All language subtitles for Wont.You.Be.My.Neighbor.2018.1080p.BluRay.H264.AAC-RARBG-en

Come on over a minute.
Ijust had some ideas that

I’d been thinking about
for quite a while,

about modulation.

It seems to me
that there are

different themes in life.

And one of my main jobs,
it seems to me,

is to help through
the mass media,
for children...

To help children through
some of the difficult
modulations of life.

Because it’s easy,
for instance, to go from C

to F.

But there are some modulations
that aren’t so easy.

For instance,
to go from F, to F-sharp,

you’ve got to weave through
all sorts of things.

And it seems to me
ifyou’ve got
somebody to help you,

as you weave...
Maybe this is just
too philosophical?

Maybe I’m trying
to combine things

that can’t be combined,
but it makes sense to me.

Fourteen years ago,
a television program
for children,

made its inauspicious debut
on Station WQED in Pittsburgh.

It’s host, Fred Rogers,

an ordained minister
with an abiding interest
in children,

and an equally abiding belief
hat they deserve more
from television.

(SINGING)
It’s a beautiful day
in this neighborhood

A beautiful day
for a neighbor

Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

It’s a neighborly day
in this beauty
Would...

Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

I have always wanted
to have a neighbor
just like you

I’ve always wanted
to live in a neighborhood
with you

So, let’s make
the most of this beautiful day

Since we’re together
we might as well say

Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

Won’t you be my neighbor?

Won’t you please,
won’t you please?

Please, won’t you be
my neighbor

Mr. Rogers?
FRED: Yes.

Where do you live?
| live in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania.

Did you want to...
Pardon me?

NEWSREADER: They are gathered
in this television studio

with Fred Rogers,

an adult who cares
just about them.

His reward is the love
of millions of children.

I want to tell you something.
What would you
like to tell me?

I like you.
I like you,
my dear.

Thank you very much
for telling me that.

MARGY: We had
a director that once
said to me,

"Ifyou take all ofthe
elements that make good
television,

"and do the exact opposite,
you have Mister Rogers’
Neighborhood. "

Low production values,
simple set, unlikely star.

Yet, it worked...

because he was saying
something really important.

FRED: Love is at the root
of everything.

All learning, all parenting,

all relationships.

Love or the lack of it.

And what we see and hear

on the screen is part
of who we become.

TOM: He had
a singular vision
of kindness and love,

but a question that I think
of a lot in terms of Fred is

whether his attempt
to influence America

succeeded or not.

FRED: I was all set
to go to the seminary
to become a minister,

but I went home
my senior year
for a vacation

and I saw this new
thing called television.

And I saw people throwing pies
in each other’s faces.

And I thought,
"This could be
a wonderful tool.

"Why is it being
used this way?"

So I said to my parents,
"I don’t think I’ll go
to seminary right away.

"I think maybe
I’ll go into television."

And they said,
"Wait, but you’ve
never even seen it."

FEMALE ANNOUNCER:
Station WQED is located
in the heart of Pittsburgh.

JOANNE ROGERS:
His father told him
about this new station,

that was coming along here.

It was going to be called...
It was called
Educational Television.

FRED: Nobody wanted
to do a children’s program.

I said, "Well, we need
a children’s program."

And I said, "Well, I’ll
produce it and play some
music in the background.

"We’ll get some free films
and, Josie, you can
introduce them. "

And then we discovered
the awful fact

that when you got free film,

it was often brittle
and it would break.

And ifyou were on the air
live, you had to do something.

Somebody had given me
this little tiger puppet.

I pushed it through
in the clock and said,

(MIMICKING) "Hi, Josie,
it’s 5:02 and Columbus
discovered America in 1492,"

and then just went
right back in.

And that’s how the puppetry
began. We never expected
to use puppets.

There’s so much of it was

the necessity being
the mother of that invention.

My friend,
Daniel Striped Tiger.

DANIEL: How do you do?
How do you do?

The interesting thing
was Dad remembered

being 6 and 7 and 8
and 9 years old.

That inner child never
really went away.

FRED: Ihad every
imaginable childhood
disease, even scarlet fever.

Wheneverl was quarantined

I would be in bed a lot.

I would put up my knees,
and they would be mountains
covered with the sheet.

I’d have all these
little figures moving around

and I’d make them talk.

I had to make up
a lot of my own fun.

(EXC LAIMS)
Take that.

What’s the matter?

Over time Fred became
unsatisfied with
The Children’s Corner.

He thought that
it was simple and slapstick.

And he said he really
wanted to concentrate
on the seminary,

so he wanted to stop
for a while.

JOANNE: His ordination
was as an evangelist
for television.

It was pretty way out there
for the Presbyterian Church.

With television,

Fred wanted to focus
on the very young.

FRED: What do
you think it is?

KID: A lion!
A lion, great!

MAX: Back in the 19503,

there was a school
of people

at the University
of Pittsburgh,

looking at early childhood
educaflon.

SHARAPAN:
They felt that physicians
needed a training ground.

So that, they had a sense
of where human behavior

was coming from the very
beginning.

MAX: Dr. Benjamin Spock
was part of it.

Berry Brazelton,
the famous pediatrician,
was a part ofit.

Erik Erikson,
the extraordinary
psychologist,

was a part ofit,

and Fred’s part
of that group.

He became part of
the group as a student
of Margaret McFarland.

Fred, I think to the child,

the television program between
you and the child is a real
relationship.

ELIZABETH:
For him to say,
"The feelings of a young child

"are every bit as powerful
as our adult feelings... "

He was radical. I know
everyone says that,
but he was radical.

I’ve always felt that

I didn’t need to put
on a funny hat,

orjump through the hoop

to have a relationship
with the child.

So, I went to visit a new
nursery school.

I had never met
these children before.

And I walked in

and there was a long stare
from most of them.

And one little boy
by the name of Thatcher
spoke first.

And all he said was,

"My doggy’s ear came off
in the automatic washer."

And there was silence,
just complete silence.

It was as if,
"This is your
test, Mr. Rogers.

"Are you still in touch
with childhood?"

And so I said,

"Sometimes that happens
to toys, doesn’t it?

"Their ears come off
or their legs come off,

"but that never happens to us.

"Our ears don’t come off.
Our noses don’t come off.

"Our arms don’t come off."

Thatcher’s eyes were getting
bigger and bigger and bigger,
and he said,

"And our legs
don’t come off."

And I said, "No, they don’t."

And, immediately,
all of the other children

started asking questions
and poignant questions!

It was just as if, you know,
"We shall now open the door.

"You have passed the test.
You may come in."

SHARAPAN: And what
he wanted to do

was to take all ofthat
he learned in television work,

add to that
the sense of ministry,

and the child development
background.

It became
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

MAX: A neighborhood
was a place where at times

that you felt worried,
scared, unsafe,

would take care of you, would
provide understanding, safety.

That’s what the neighborhood
was for Fred.

FRED: Television
has the chance

of building a real community

out of an entire country.

JUNLEI: The neighborhood
is not a fantasy place

where all these
different people got together

and everything was happily
ever after.

