the tv down, so I didn't catch it right away. What gave it away was the text below him "Fred Rogers Dead at 74".

Holy cow. The neighborhood just lost a tenant.

I never knew he had stomach cancer until today, and upon reflecting on that, I thought that his handling of his illness was very much like how he was in any regard; dignified and respectable.

My regards go out to his wife, his two sons and the rest of his family.

Gary

[SanDeE*]

I too watched Mr. Rogers' show when I was a child. I immediately emailed my mother when I heard the news that he passed away. She emailed back, saying that she learned so many ways to be a compassionate parent from Mr. Rogers.

Hearing about Mr. Rogers' death reminded me of the days I was in daycare. My mother was the daycare provider, so it was at my house. All my friends would come over, we'd play and watch Mr. Rogers and Sesame Street. This was during Mr. Rogers' peak: '84-'87. I was between 2 and 5 years old. There's a funny story about my daycare days: When I was that little in daycare, I had this thing where I liked to be naked. Of course, I influenced all my little daycare friends to be naked too, so we'd all be running around the house naked. Thanks to this, my mother had to make a rule that underwear was a minimum requirement at the lunch table. She jokes that that rule is still in effect today! So as a remembrance of Mr. Rogers, I think that sometime soon I'll have to strip down to my undies and eat tomato soup and grilled cheese for lunch - two frequent things on the daycare lunch menu.

Okay, that was maybe a little embarrassing, but it's a fond memory for me. I hope that all of you have fond memories of childhood like that, that Mr. Rogers was a part of.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

Just thought I would add this as a way to remember the spirit of Mr. Rogers and his ability to inspire us, even as adults. This is a transcript of the commencement address he gave at Dartmouth last June:

Wow. What a privilege to be with you all. Since I've arrived here in Hanover many people have greeted me by saying, "It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood." Well, indeed it is a beautiful day. But before I begin, I'd like you to know that I recognize that you who live and work here have had many days, particularly during these last several months, that have been far from beautiful. You've had a painful time and you've handled it with dignity. I feel certain that the Zantops' generous spirits inspire you and it's a great privilege for me to be with you all.

When I was at Dartmouth in the late 1940's, the tuition, room, and board all added up to $1100 a year. Nobody owned a home computer and hardly anyone had a television set and for those who did, there was a choice of three channels. I'm not sure if Jeanne Shaheen was even born yet, but very few people would have guessed that within 50 years a woman would be governor of New Hampshire. Yes, when I was here the first word of the alma mater was "Men…Men of Dartmouth, give a rouse…". Well, now the first word is "Dear". Some things change for the better.

During my first year here, I lived right over there at 101 Middle Mass. And I had two roommates. I had a professor over there who did his best to scare everyone in his class and he gave me the lowest grade that I ever had in any school anywhere. But I also had an astronomy professor, George Dimitrov, who looked for and found what was best in each of his students. When I look at the night sky, I still think of that extra-special, kind man.

Dartmouth is many things to each of us and I'm grateful to Jim and Susan Wright for all that they have done for this school. And I'm grateful to my old friend Chick Koop for all that he has done for all of us. And I congratulate every one of you who is being honored in any way during this Commencement weekend.

Our world hangs like a magnificent jewel in the vastness of space. Every one of us is a part of that jewel. A facet of that jewel. And in the perspective of infinity, our differences are infinitesimal. We are intimately related. May we never even pretend that we are not. Have you heard my favorite story that came from the Seattle Special Olympics? Well, for the 100-yard dash there were nine contestants, all of them so-called physically or mentally disabled. All nine of them assembled at the starting line and at the sound of the gun, they took off. But not long afterward one little boy stumbled and fell and hurt his knee and began to cry. The other eight children heard him crying; they slowed down, turned around and ran back to him. Every one of them ran back to him. One little girl with Down Syndrome bent down and kissed the boy and said, "This'll make it better." And the little boy got up and he the rest of the runners linked their arms together and joyfully walked to the finish line. They all finished the race at the same time. And when they did, everyone in that stadium stood up and clapped and whistled and cheered for a long, long, time. People who were there are still telling the story with great delight. And you know why. Because deep down, we know that what matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What really matters is helping others win too. Even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then.

Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius - what a name - was the last of the great Roman philosophers and the first of the scholastics of the Middle Ages. Fifteen hundred years ago, Boethius wrote this sentence, "O happy race of mortals, if your hearts are ruled as is the universe by love." I was once invited to sit in on a master class of six young cellists from the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony. The master teacher was Yo-Yo Ma. Now, Yo-Yo is the most other-oriented genius I've ever known. His music comes from a very deep place within his being. And during that master class, Yo-Yo gently led those young cellists into understandings about their instruments, their music, and their selves, which some of them told me later, they'd carry with them forever.

I can still see the face of one young man who had just finished playing a movement of Brahms' cello sonata, when Yo-Yo said, "Nobody else can make the sound you make." Of course, he meant that as a compliment to the young man. Nevertheless, he meant that also for everyone in the class. Nobody else can make the sound you make. Nobody else can choose to make that particular sound in that particular way.

I'm very much interested in choices and what it is and who it is that enable us human beings to make the choices we make all through our lives. What choices lead to ethnic cleansing? What choices lead to healing? What choices lead to the destruction of the environment? The erosion of the Sabbath? Suicide bombings or teenagers shooting teachers? What choices encourage heroism in the midst of chaos?

I have a lot of framed things in my office which people have given to me through the years and on my walls are Greek, and Hebrew, and Russian, and Chinese, and beside my chair is a French sentence from Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince. It reads, "L'essential…l'invisibles pour les yeux." What is essential is invisible to the eye.

