Mister Rogers' Neighborhood

I think his final episode or some sort of anniversary of his show.

And you offer these really wonderful reflections on... his legacy, what the show, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, offered to people just as a show for children and families, but also to you very wonderfully wove in buddhist teachings and perspectives upon your reflection of of his legacy and and that around meta about around um loving kindness and some other elements as well and i was just wondering if we could just talk a little bit about it because um it seems just mr rogers uh outlook on things is uh a very necessary thing, I think, for people as we navigate this time in society.

But also, too, I mean, what you brought to the article through your own reflections on Buddhist teachings is a really nice pairing.

So I just wanted to see if we could talk about, like, what made you want to write it, and then what did you get out of the writing process?

I want to close with this story of Francois Clemens.

Francois Clemens was recruited to work as an actor in a very popular children's TV show called Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

It was one of the longest-running TV shows in the 60s all the way to the 80s, and it was hugely popular among the children in the US, but it began to travel around the world, particularly in the Western world.

But Clemens had a fascinating story.

And so when he finally agreed to join Fred Rogers, he was, just this act was revolutionary in a time of heated racial tensions.

Clemens also had a very unusual role given the circumstances of that era.

He played the character of a police officer in Mr. Rogers' neighborhood.

And he remembers one particular episode in 1969 that he will never forget because in that one particular scene, Mr. Rogers had been resting his feet in a plastic pool on a hot day.

He is the, you know, he is supposed to be like the evil being.

Well, what ends up happening is, you know, you get James, James Jensen, and he's an adult, and it's very, like, spoofy of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

Yeah, very.

Yeah, I mean, the music, the piano, everything.

The ending was kind of eh.

But see, the whole thing with that...

What got me the most probably is that anybody who's ever watched Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, or Daniel Tiger, if you're younger.

I freaking hate Daniel Tiger so much.

Well, I got some trivia here for Night of the Living Dead.

George Romero, who wrote the script and directed the movie, one of his first jobs was on this little public television show based out of Pennsylvania called Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

And when Night of the Living Dead debuted, he actually invited Fred Rogers and his wife to go see the movie, and apparently Fred Rogers really enjoyed the movie.

Okay, so I'm trying to look up really quick from Big Comfy Couch.

weekend.

KVU says the Fred Rogers Company owns several trademarks and copyrights connected to Mr. Rogers' neighborhood.

And they have sent a cease and desist letter.

To the Pflugerville City Council member, David Rogers.

I write about this in the book.

Margaret Hamilton, who played the witch, she went on Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood at the time.

And it was actually, I was doing research for the book, it was a great interview.

And the reason Mr. Rogers brought her on said, a lot of children are scared of the witch.

February the 19th.

For all you Gen Xers out there, the television series Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood premieres on the National Education Television in the United States and becomes one of the longest running children's shows ever.

March 1st, The very first performance of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat premieres March 3rd.

And you did not think this was going to happen, I know.