When you have diverse people
together with their
different opinions,

you have conflict.
And that’s what happens
in the neighborhood.

You have conflict,
real conflict.

Halt, trolley!

Give me your name,
rank, and serial number.

FRED:
"King Friday the 13th

"establishes border guard.

"King Against Change."

JUNLEI: The parallels between
what is happening
in the real world

and what is happening
inside the neighborhood

are uncanny and undeniable.

In 1968,
the country is at war.

He can go on fighting
longer than we can.

Frightened, meow,
frightened, meow.

There’s nothing
to be frightened
about

until somebody
starts shooting,
Hennefia.

(CRYING)
Meow-meow,
start shooting, meow!

J U N LEI:
That was the first time
he knew that

he was producing something
for a national audience.

King Friday was really
irritated that people
were changing things.

So, his reaction
as the authority
was to build a wall.

(SINGING)
Oh, it’s very sharp
It’s very sharp

Oh, my,
barbed wire is very sharp

Remember our
battle cry, Edgar?

Down with
the changers!

(SINGING)
Down with the changers
Down with the changers

We don’t want
anything to change

'Cause we’re on top!

That’s right.

(SIN GIN G)
'Cause we’re...
At least you’re on top

I can’t believe
what a broad area we covered.

Edgar, Edgar,
what do you think
he means by "any trouble"?

Fred didn’t want you
ad-libbing, putzing
around with the words,

because he was always trying
to get a message across
in every show.

I want there
to be peace in
this neighborhood.

It’s been a hard time
for everyone.

Well, I really do
hope that what you
say’|| work.

Do you have
the tags
on the bottom?

Yes, I put them on.
Look,seeifyou
like them.

Good.
"Love"
this one says.

And then we float them
over into the castle,

so that Great Uncle Friday
will know that the whole
neighborhood wants peace.

Paratroopers!
Fire the cannon!

Hold it, King Friday.
Well, what is it?

They’re not paratroopers.
They’re messages of peace.

Look at this,
"Tenderness."

Messages of peace?
"Peaceful co-existence."

Wait.
You see that one was...

They’re peaceful
messages, sir.
Let us stop all fighting.

Stop a|l fighting now.
(CLAPPING)
Superb! Superb!

Meow, wonderful, meow!

That was the first week.
That’s how it got started.

(SINGING)
It’s a beautiful day
in this neighborhood

A beautiful day
for a neighbor

Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?

SHARAPAN: From the early days
of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood

until the end ofthat program

he came in the door
every day the same way.

Hi. Hello!

And he changed
to the sweater to
give a sense that

we were going to have
this relaxing time together.

VVhoop.

Change the shoes.

Some food for the fish.

Picture, picture on the wall,
would you kindly tell us all,

is Mr. McFeely
on his way here?

DAVID NEWELL: Myjob
was to be the prop person.

And then he said, "Oh, I know
you’ve done some acting."

"I’d like you to play
the character
of the delivery man. "

I must go off, Mr. Rogers.
l have a lot of deliveries
today in the neighborhood.

So, I became
"Mr. McFeely"
on the spot.

BlLL ISLER: Trolley
left for its house...

FRED: Into the neighborhood
of Make-Believe.

Boomerang,
toomerang,
sumurang!

BlLL: Anything could
happen in Make-Believe.

But Make-Believe was not
real. I mean, there was
a distinction.

Fred never appeared
in Make-Believe.

The actors did.
The puppets did.

FRED: There’s the clock
where Daniel
Striped Tiger lives.

Next you see King Friday
Xlll’s castle.

King Friday XIII is one
of the few remaining
benevolent despots.

These characters are...

Were people
in his life.

Queen Sara would
obviously be my mom.

I’d just like to say
what a fine person
my husband is.

Why, Sara!

None of us like to think
of Lady Elaine as my aunt,

but we wonder
about that.

In the beginning,
she was a witch.

I heard that.
Here’s a squirt.

What can I say?
(LAUGHS)

FRED: In a beautiful
tree, livedX the Owl
and Henrietta Pussycat.

Meow-meow, beautiful day,
meow-meow neighborhood.

(BELL DlNGlNG)

SHARAPAN:
And then at the end
of every program

we came back to Fred’s
television house.

And to help children
understand all of these
experiences,

he put that into a song.

(SINGING)
I like you as you are

Exactly and precisely

I think you turned out
nicely, and I like you
as you are

And children need
to hear that.

I don’t think that
anybody can grow

unless he really
is accepted exactly
as he is.

ELIZABETH: I think he was
one of those people

who would do
their work seriously

and they hope that someone
will pick up on

the seriousness of what
they’re about.

There were times when he
thought, "Will people
ever understand that

"l’m notjust a klutzy guy
who’s falling around

"in a 50s’ living room
with weird curtains?"

WGBH in Boston decided
to have something called
a "Mister Rogers Day. "

There was just a woman in GBH
who was in their PR department

who loved the program, and I
think her colleagues said...

You know, I think they
thought it was really
simple, kind of '503, square.

And she said,
"No, I really want
to bring him here,

"and lwant families
to be able to come
and see him."

And the line to get in

was blocks and blocks
long before they even
opened the doors.

And the word got around
really quickly

that there’s something
going on with this guy.

KlD: Mr. Rogers,
Mr. Rogers.

I like you as you are.

A little boy
came up to him
and said,

"Mr. Rogers,
how did you get out?"

And so he talked
to the little boy,

explained what television
was all about.

And the little boy’s
just taking it all in,
going, "Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm."

And when Fred finished
he said the little boy said,

"How are you
gonna get back in?"

REV. GEORGE WIRTH:
There was a whole spiritual
dimension to his work

in the television business
to be inclusive.

He did this without ever

identifying himself
as a minister.

He didn’t wear a collar.
He wore a sweater.

And he preached
in that context

in a way more effective
than anyone I’ve ever seen,

because it wasn’t a sermon
like an oratorical thing.

It was a communication
right into their hearts.

MAX: He was a life-long
registered Republican

and ifyou look
at the values that
Mr. Rogers represented,

it’s influenced by his faith.

His Christianity was this kind
of wide open Christianity

that was accepting thinking
from all other places

while never departing
from the Christian faith.

REV. GEORGE WIRTH: Fred’s
theology was love your
neighbor and love yourself.

And he saw
that communication

as the most
deeply spiritual thing
that he could be doing.

FRED:
When I look at the camera,
I think of one person.

Not any specific person,
but one person.

It’s very, very personal.

The space between
the television screen

and whoever happens
to be receiving it,

I consider that
very holy ground.

A lot happens.
A lot happens there.

For somebody that was in
television he was just...
He hated television.

Here, buddy,
it’s all yours.

Wow! Look at this!
Hey, what about me?

FRED: In this country,
the child is appreciated
for what he will be.

He will be a great consumer
some day.

The quicker we can get them
to go out and buy, the better.

There’s so much of that
in this country.

Mr. Ellison, lthink you
have felt strongly about
some aspects of this.

Public television
could make a contribution.

As the American people
becomes aware of itself,

it discovers itself.