Well, what is essential about you? And who are those who have helped you become the person that you are? Anyone who has ever graduated from a college, anyone who has ever been able to sustain a good work, has had at least one person and often many who have believed in him or her. We just don't get to be competent human beings without a lot of different investments from others.

I'd like to give you all an invisible gift. A gift of a silent minute to think about those who have helped you become who you are today. Some of them may be here right now. Some may be far away. Some, like my astronomy professor, may even be in Heaven. But wherever they are, if they've loved you and encouraged you and wanted what was best in life for you, they're right inside yourself. And I feel that you deserve quiet time on this special occasion to devote some thought to them. So let's just take a minute in honor of those who have cared about us all along the way. One silent minute.

Whomever you've been thinking about, imagine how grateful they must be that during your silent times you remember how important they are to you. It's not the honors and the prizes and the fancy outsides of life which ultimately nourish our souls. It's the knowing that we can be trusted, that we never have to fear the truth, that the bedrock of our lives from which we make our choices is very good stuff.

There's a neighborhood song that is meant for the child in each of us and I'd like to give you the words of that song right now.

"It's you I like.
It's not the things you wear.
It's not the way you do your hair
But it's you I like.
The way you are right now
The way down deep inside you.
Not the things that hide you.
Not your caps and gowns,
They're just beside you.
But it's you I like.
Every part of you.
Your skin, your eyes, your feelings
Whether old or new.
I hope that you remember
Even when you're feeling blue.
That it's you I like,
It's you, yourself
It's you.
It's you I like."


And what that ultimately means, of course, is that you don't ever have to do anything sensational for people to love you. When I say it's you I like, I'm talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see or hear or touch. That deep part of you that allows you to stand for those things without which humankind cannot survive. Love that conquers hate, peace that rises triumphant over war, and justice that proves more powerful than greed.

So in all that you do, in all of your life, I wish you the strength and the grace to make those choices which will allow you and your neighbor to become the best of whoever you are.

Congratulations to you all.

*Susanne and Half Zantops were Dartmouth professors who were found murdered in their home six months prior to this speech.

(credit: http://www.indigo.org/mrrogers.html)

[lance]

Candygirl,

Thanks for posting the Darthmouth speech.

Best,

Lance Man

[GaryEA]

Great speech. Both classy and intelligent.

Thanks for passing it along.

Gary

[Natasha (candygirl)]

I meant to post this earlier:

An adoring fan base will finally have the opportunity to mourn and pay tribute to Fred Rogers at a public memorial service to be held on Saturday, May 3rd at Heinz Hall at 600 Penn Avenue, downtown Pittsburgh.

Beginning at 2:30 p.m., the 90-minute service will be led by the Reverend Dr. William Barker, a retired Presbyterian minister formerly of Pittsburgh, who appeared on many Mister Rogers' Neighborhood programs and was Fred Rogers' close friend over the years. Along with nationally acclaimed organist Alan Morrison, who has a personal connection with the Rogers family, speakers will include clergy, colleagues and friends who have had a longtime association with Fred Rogers and his family.

The memorial service will be broadcast live on WQED-TV (Channel 13, Pittsburgh's public broadcasting station) and WPXI-TV (Channel 11, Pittsburgh's NBC affiliate) with the simulcast on WQED-FM radio. Live audio-streaming of the service will also be available on the Internet at http://www.wqed.org/fm through the "Listen now" link.

Seats are available for the public. Tickets are free and will be issued on a first-come first-served basis in order of postmark. Because of limited seating, no more than two tickets will be issued per request. All attendees must have a ticket to get in. No one will be admitted without a ticket.

Associate producer Hedda Sharapan suggests, "Since the demand for tickets may be overwhelming, people may want to watch the televised service with family or friends at home, or in community centers, places of worship or similar gathering places. In fact, watching together may be a way to honor Fred Rogers' appreciation of family relationships and connections between `neighbors.' Because this will be a memorial service, parents or youth group leaders may want to choose this more informal setting as an appropriate way to include children."

Fred Rogers died February 27, 2003, after a brief battle with stomach cancer. His legacy lives on as Mister Rogers' Neighborhood continues on PBS, as well as through personal and professional tributes which continue to pour in to Family Communications.

For ticket requests, write to MEMORIAL TICKETS, Family Communications, Inc., 4802 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213. Be sure to include a self-addressed stamped envelope and a note specifying one or two tickets. Please indicate if handicapped accessibility is required. All requests must be postmarked no later than April 23rd.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

Info from tvshowsondvd:

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood - PBS retrospective DVD comes back to retail this Fall

Here's something we thought might be of interest to some of our readers. Just after New Year's Day this year, we posted this news about a DVD called Fred Rogers: America's Favorite Neighbor. It doesn't have any actual episodes on it, but was actually an extended version of a PBS retrospective on the man the world knows simply as "Mr. Rogers".

At the time, we explained that the item was not for retail sale, but was available by making a $90 pledge of support to Pittsburgh's WQED station, the PBS affiliate that helped put this together. Many of you were upset at that news, explaining that you wanted to help but couldn't afford that amount.

Good news for you, then. DVDEmpire.com has this morning revealed that this disc is now up for pre-order, pending a September 28th release date. List price is shown to be just $19.95 SRP, but you can order it today from them for the discounted price of $15.96.

To see the cover art for this item (at least the art for the previously available version; it may have changed for this re-release) and read more details about the documentary, you can click here.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

News from tvshowsondvd:

Good news! DVDTalk.com has interviewed David Newell, who played "Mr. McFeely" on Mister Rogers Neighborhood. During the interview, Newell reported that there will be a "speedy delivery" in 2005 of DVDs for the show:

"...and we're bringing out DVDs of the program. There are about 17, 18 programs that have been cleared. We've got the first wave coming out sometime in the spring..."

[wicked]

I'm sorry he passed... but Mr Rogers alwyas creeped me out.