Happy Birthday Mr. Rogers!

[CoasterMatt]

Though he's no longer physically with us, his lessons of caring and sharing live on in the hearts of millions of people.

There was a moment at the 1998 Daytime Emmys when Mister Rogers was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Tom Junod covered the story for Esquire magazine.

"...Mister Rogers went onstage to accept the award -- and there, in front of all the soap opera stars and talk show sinceratrons, in front of all the jutting man-tanned jaws and jutting saltwater bosoms, he made his small bow and said into the microphone: All of us have special ones who have loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are. Ten seconds of silence.

And then he lifted his wrist, looked at the audience, looked at his watch, and said, I'll watch the time. There was, at first, a small whoop from the crowd, a giddy, strangled hiccup of laughter, as people realized that he wasn't kidding, that Mister Rogers was not some convenient eunuch, but rather a man, an authority figure who actually expected them to do what he asked. And so they did. One second, two seconds, three seconds -- and now the jaws clenched, and the bosoms heaved, and the mascara ran, and the tears fell upon the beglittered gathering like rain leaking down a crystal chandelier. And Mister Rogers finally looked up from his watch and said softly, May God be with you to all his vanquished children."

[flippyshark]

Mister Rogers was truly one of a kind. I recommend anyone interested check out the DVD of the PBS special "Fred Rogers: America's Favorite Neighbor."

The awards event described above can be seen, along with some other great footage. Mister Rogers appeared on the Tonight Show with Joan Rivers a couple of times. The complete segments are included here, and you will see how Mr. Rogers manages to break through Rivers' (and the audiences) cynical world-weary mask and create some moments of simple, innocent magic.

My favorite extras involved an appearance on the show by a young paraplegic boy, Jeff Erlander. We see the segment from the original broadcast, and then an emotional reunion between Rogers and the now adult Erlander. It would take a hard hearted soul to watch this and remain unmoved.

I had this in my netflix queue, and it arrived along with THRILLER: A CRUEL PICTURE. I watched both in one evening, and then spent a couple of days reviewing my priorities.