We do not know as much
as we should know about
who we are,

what we are,
and how we differ.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON:
How will Man
use his miracles?

We want most of all
to enrich Man’s spirit

and that is the purpose
of this act.

And then Nixon became
president and he wanted
to cut the funding.

DAVID BlANCULLl:
The beginnings of PBS

was gonna probably
be dismantled

by Richard Nixon,
whose approach to media

was to threaten stations

if they didn’t behave
politically.

MAX: Nixon had a problem
with his budget.

He had to find money
for the Vietnam War.

It wasn’t a lot of money
in today’s terms,

but he wanted
to cut the budget.

In the midst of all this,
Fred Rogers gets to go
before Congress,

argue for $20 million
of funding

to sort of solidify PBS,

in front of John Pastore,
who is a senator who had
already

sort of made his
Congressional bones
by attacking television.

This is gonna be
a thorough hearing.

This is gonna be a hearing
not to reach for a headline,

but to reach
for a result.

There had been two days
of hearings and he hasn’t
been very impressed.

If you’d been watching
those hearings

and you had to bet
on whether or not

PBS was going to keep
going... No!

That educational television
should permanently struggle

for subsistence
is intolerable.

All right,
who’s the next witness?

SHARAPAN:
Senator Pastore
told the group,

"I’ve heard everybody
read your testimonies.

"I don’t want anyone
to read anymore. I’m
tired of hearing the reading."

When I heard about that
I thought, "Uh-oh, Fred. "

All right, Rogers,
you’ve got the floor.

And I could hear
in his voice, the nerves.

Senator Pastore,

this is a philosophical
statement

and would take about
ten minutes to read.

So, I’ll not do that.

One of the first things
that a child learns

in a healthy family is trust.

And I trust what you
have said, that you
will read this.

It’s very important to me.
I care deeply about children.

My first children...
Will it make you happy
ifyou read it?

I’d just like
to talk about it,

if it’s all right.
All right, sir.

This is what I give,

I give an expression
of care every day
to each child

to help him realize
that he is unique.

lend the program
by saying,

"You’ve made this day
a special day byjust
you’re being you.

"There’s no person
in the whole world like you.

"And I like you just
the way you are."

And I feel that if we,
in public television,

can only make it clear

that feelings
are mention-able
and manageable,

we will have done
a great service.

Could I tell you
the words of one of the songs,

which I feel
is very important?

PASTORE: Yes.

This has to do with
that good feeling of control,

which I feel that
children need
to know is there.

And it starts out,
"What do you do
with the mad that you feel?"

And that first line
came straight from a child.

I work with children,
doing puppets

in very personal communication
with small groups.

"What do you do with the mad
that you feel

"when you feel so mad
you could bite?

"When the whole wide world
seems oh-so-wrong

"and nothing you do
seems very right?

"It’s great to be able to stop

"when you’ve planned a thing
that’s wrong

"and be able to do something
else instead

"and think this song,

"I can stop when I want to,
can stop when I wish,

"can stop, stop,
stop any time.

"Know that there’s something
deep inside

"that helps us
become what we can."

I think it’s wonderful.
I think it’s wonderful.

Looks like you just earned
the $20 million.

(LAUGHTER)

REPORTER: Fred Rogers
is easily the star
of the show

and if children had votes,

public television would be
on Easy Street tomorrow.

(VOCALIZING)

Oh, wow!
(LAUGHS)

Everything just
sort of exploded.

You know, suddenly there
was press beating a path
to our door.

Good evening. I was in
Pittsburgh a few days ago

doing a bit of investigative
reporting on a man named
Fred Rogers.

Meow-meow-meow
wonderful! Meow!

INVESTIGATOR: Mr. Rogers
does ten different voices,
for ten different puppets.

Well, a copperhead
is poisonous, is it not?

INVESTIGATOR:
He writes, he’s the producer,
he’s the chief performer,

and he is a marvel.

Fred Rogers,
as best I can tell,

has managed to escape
the calloused, the embittered,

the negative aspects
of being a public performer.

He is doing the one thing
in the world that he
wishes to do

and he is by any definition
a happy man.

JOHN: I sometimes wonder
myself how he ticked.

It’s a little tough for me to
have the... Almost the second
Christ as my dad.

JlM: If we were
at the dinner table,

and he would want
to say something

that wasn’t necessarily
Mr. Rogers-like,

he would say it in Lady Elaine
Fairchilde’s voice.

Get out here, Friday.
I need to speak with you.

That was our cue that
this is the alter-ego
speaking now,

you know, and just
letting off a little steam.

JOANNE: He and I both
had childhoods that you
weren’t allowed to be angry.

You weren’t allowed
to show your anger.

And we were never
able to do it.

It scared us.

FRED: Music was my
first language.

I was scared to use words.

I didn’t want to be a bad boy.

I didn’t want to tell people
that I was angry.

But I could show it through

the wayl would play
on the piano.

I could literally laugh or cry

or be very angry through
the ends of my fingers.

I’ve always felt that you were
someone who could understand

the deep feelings
or thoughts of people.

Well, it took me
so long to get tame.

I try to understand how
everybody else is working
at it.

Sometimes it isn’t easy.

No, but it’s worth
a try.

Daniel was pretty
much Fred.

He did all the voices,
but I think Daniel was

the real Fred.

Maybe I could talk about
clocks and loving,

and things like that.

"A, B, C, D,

"Fl GI J! KI
L, M, S..."

Oh, Lady Aberlin,
Ijust can’t
go to school tomorrow!

Why not, Daniel?

Because I don't
know everything.

J U N LEI: Daniel is articulating

the fears and anxieties
and feelings

that Fred had
as a child,

but that many
children have.

MARGY: He never forgot
how vulnerable it was
to be a kid.

You know, you’re
this little thing.

Everything else in the world
is bigger than you are

and you have to learn
everything that helps
you get through life.

I think that it just
never left him.

Whatever those scars
of his life were,

he wanted to help heal
that wound, maybe?

It’s a lot easier
even as an adult

for me to have Daniel say,

(MIMICKING)
"I’m really scared.

"Do you think maybe
you could give me a hug?"

You know? But that would
be hard for me to say,

"I’m really scared.
Do you think you
could give me a hug?"

So, the difference
from here to here,

that doesn’t
seem very far,

but it was efficacious,

to say the least.

A car ran over the jaw
of your cat?
Mmm-hmm.

And what happened?
It was bleeding.

Oh.

They tried and fixed it,
but they fixed it

for a half a day,
but then it died.

But then it died?
Mmm-hmm.

Oh, I think
that’s scary.

TOM: All you had to do
was see Fred inhabit Daniel

to really kind of figure
it out. I mean, they were
symbiotic.

As strange as it is
to see a grown man

have a symbiotic relationship
with kind of a dingy,

you know, worn out little
sock puppet, he definitely
had that.

Would you give
me a hug?

Thank you.
'Cause I needed that.

I better go back
in the case,
Mr. Rogers.

Okay, Daniel.

He’s really nice.
You could talk to him.
Okay, Daniel.

