Trama

An exploration of the life, lessons, and legacy of iconic children's television host Fred Rogers.

Charmingly soft-spoken and yet powerfully incisive expressing his profound ideals, Fred Rogers was a unique presence on television for generations. Through interviews of his family and colleagues, the life of this would-be pastor is explored as a man who found a more important calling to provide an oasis for children in a video sea of violent bombardment. That proved to be his landmark series, El vecindario del Sr. Rogers (1968), a show that could gently delve into important subjects no other children's show would have dared for that time. In doing so, Rogers experienced a career where his sweet-tempered idealism charmed and influenced the world whether it be scores of children on TV or recalcitrant authorities in government. However, that beloved personality also hid Rogers' deep self-doubts about himself and occasional misjudgments even as he proved a rock of understanding in times of tragedy for a world that did not always comprehend a man of such noble character.—Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)

"This documentary paints a portrait of the philosophy and work of cardigan-wearing children's entertainer Fred Rogers, star of the popular show "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood." A former minister, Mister Rogers creatively communicated themes of empathy and acceptance using a colorful cast of puppets and friends for more than 30 years. Along with archival footage, Rogers' contemporaries and cast-mates reflect on his legacy.

Fred Rogers hated television. When he talks about his first encounter with the still-infant medium, he doesn't hide his disdain: "They were throwing pies at each other," he says. Over the next several decades, they'd throw a lot more than pies. Characters would throw insults and expletives, punches and grenades. In all his years working inside the medium that so horrified him, he never succeeded making it much better..

Largely through interviews with family, friends and colleagues and through archival footage, a profile of entertainer Fred Rogers, best known for his iconic long-running children's television show El vecindario del Sr. Rogers (1968), is presented. Nearing completion of his seminary studies which he would eventually complete to become an ordained minister, he became interested in the relatively new medium of television in being dismayed by what he considered the cheesiness of children's fare in his interest in not either dismissing children or their feelings. All his shows bucked the trends of the time in their sheer simplicity, especially in their visual design partly out of budget, but more so in his focus on what he wanted to convey. While those messages were borne out his religion and his conservatism, philosophical and political, religion and right-wing politics were not front and center of the message, which were straightforward in addressing what many children were feeling about real world issues. Such adult issues of the day covered included assassination (of Senator Robert F. Kennedy), war (Vietnam), race relations (especially black-white), the Challenger explosion, divorce, and, after the end of the show, 9/11. His philosophy also borne out of his own childhood insecurities in being the proverbial fat kid, the many parodies done of his "Mister Rogers" persona is addressed and if the real Fred Rogers was truly any different than Mister Rogers. Criticism of him and the show are also brought up, such as the homosexual orientation of François Scarborough Clemmons, who portrayed Officer Clemmons, coming to light, he who could not officially "come out" as being against the show's overarching messages, and whether his message that every child is special has resulted in an entitled generation. As an epilogue, interviewees muse about what the world would be like today if there were more Fred Rogers, including what he would do in addressing today's world problems if he were still alive.—Huggo