An introduction to Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood (1968–2001)

Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood is a well-known TV series for children of preschool age. Hosted by Fred Rogers, it is one of the longest-running series on the Public Broadcasting Service, beaten only by Masterpiece and Sesame Street. This article will discuss Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood in detail.

Programme format

The programme opened with the camera travelling over a realistic model of Mr Rogers' neighbourhood. Mr Rogers appears on the set singing "Won't You Be My Neighbour?". After he finishes singing, Mr Rogers takes off his coat and shoes, replacing them with a cardigan and sneakers. The young viewers of Mr Rogers' Neighborhood were offered the simple joys of participating in quiet activities. Mr Rogers spoke to the children on a range of subjects, including crafts, music and science experiments. Most of the programmes had a theme such as "starting school". A regular segment of the show was Mr Rogers feeding his fish while his young audience watched. Mr Rogers did not assume a character of any kind, believing that children can be reached more easily by simply talking to them.

Mister Rogers' content

Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood ran for 895 episodes, beginning in 1968. In most episodes, Mr Rogers always spoke directly to his audience, including them as he participated in activities with his live guests, taking field trips or watching short movies. The movies were usually of an educational nature, showing how such things as bulldozers worked. The programme included a segment featuring daily life in a puppet world called The Neighbourhood of Make-Believe. The Neighborhood of Make-Believe featured a musical trolley and a puppet character called King Friday The 13th who lived in a castle. Episodes of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood always ended with a song. In early episodes, the song was "Tomorrow", and in later shows, it was "It's Such a Good Feeling".

Internet rumours

Fred Rogers died in 2003 at the age of seventy-five. Many people regarded him as a rather bland character, so it was surprising that in 1994, a rumour appeared on the internet claiming that Mister Rogers had a military career, being employed as a marine sharpshooter in Vietnam. The truth is that Mr Rogers never served in the marines at all. His life may have lacked adventure in the conventional sense, but to his fans, Fred Rogers was a hero.