DANIEL: Just a minute.
I want to show you something.

Okay.

Wonder what?

It’s a balloon.
Oh, a balloon.

Could you blow
it up for me?
Surely.

DAVID BlANCULLl: So, this
is the first year of
Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.

Daniel Striped Tiger
is there with Lady Aberlin

asking her to blow
a balloon up and then
let the air out.

You wonder
why this is in there.

But they can’t hear.
Can you hear on any of these?

DANIEL: There’s something
I want to ask you.

What does
"assassination" mean?

What happened? Do you know?
Somebody said he’s been shot.

Let’s roll some video tape on
this out here, friends.

LADY ABERLIN: Have you
heard that word a lot today?

Yes. And I didn’t know
what it meant.

Well...

It means

somebody
getting killed

in a sort of surprise way.

DANIEL: That’s what
happened, you know.

That man killed
that other man.

A lot of people
are sad

and scared about it,
you know.

I’d rather talk
about it some
other day.

Whenever you like.

FRED: I felt that
I had to speak
to the families

of our country about grief.

A plea not to leave
the children isolated

and at the mercy oftheir
own fantasies of loss
and destruction.

Children have
very deep feelings

just the way parents do,

just the way everybody does.

And our striving

to understand those feelings

and to better
respond to them

is what I feel is a most
important task in our world.

He realized that
if he really wanted
to communicate,

the most important
thing is to listen.

'Cause there's so many people
who will just lump
'em all together

and say, "Hey, kids,
come along. We’ll see
the next cartoon."

And they couldn’t care less
about what that cartoon
is saying

to the child about such
things as human dignity.

(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)

MAX: Remember
what was happening
for children’s television ?

It was speeding up.

Fred was pretty radical
in television for that day

in that he used time
totally differently.

To Fred, silence
was his delight.

Fred took an egg timer
and said,

"Do you want to know how
long a minute is? There.
We’re going to show you."

And we just sat there
for the whole minute.

DAVID BlANCULLl: There’s
a lot of slow space.

There’s no wasted space.

(INHALES)

ln.

(EXHALES)

Out.

I think silence is one
of the greatest gifts
that we have.

His questions are direct,
simple, short,

and then he waits.

YO-YO MA: He interviewed me

and he put his face about
3 inches away from my face,

says, "It’s so nice to see you

"and to be with you."

It scared the living
daylights out of me.

But I realized this is what
children do with adults.

And sometimes after
they answer, he doesn’t
say anything else.

So, they say
a little bit more.

It’s a perfect
interviewing trick.

(LAUGHING)

Very funny! Very funny.
I’m not falling for it.
Very good.

Handyman Negri
and Officer Clemmons,
I presume!

BOTH: Correct as always,
Your Highness.

Could we take a close
look at your badge here,
Officer Clemmons?

My friends
I think can read it.

P-O-L-I-C-E.

l have always felt
policemen to be

the most dangerous person
in the neighborhood.

So, to have me playing
a police officerl was
tremendously hesitant.

But there was something
reluctant about Fred
to let go.

And I said, "Mr. Rogers,

"I would be very happy
to be on your program,

"as long as it doesn’t
interfere with my singing."

(SINGING)
We’ve had it
and now we can go

We don’t want
the snow anymore

And he teased me. He teased me
about that for 20 years!

He’d say,
"Officer Clemmons,

"are we interfering
with your career?
Are we interfering?"

He was relentless,
but he also told me, he said,

"That was the moment
I loved you."

He said, "Because you were not
going to kiss my ass."

Those are Mr. Rogers’ words.

FRED: That feels good.

Oh, there’s Officer Clemmons.
Hi, Officer Clemmons. Come in.

Hi, Mr. Rogers, how are you?
Fine. Why don’t you sit down?

Oh, sure,
just for a moment.

It’s so warm I was just
putting some water
on my feet.

Oh, it sure is.
Would you like
tojoin me?

That looks awfully enjoyable,
but I don’t have
a towel or anything.

Oh, you share mine.
Okay. Sure!

CLEMMONS: Around the country
they didn’t want black people
to come

and swim in their
swimming pools.

And Fred said, "That
is absolutely ridiculous."

REPORTER: Today,
trouble under a noon sun.

Negroes and White rabbis
marched to a segregated
hotel with these results,

the Manager James Brock
told them to get off his
private property,

tossed cleaning chemicals
inside the pool

in an effort to get
the Negroes to leave.

My being on the program
was a statement for Fred.

FRED: Cool water
on a hot day.

TOM: I think that
will is the great

unseen and unacknowledged
ingredient in Fred’s story.

The level of will
that this guy brought

to really almost all phases
of his life, physical
and spiritual.

There’s no better
manifestation of that

than 143.

Is that your address here?
Oh, no.

It means
something special.

LADY ABERLIN: 1-4-3?
DANIEL: Mmm-hmm.

You see, "I" is one letter

and love, L-O-V-E
is four letters,

and "you," Y-O-U
is three letters.

TOM: Fred would go to
the Pittsburgh Athletic Club

and he swam a mile.

He swam at a unhurried,

but deliberate
and determined pace.

And then he got on the scale

and the needle
of the scale
jumped to 143.

And he came off it

with kind of a little
smile on his face,

and he told me that
he had weighed

143 pounds
every day of his life

since like the late '503
or early '603.

Now, I’ve thought
about this a lot.

With that 143 pound thing,
drives me insane.

Try that!
I can’t do that!

TOM: In Fred’s private
numerology "I love you”
is "143. "

So, when the needle
jumps to 143,

There’s so many weird things
that I’m not gonna tell you.

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

No.

NICK: Freddy was like
the little rich kid that
lived in the big house.

We were all the goofball kids
that lived across the alley.

We could be ourselves
around Fred.

We were crazies.
We all had long hair,

and we were always having fun.
We were always making jokes.

It’s such a good...

(LAUGHING)

All right, that aren’t mine.
Who’s are these?

(MUSIC PLAYING)

NICK: If we ever saw
a camera lying around,
we’d grab it,

l’d pull my pants down,
I’d take a picture of my ass

and put their camera back.

And like, then itwas film,
so like three weeks later,

you’d go to the Fotomat
and you’d get your
pictures back

and there’s Aunt Judy
and there’s Uncle Fred
and there’s some guy’s ass.

And one day Fred
brought his camera
into the studio

and he was taking pictures
with it.

And we went behind the set,
took a picture of my butt,

and put his camera back.

He never said anything,
and like, months later...

I think itwas around
Christmas time,

he said to somebody,
"Did you give Nick
his present?"

And it was a poster of that
picture of me and my butt.

Thank you very much.
You’re welcome.

Did you make
these yourself?

I...
(STUTTERING)

I thought...
I thought of X
the Owl,

so I drew him
in his house

and his little door.

Oh, these are real treasures.
Thank you very much.

You’re welcome.
Would you like
to see X the Owl?

You’re a little happy. That
makes you just a little bit
happy,huh?

Oh, hello there!

Hello, everybody.

ALL: Hi.
I’m X the Owl.

I hear you drew
a picture of me.

