Mr Rogers

[PlannerGirl]

ok am I the only person who was creeped out even as a kid by Mr Rogers? The man spooked me to no end.

Thoughts?

 

[Tranplanner]

I was more of a Friendly Giant (see Donk's current avatar) and Mr. Dressup (Ernie Coombs - he passed away recently too)guy. I don't recall seeing Mr. Rogers on TV much in Canada, but I guess if he was on PBS we would have got it.

 

[ecofem]

Mr. Rogers didn't creep me out... I always thought his cardigans were quite fashionable.

However, the puppets were freaky....

 

[Chet]

never liked him

Mom says when I was really young, I called him "monkey face".

 

[Planderella]

My mom absolutely hated him but she allowed me to watch him anyway.

 

[Habanero]

I only watched to see if they'd show the traffic light by the fish-

 

[Jen]

I haven't seen the news, did he pass away?

I liked him and his show was my favorite when growing up along with Captain kangaroo and the Skipper Chuck Show.

Fred was allright in my book.

 

[donk]

That evil witch puppet, who lived over to the right of the castle, always scared me. The bear in the tree made me laugh. Speedy delivery annoyed me, he seemed way to "up" to be a courier, especially now that i know a few bike couriers.

My avatar of jerome the giraffe is because I heard the news this morning about Mr. Rogers. The scariest Friendly giant was the time they had the kitten jazz band on.

 

[Downtown]

I loved Mr. Rogers. But Lady Elaine scared the crap out of me. But I always wanted to be like Lady Aberline. I always like when they did the Opera - i still clearly remember the Hildegard Hummingbird one.

sadness.

 

[nerudite]

I didn't watch his show much growing up. My favorite PBS show was the Electric Company.

 

[Planderella]

Here is Mr. Rogers obit.

 

[Jeff]

I watched him as a kid...but I guess he was pretty creepy though.

 

[biscuit]

"... Lady Elaine scared the crap out of me"

I second that. I was never a huge fan of Mister Rogers when I was younger, he just moved to slow to hold my attention. The trolly car was the one part of the show I would sit down long enough to watch.
Being that he lived here, Mr. Rogers death was the big story of the day on the Pittsburgh morning news shows. Its sad that he passed away but I heard that Mister Rogers Neighborhood was the longest running kids show in history. Not bad for a lifes work.

 

[donk]

You had to like the way that he did up his sweaters, in rythm to "won't you be mine, won't you be mine, won't you be my neighbour". (up down, up,down)

I also remember the closing credits as showing the "town" he lived in, Mybe that is where I got my original idea to become a planner.

 

[Dan]

Creepy to an adult, but safe and reassuring to a child that may be three or four years old.

I grew up with Mister Rogers, along with the Canadian kids shows. Loved the neighborhood trolley; I was a planner to the core even then.

He's a slice of Americana, and an institution that will be dearly missed. Barney the Dinosaur or the Teletubbies are no substitute.

 

[Chet]

The scariest Friendly giant was the time they had the kitten jazz band on.

OMG YES!

 

[Dan]

Creepy to an adult, but safe and reassuring to a child that may be three or four years old.

I grew up with Mister Rogers, along with the Canadian kids shows. Loved the neighborhood trolley; I was a planner to the core even then.

He's a slice of Americana, and an institution that will be dearly missed. Barney the Dinosaur or the Teletubbies are no substitute.

I watched him as a kid...but I guess he was pretty creepy though.

I think Philadephia had a knickoff called Mister Rizzo's Neighborhood. "Okay, ya' little brats, we're gonna' take the Neighborhood SEPTA Trolley to Center City, and go watch how cheesesteaks are made. Wait ... it's Mister McVinny, with a special Speedy Delivery from North Philly. Hey, quit your screamin' ... if I give you a Tastycake, will ya' shut your piehole? Jeez ... damn kids ..."

 

[Repo Man]

Some comedian (Dennis Miller?) said that Mr Rogers was for kids that were too slow to handle the complex storylines of Sesame Street.

I remember watching it and being creeped out by that Lady Elaine, that stupid cat that only spoke in meows, and the land of make-believe.

I prefered Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood on SNL.

 

[Jen]

I didn't watch his show much growing up. My favorite PBS show was the Electric Company.

That was a great show, I also loved the old ZOOM, I wanted to be just like Tish . And remember the BIg Blue Marble,

the world's a big blue marble when you see out in space

There's still a few good PBS shows out there today, Redwall, Liberty's Kids, Rainbow Reader...

 

[el Guapo]

I was too old for Mr. Rogers and frankly he bored me because I never saw tanks or helicopter gunships on his show. However, Mom and Dad would let me watch Patton over and over on the 400 lb VCR. Didn't screw me up none.