This is a book on all
of the different tapes
that we have.

Here are the tapes. Here.

DAVID NEWELL: At that point,
he thought he had done
enough programs,

that they could
be repeated.

Those are all
different visits,

television visits
that we have on tape.

DAVID NEWELL: He was writing,
he was hosting, he was
singing, he was composing.

And it took a lot out of him.
I think he wanted a breather.

Well, next week,
we’ll start to show
all of these visits,

so everybody can see them
the whole way through.

I’ll look forward
to that.

Let’s take a look
at this one.

MARGY: When you think
about all of those episodes

there’s only so many stories
you can tell, right?

MAN: What’s in the future
for Fred Rogers?
I understand that

you are ceasing production

this spring of
the Neighborhood shows.

Well, it’s going
to give us time
to make some things

that I’ve wanted to do
for a long time.

Hi, Katie.
Hi, Fred.

John, wait till you
see this quilt.

He wanted to do some
prime time stuff for adults

and, so he got funding to do
a show called Old Friends...
New Friends.

FRED: I wonder what it is
that makes one person push
on in the face of difficulty

and make someone else
crumble in helplessness.

MAN: What does
tomorrow feel like?

That big.
lfeel that big.

MAN: There’s no feeling
for tomorrow.

Feeling is dead
for me in here.

ELIZABETH:
He was incredibly open.

He was scarily open.

MAX:
He wanted to speak to adults.
He kinda put the puppets away.

But have you watched
some of these?

The feeling that
this instrument
is a place,

that it is a country.

That it’s somewhere
that you go

to say something.

LORlN HOLLANDER:
What does this have
to do with our world?

I don’t know any store
that’s like this.

Any television program
that’s like this.

A flower is like this.

A child is like this.

MAX: Nobody but Fred
would’ve thought of
doing that for adults.

MAN: Take number 19.

Thank you for your poems
and your thoughts about
loving poetry and music.

You really inspired us
to make this program.

I’ll be with you next time.

But he wasn’t making
the kind of connections
with adults on television

that he thought
he might be able
to make.

DAVID NEWELL: Iremember
opening the paper and reading
about a child

jumping off a roof
with a towel around
his neck

because he was playing
Superman.

And there had been
a lot of stories like that.

Some children died
because of the injuries.
I read it to Fred.

It hit him, because
he thought he had covered

all there was to say in child
development, but this was new.

MAX: Fred didn’t
become angry a lot,

but he just
became so angry

about the fact that people
would mislead
a small child.

And angry that it was his
medium that was doing this.

Yeah, Superman.

lam tired of hearing people
who have long ago set aside

the concerns of childhood,

telling everybody
what children really need.

I’ll tell you
what children need.

They need adults
who will protect them

from the ever-ready molders
of their world.

DAVID NEWELL: That was
the moment Fred said,

"I wonder ifwe could do
a week on superheroes

"talking about
the pretend-ness of it?”

Very quickly we came back
with the show.

Careful, Anna,
I don’t want you to...

lthink I’m flying!
lam! l’m flying!
No, no, you're falling!

What is going on here?
Oh, Anna was trying to fly.

l was using my super-skirt
and l was going through
the air.

Yes, but you were going
down and you might have
gotten hurt!

X: That’s right, Anna.

You have to be
really careful
with super-things.

NICK: He was cool
with every kid.

That’s the whole thing.
I mean, there were
the kids that were...

They were little bastards.
They were just rowdy and...

Fred never said,
"This kid’s a dick.
Get him outta here."

You know, I mean,
I sure would’ve.

Fred used to say
that the outside world

of children’s lives
has changed, but their
insides haven’t.

He realized that his work
wasn’t through.

l’m Fred Rogers
and I’d like to talk
with you about make-believe.

MAX: When it goes
to the next level
is in the 19803

when he goes
to the theme weeks.

I mean, to do
a week on death...

"Oh, hi, kids!
We’re going to do
a week on death!"

On divorce!

FRED: Some people get married
and after a while

they’re so unhappy
with each other

that they don’t want
to be married anymore.

On children getting lost!
Man! That’s guts.

DANIEL: Help! Help, help!
Help, please, everybody!

JUNLEI:
There’s a piece of paper
that I accidentally ran into.

And he typed in this little
sheet of paper about how
he couldn’t do it,

that he didn't think
he was up to the task.

JOANNE: "Am/kidding
myself that I’m able
to write a script again?

"Am I really just whistling
Dixie? I wonder.

"Ifl don’t get down to it,
I’ll never really know.

"Why don’t I trust myself?

"After all these years,
it’s just as bad as ever.

"The hour cometh and
now is when I’ve got to do it.

"Get to it, Fred, get to it!

”But don’t let anybody
ever tell anybody else
that it was easy.

"It wasn’t. "

(SONG PLAYING)

TOM: The time that
I was with him going
on a New York City subway,

all the children
in that crowded subway car

began singing
the Neighborhood song.

He might as well have been
an animated figure
stepped into real life.

Could I try that?

(BLOWING)

I brought my skates
with me. I can try.

(WOMAN EXCLAlMS)

What else you
like to do?
Moon walking.

Moonwalk?
You got it. Yeah.

MAX: People thought
he was such an important
American figure

they wanted him to speak
out on the issues of the day.

And, so, Fred grew pretty
comfortably into more of
a public role.

FRED: You know, the Earth
is a name for the place
where everybody lives.

And the moon
is the name for the place

where the astronauts go.

Every time we went through
a national or international
tragedy,

my impulse was always
to call Fred and put
him on the radio.

What shall we tell our
children about the things
that are in the news

that seem so difficult,
so tragic?

REPORTER 1: Pilot Mike Smith
followed by Christa McAuliffe,
teacher in space.

REPORTER 2: Christa has been
rehearsing the lessons
she’ll teach from space.

Good morning.
This is Christa McAuliffe
live from the Challenger.

REPORTER 2: The lessons
will be seen nationwide
on public television.

Five, four, three...

REPORTER 3: Two,
one and liftoff.I

Liftoff of the 25th space
shuttle mission and it
has cleared the tower.

MAN 1: Challenger,
go with throttle up.

MAN 2: Roger,
go with throttle up.

MAN 3: God, no!

SUSAN: How do we put it
to children, so they will
understand?

And part of Fred’s answer
was always to tell children

that we, the parents,
would take care of them.

Sometimes I found that
a difficult message myself

as the parent
of a young child.

Sometimes I felt
I was lying.

I knew that there
were things
in this world that

I couldn’t protect
my child from.

FRED: Sometimes we need
to struggle with the tragedy

to feel the gravity of love.

Love is what keeps
us together and afloat.

(SINGING)
It’s a beautiful day
in the neighborhood

A beautiful day
for a neighbor
Would you be mine?

You know,
it must be tough
to be Fred Rogers

with your mission in mind

and then to have parodies.

I always wanted to live
in a house like yours
my friend

Maybe when there’s nobody
home I’ll break in

I married a woman who said
she was rich

Spent all her money
Walked out on the bitch

(KNOCKING AT DOOR)

FRED: Eddie Murphy did
that Mister Robinson’s
Neighborhood

and I remember meeting him

and he just threw
his arms around me

the first time he saw me
and he said, "The real
Mister Rogers. "

MAN: That’s Mr. Rogers
there in the...

On the left.
On the left, yeah.

Now, how do you
react to that?

Well, some of them
aren’t very funny.

But I think that
a lot of them are done

with real kindness
in their hearts.

I’m moving to a new
neighborhood where
I’ve made a new friend.

Can you say "hooker"?

There were some that
were not as kind

in nature and if they made fun
of the philosophy,

that was the only thing
that offended him, I think.

ANNOUNCER: The battle
of the P-B-S stars.

HOST: The crowd
is literally buzzing
with excitement

as Mr. Rogers enters
the ring... Oh, look
out there, Fred!

Fred had such a great sense
of humor for the most part.

HOST: There’s Child,
obviously in shape
and ready for this fight.

But what about Rogers?

Experts have cast aspersions
on his manhood itself.

DAVID NEWELL:
Fred was watching
with the rest of us

and everybody
would be laughing

and | just wonder if a little
bit of Fat Freddy came back.

JOANNE: Just before getting
to adolescence,

he didn’t have an easy time
making friends, I don’t think.

He got a good taste
of what bullying
was all about.

I’ve often wondered
if there hadn’t been
a Fat Freddy

would there have
been a Mister Rogers?

HOST: You can feel
the momentum actually
swinging towards Child.

And whatjust happened there?
He cracked a puppet!

Oh, look at this!

He’s hitting Child
with the Ioveable
King Friday!

And the French chefis down!

(LAUGHTER ON RECORD)

(CHUCKLES)

A laughter record.

Used to play one like this
when l was a young boy.

You see, I felt that
the adults around me
were pressuring me

to be what
I couldn’t be yet.

"Act like a grown-up,"
I’d hear them say.

Well, lwas afraid
they’d laugh at me
when I tried.

So, lfound
a record like this

and I could make
the laughs start

and make them stop
whenever I wanted to.

For someone who hated
to be laughed at,

it was a good feeling
to be in charge of
at least this laughter.

I think that

those who would try

to make you feel less
than who you are,

I think that’s
the greatest evil.

(SINGING) I’ve always wanted
to live in a neighborhood
with you

So, let’s make
the most of this beautiful day

Since we’re together,
we might as well say

Would you be mine,
could you be mine...

SHARAPAN: There
was a wonderful quote
from Fred.

Oh, that’s hard.

SHARAPAN: The most
important learning

it’s the ability to accept
and expect mistakes

and deal with
the disappointments
that they bring.

Hi, neighbor. Had a little
trouble with my zipper there.

I’ll get these shoes tied
and then try the zipper again.

SHARAPAN:
And Fred also understood

that there’s a deeper level.

You know something,
Lady Aberlin?

What, Daniel?

I’ve been wondering
about something myself.

Something about
Mr. Skunk?

Something about mistakes.

What is it?

I’ve been wondering
if I was a mistake?

LADY ABERLIN:
If you were a mistake?

And lwill tell you
sitting in the studio

listening to that that day

I said to myself, "I can’t
believe Fred had the courage

"to put that
into words."

Sometimes I wonder
if I’m too tame.

(SINGING)
Sometimes I wonder
if I’m a mistake

I’m not like anyone else
I know

When I’m asleep
or even awake

Sometimes I get
to dreaming that
I’m just a fake

I’m not like anyone else

(SINGING)
I think you are just fine
as you are

You do?

I really must tell you
I do...

JUNLEI: Lady Aberlin
is saying to Daniel

what Fred himself
wanted to say,

not only to his childhood self
but to all children.

You’re not a fake
You’re no mistake

You are my friend

And then you think,
"Okay, then Daniel’s
gonna say,

"'Oh, thank you.
That helped me a lot."'

I wonder if I’m a mistake
I think you are just
fine as you are

I’m not like anyone else
I really must tell you...

SHARAPAN: And I thought
to myself, "Thank you, Fred,
for reminding us that

"it’s not so easy
to quiet a doubt. "

But make it a duet so that
it's notjust your fears,

but you’ll
hear my support.

Isn’t it true that
the strong never break?

When you're sleep
When you're wake

I’m not like anyone
else I know
You’re not a fake

You’re no mistake
You’re my friend
I’m not like anyone else

lthink you are
just fine

exactly the way
you are.

The way I look?

Yes.

The way I talk?

Well, yes.

The way I love?

Especially that.

(SlGHS)

(SINGING)
Every valley

Every valley

Shall be exalted

FRANCOIS:
There were black kids
watching the show.

They needed a black figure
who would not let them down.

So, if I came out as gay
and there was some kind
ofscandaL

that would not
serve the race.

I carried that
all the time.

The feeling you know
you’re alive!

Really nice,
Francois!

I went to a gay bar downtown
called the Play Pen.

Oh, God, did I have
a lot of fun!

But somebody told
the Mister Rogers’
Neighborhood people

about it, and he asked
me, "Were you downtown
at that bar?"

And I said, "Yes."
He said, "You can’t
go back there anymore."

I wanted to show this film
to you. Okay, on Picture,
Picture.

Here’s Mrs. Clemmons at home.

In ’68 I got married.
I’m not stupid.

FRED: There’s the portrait
ofthe King and Queen.

If I came out publicly,
he said, "You cannot be
on the show anymore."

The sponsors,
Johnson and Johnson,
and Sears,

they are not going
to support an openly gay man.

Fred was not prepared
to lose that market.

My marriage failed miserably.

And I discovered
you can’t pray it away.

JOANNE: Eventually,
Fred came around to it.

I think Francois just came
a little too soon maybe,
you know?

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

Oh, yes. Oh, my yes.
Heavens.

You gotta forgive me
for this, but I have
to ask you something

that may sound impertinent
and I don’t mean for it to,
for a second.

Are you square?

I mean, are you
a straight guy?
I mean, you’rejust...

Are you really
the way you are?

CLEMMONS: First ofall,
no, he’s not gay.

ltell everyone who asks me,
"No, he’s not gay."

But the other part is
I spent enough time with him

that if he had... lfthere
was a gay vibe, I would’ve
picked it up.

Nope. Not as far
as I know.

I think that anybody
who looked at Fred
looked at somebody

that they couldn’t compare
with anybody else.

There’s something
inside you
that hasn’t been lost.

Thank you, Daniel.

Your childhood.
Mmm-hmm.

Okay.

I like him.

I know.

Bye-bye.

TOM: That was one
of the things
that I responded to.

He’s terrific. Wow.

I definitely
saw another way
of being a man.

NICK: I’m sure you’ve heard
all these rumors about

Fred being a Navy SEAL
and killing people.

Was Fred a Navy SEAL?
Did Fred have tattoos?

TOM: And that, you know,
he wore the sweater

to cover the tattoos.

NICK: Fred
was born a rich kid.

He didn't know
how to use a screwdriver,

let alone kill
a bunch of people.