 

[Planderella]

I prefered Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood on SNL.

That was one of the best!!

 

[Seabishop]

I used to like him. Looking back on it can appreciate the calm, low-tech nature of the show. I get naucious watching stuff like Elmo rapping in front of a fireworks show.

This is off topic, but do any parents appreciate the urban design elements of the show Oswald? I can't find any pictures but they live in an urban environment where all the buildings are shaped like unique objects. If I wasn't so dang tough, I'd go so far as to call it "cute."

 

[kms]

As a parent, I love Mister Rogers. He encourages kids to be themselves, imaginative and curious. Without the bells and whistles. Personally, I love the "Picture, Picture" segment, where you can see how people make things. Today in SW PA is sad, but Heaven is happier, I'm sure.

I sent Fred Rogers a birthday card last year. Not something I'd normally do; today I'm glad I sent it. He sent me a very nice thank-you note because I thought of him at the time of his birthday. He didn't have to do that, but he did.

A few years back, his car was stolen. Once the news publicized that Mister Rogers' car was stolen, the thieves returned it!

 

[PlannerGirl]

wow they returned it! thats impressive!

 

[Wannaplan?]

He will be missed.

 

[Wannaplan?]

...but his cast of Land of Make Believe puppet characters always freaked me out.

 

[Super Amputee Cat]

I'll give him credit for never selling out to the Man, unlike the folks at Sesame Street.

I never saw old Fred plugging Mini-Vans like Big Bird did. And that is to his credit, believe me. So very little is sacred anymore, with everyone trying to make children "little consumers". Rogers' show shunned that mindset and managed to maintain integrity throughout all the years it aired.

 

[Runner]

Loved the neighborhood trolley; I was a planner to the core even then.

Unfortunately the neighborhood has changed much over the years. GM bought out the trolley line years ago and eventually shut it down. The old right of way is now a major traffic congested freeway. The castle was sold to developers who tore it down and built a mall on the property. Today the mall is in serious decline troubled by vacant stores and gang activity. After the freeway bisected the neighborhood many of the residents left, fleeing to the suburbs. Eventually much of the old homes, including that of Mr. Rogers, were raised in an urban renewal program. Unfortunately, much of the cleared land was never built on and is now vacant property collecting trash or occupied by surface parking lots. The community overall is in serious trouble financially with declining property values, poorly performing schools, and major infrastructure repairs needed. Some developers are now pushing a scheme to build a casino on some of the vacant property.

 

[Wannaplan?]

Unfortunately the neighborhood has changed much over the years. GM bought out the trolley line years ago and eventually shut it down. The old right of way is now a major traffic congested freeway. The castle was sold to developers who tore it down and built a mall on the property. Today the mall is in serious decline troubled by vacant stores and gang activity. After the freeway bisected the neighborhood many of the residents left, fleeing to the suburbs. Eventually much of the old homes, including that of Mr. Rogers, were raised in an urban renewal program. Unfortunately, much of the cleared land was never built on and is now vacant property collecting trash or occupied by surface parking lots. The community overall is in serious trouble financially with declining property values, poorly performing schools, and major infrastructure repairs needed. Some developers are now pushing a scheme to build a casino on some of the vacant property.

And through all that, Mr. Rogers never turned to alcohol? Indeed, he was a remarkable man!

 

[Super Amputee Cat]

Unfortunately the neighborhood has changed much over the years. GM bought out the trolley line years ago and eventually shut it down. The old right of way is now a major traffic congested freeway. The castle was sold to developers who tore it down and built a mall on the property. Today the mall is in serious decline troubled by vacant stores and gang activity. After the freeway bisected the neighborhood many of the residents left, fleeing to the suburbs. Eventually much of the old homes, including that of Mr. Rogers, were raised in an urban renewal program. Unfortunately, much of the cleared land was never built on and is now vacant property collecting trash or occupied by surface parking lots. The community overall is in serious trouble financially with declining property values, poorly performing schools, and major infrastructure repairs needed. Some developers are now pushing a scheme to build a casino on some of the vacant property.

Sad, but indeed true. But despite that, Mr. Rogers showed us that there was indeed hope somewhere that communities depicted in The Neighborhood could exist, and that might reach young children who would eventually see the intellectual curruption of an automobile-centered suburban life and turn away from the consumerst mindset. If indeed children could see through that emptiness, then Mr. Rogers show has accomplished what it had set out to do. I know that it worked for me.

 

[Andy Dobson]

Jim Borgman's Take

Jim Borgman's Cartoon:

 

[Mastiff]

I'm amazed...

This thread made it onto page two with no mention of "Mr. Rogers" doing a rendition Ted Nugents famous Cat Scratch Fever. I laughed so hard I nearly soiled myself...

I think there is a version of Ironman, too.