TOM: That to me isjust
like a classic example
of people

looking at Fred
in all his eccentricity
and singularity

and trying to basically say,
"Well, that can’t be.

"He has to be this way."

The universal question
about Fred is, was he
that way in real life?

And the answer is, yes.

Francois Clemmons,
hi, welcome.

Thank you.
How you doin’?

I’m fine. How
are you today?
Fine.

My feet were tired,
so I thought

I’d just soak them
for a while in
this water.

Does it make
them feel better?

It does.
Would you like to try?

Sure!

CLEMMONS: On the show
he would say,

"I love you just
the way you are. "

One day I said,
"Fred! Were you
talking to me?"

And he looked at me
and he said, "Yes,

"I’ve been talking
to you for two years

"and you finally
heard me today."

And Ijust collapsed
into his arms. I was...
I started crying. I...

That's when I knew
that I loved him.

(SINGING)
There are many ways to say
"I love you”

There are many ways to say
"I care about you”

CLEMMONS:
No man had ever told me
that he loved me like that.

I needed to hear it all
my life. My dad never
told me.

My step-father never told me.

So, from then on, he became
my surrogate father.

I’m so proud
of you, Francois.

Oh, thank you, Fred.

May I help
you here?

Thank you.

FRED: The people
who have had

a lot of struggle
in their lives,

those are the people
who really impress me.

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

There was an interview
with a little boy
by the name of Jeff Erlanger.

We wrote because
Jeff was going
to have a spinal fusion

and be in a...
What they calla halo...

Cast. A halo cast.

Metal rim and then cast
on his shoulders
and bolted all together...

All the way
down his trunk.
Yeah.

HOWARD: He may not
have survived the surgery.

And, so, we said, you know,
"What would you like to do?

"This is going to
be a really
big task for you and, so,

"we want to kick it off
with something that would
be really special."

Mr. Rogers?

Hey, Jeff.

I’m glad to see you.
Hi.

Thank you very much
for coming by.

Can you tell my friends

what it is that made you
need this wheelchair?

Sure.

Well, when l was about
seven months old

I had a tumor

and it broke the nerves
to tell my hands and legs
what to do.

FRED: lsee.

And I got a wheelchair
when l was four years old.

That was your first one.
When you were four.
Mmm-hmm. Uh-huh.

He told Jeff before
they started that
they would have a chat

and then sing
a song together.

I think he said,
"We might sing
a song." I remember.

'Cause, l was sort
of surprised,

"What? He’s going to start
singing a song?"

Well, you know,
this is totally...
Not even "What song?"

(SINGING)
It’s you I like

It’s not the things
you wear

It’s not the way you do
your hair

But it’s you I like

The way you are right now

(BOTH SINGING)
The way down deep
inside you

Not the things
that hide you

Not your fancy chair!
Chair!

That’s just beside you

But it’s you I like

Every part of you

Your skin
Your eyes

Your feelings

Whether old or new

I hope that you’ll remember

Even when you’re
feeling blue

That it’s you I like

It’s you, yourself
It’s you

It’s you

I like

And it is you
I like, Jeff.

Thanks.

And there must be times
when you do feel blue.

Uh-huh.

I’m not feeling
blue right now though.

Me neither!

I’m so glad that
you came today.

Thanks.

I remember asking one
of the staff people
that was there,

"Well, you know,
what do you think?
Did it go okay?

"Oh, this is good!
This is good."

PAM: He had his surgery,
he survived.

Certainly, Mr. Rogers had
an impact on who Jeff became.

His sense of self.

INTERVIEWER: You obviously
have a power now.

I mean, that you wouldn’t have
had when you first
started the show.

Well, it might sound very
ingenuous,butldont
feel that.

I would hope that anybody
who sets himself
or herself out

to produce mass programming
for children,

could have the kind of respect
of childhood that l have.

Because it’s not all
clowns and balloons.

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

What do you mean,
you don’t agree with me?

Some television programs
are loud and scary

with people shooting
and hitting other people.

You know, you can do
something about that.

When you see scary television,
you can turn it off.

We need to help our children
become more and more aware

that what is essential in life

is invisible to the eye.

Thank you.

WOMAN: Thank you very much.

MARGY: As he got older

it was more important
for him to be strong
in his beliefs.

Maybe that was how
he was getting his anger out.

His anger that people
didn't take him seriously.

They didn’t get him.
They didn't get
the depth of the show.

ELAINE CROZIER:
He started
out being Daniel,

soft and quiet and shy,

developed into King Friday.

That is not correct.
Now do it again
and do it perfectly.

SUSAN: Wasn’t King Friday
a wonderful insight into his
character?

His determination
and his ambitions.

As a king, I must see that
the world runs smoothly.

Farewell to you both!

SUSAN: Thatgruffness
was his way of getting
what he wanted across.

Fred Rogers wanted something
very badly,

and would do what he felt was
necessary in order to get it.

FRED:
Let’s take the gauntlet

and make goodness attractive

in this so-called next
millennium.

That’s the real...

That’s the real job
that we have.

I’m not talking about
Pollyanna-ish kind of stuff.

I’m talking about

down-to-Earth
actual goodness.

People caring
for each other

in a myriad of ways,

rather than people
knocking each other
off all the time.

I mean, I don’t find
that funny at all.

What changes the world?

The only thing that
ever really changes
the world

is when somebody gets the idea

that love can abound

and can be shared.

You’re doing a greatjob.

JlM: Dad never stood up
and said, "Look at what
I’ve done.

"Look at this. Isn’t this
wonderful?"

The only time I ever
saw him come even close
to anything like that

was when he did the interview
with Koko the gorilla.

Right.
That’s a happy sound.

Is it?

That’s a purr.

(MIMICS PURRING)
Like that?

Can you teach me
how to do that?
(PURRS)

(PURRS)

Isn’t that a nice
way to welcome

someone and say
that you’re happy?

JlM: It was a weird
kind of a thing,

but you realize there
was something kind of
magical going on there.

What? Love?

Well, that was
very nice.

Thank you, Koko.

FRED: There’s so much
to think about, isn’t there?

MAN: Let me ask you about
what we’ve been discussing
for the last three hours.

Mr. Rogers
and the narcissistic society
that he gave birth to

because he told every kid
that they were important.

Do you believe his
philosophy destroyed
a generation?

WOMAN: This evil, evil man.

The criticism
goes like this...

"You told everyone
they’re special.

"They don’t have
to do anything
to earn that special.

"That’s what’s wrong
with our country.

"That’s what’s wrong
with children today."

MAN: He didn’t say, "If you
wasn’t to be special, you’re
gonna have to work hard. "

And now all these kids
are growing up,
and they’re realizing,

"Hey, wait a minute,
Mr. Rogers lied to me.
I’m not special. "

JUNLEI: I’m sure by then
Fred had heard the criticisms,

but he’s not talking
about entitlement.

And if you don’t believe

that everyone
has inherent value,

you might as well
go against

the fundamental
notion of Christianity.

That you are the beloved son
or daughter of God.

Hi, Mr. Rogers,
it’s a pleasure to meet you.

Hi. I’m glad
to meet you.
Thank you.

I watched your show
as a youngster.

I wasn't allowed
to go to preschool,

'cause I had a disability,
and my mom made me watch
your show every day.

Thank you...
Bless your heart
and here you are.

...for my preschool
educaflon.

And thank you
for inspiring
me today.

JUNLEI: At the very end
of Fred’s very last
commencement speech

he said what he meant
when he say, "You’re special."

And what that ultimately
means, of course,

is that you don’t ever have
to do anything sensational

for people to love you.

It is really a matter
of believing that

you’re endowed
by your creator with good.

You know there are many
different ways of saying,
"I love you."

In fact, I like
to think about times

when I’ve seen people
showing their love. Okay.

MAN: Show 1765.

This is the last scene
of the last show

of the last day,
the last taping day

of the interior
of Mister Rogers’
Neighborhood.

(ROGER SINGING)
It’s such a good feeling
to know you’re alive

It’s such a happy feeling
You’re growing inside

And when you wake up ready
to say

I think I’ll make a snappy
new day

It’s such a good feeling

A very good feeling,
the...

(LAUGHS)

This place has
been condemned.

Oh, it’s been condemned.
Oh, well.
You got two days to move out.

Okay, thanks. See ya.

That was wonderful!

Years ago, it wasn’t
so weird that

somebody as nice
as Fred was around.

Now there isn’t room
for a nice person on TV.

So, we must have
regular reunions.

Yeah. How about Tuesday?

Yeah, I’ll have forgotten
about everyone by Monday.

So, Tuesday will
bring it all back.

We did it! Can you believe it?
We did it!

Mercy!

JOANNE: When he did
stop making the programs,

I felt that he was depressed.

And I mentioned it to him

and he said, "Well,
I miss my playmates."

MAN: Okay. Okay, slate out.
FRED: That’s fine.

MARGY: We decided
to have Fred back to do
some promos about 9-1 1.

He was very troubled
and I said, "Fred,
what’s wrong?"

And he said,
"I just don’t know

"what good these
are going to do."

And I just remembered saying,

"Fred! How can you say that?"

When the horror of 9-1 1
really hit him,

I think it was a real
eye-opener.

He was realizing
that it was just so big.

It’s always going to
be an ongoing struggle
to overcome evil.

I remember thinking,
"Okay, this is

"the time that you need
to pump him up because

"he doesn’t understand
this is really important."

People listen to you.

Okay.

No matter what our
particularjob,

especially in our
world today,

we all are called
to be tikun olam,

"repairers of creation."

Thank you for whatever you do,
wherever you are,

to bring joy
and light and hope

and faith
and pardon and love

to your neighbor
and to yourself.

MAX: Fred didn't like going
to the doctor’s office.

He had stomach problems
for a long time. I mean,
for several years.

FRED: Oh, what’s that
right down there?

Take a look at the aquarium.
Do you see a dead fish?

A dead fish would be
one that isn’t swimming

or breathing
or anything at all.

Look down there
and see, will you?

See ifyou see anything.
Oh, yes, right there,
isn’t it?

YO-YO MA: He told me
that he was sick.

Iplayed a Bach Sarabande
for him over the phone.

It’s like sending a little
loving message.

JOANNE: When he was very ill

he talked a lot
about dying well,

to die with the hopes...

With the hopes intact.

Before he became
comatose he said,

"Do you think I’m a sheep?"

And we knew what
he was talking about because

he had been reading
in the Bible
about the Last Days,

with the Judgment.

It will be decided at the end

who is a sheep
and who is a goat.

And I think the need
was always there

for being loved,
for being capable
of being loved.

There was a little silence
and then I said,

"Fred, if ever
there was a sheep you’re one."

(CELLO PLAYING)

VVeH,lsuppose
it’s an invitation,

"Won’t you be my neighbor?"

It’s an invitation for

somebody to be close to you.

You know, I think everybody
longs to be loved

and longs to know
that he or she is lovable.

And consequently,
the greatest thing
that we can do

is to help somebody know

that they’re loved
and capable of loving.

(PIANO MUSIC PLAYING)

TOM: Across the street
from Fred’s funeral,
there’s this hubbub

and there’s all these people
holding up signs saying,
"God hates fags. "

And I went and talked to them
because Fred would have it no
other way.

I said, ”Are you condemning
Fred? Are you saying that
he was gay?

"What’s happening?"

And they were saying that,
"No, no, he just...
He tolerated gays. "

And so, they were intolerant
of the tolerance.

And the thing that
struck me that day
more than anything else

was the children
that were there.

Children that had been
drafted into doing this
work into standing there

with their parents
and holding up signs
and screaming.

And those kids
looked so unhappy.

Those kids looked
so exhausted.

Those kids looked
so ill-treated.
It was just heart-breaking.

And I knew that
if Fred had seen that,

that’s where his heart
would have gone.

JOANNE: I can’t think how
he would feel about the things

that have come out

that seem to set us
back so far.

SUSAN: And I wonder
if he wouldn’t

simply put down his
tiger and just stay home,

forget about even trying.

He’s not a person who
would’ve given up,

but this is daunting.

I think he would be
trying to mend...

Mend the split.

He would be trying
to find some way

to find something positive.

FRED: When I was a boy
and I would hear
about something scary,

my mother would tell us,
”Always look for the people
who are helping.

"You’ll always find somebody
who’s trying to help. "

I think there are a lot
of people out there like
Fred Rogers.

A lot more than we
really want to believe.

JUNLEI: In response
to the question,

"What would Fred Rogers do?”

It’s not a question
that you can answer.

The most important
question is, "What
are you going to do?"

From the time
you were very little,

you’ve had people who have
smiled you into smiling.

People who have
talked you into talking.

Sung you into singing.

Loved you into loving.

REV. GEORGE WIRTH:
When he was giving
speeches, he would say,

"Now, think about somebody
who’s helped you along the way

"for one minute.
I’m going to time you. "

FRED: Let’s just
take some time

to think of those extra
special people.

Mmm.

Some of them
may be right here.

Some may be far away.

Some may even be in heaven.

No matter where they are,
deep down you know

they’ve always wanted
what was best for you.

They’ve always
cared about you beyond measure

and have encouraged you
to be true

to the best within you.

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

My mother.

How I got to this point,
because it was my
grandfather’s doing.

There was this woman
named Viola who used
to take care of me

when lwas little.
She was our babysitter.

I thought about Fred.

How about you?

(INTERVIEWER SPEAKING)

(SlGHS SOFTLY)

Thank you.

(SINGING)
It’s such a good feeling
to know you’re alive

It’s such a happy feeling
you’re growing inside

And when you wake up
ready to say

"I think I’ll make a snappy
new day"

It’s such a good feeling
A very good feeling

The feeling you know that
we’re friends

WOMAN: Please welcome,
Jeffrey Erlanger.

lam so glad to see you.
Thank you. You too.

Oh! What a surprise!

You help to make each day
a special day

by just you're being yourself.

There is nobody else
in the whole world
who's exactly like you.

And people can like you
exactly as you are.

You are special.