Fred Rogers ladies and gentleman!
Here are some interesting facts about him:
He basically saved public television. In 1969 the government wanted to cut public television funds. Mister Rogers then went to Washington where he gave an amazing merely six minute speech. By the end of the speech not only did he charm the hostile Senators, he got them to double the budget they would have initially cut down. The whole thing can be found on youtube, a video called āMister Rogers defending PBS to the US Senate.ā
āCertain fundamentalist preachers hated him because, apparently not getting the ākindest man who ever livedā memo, they would ask him to denounce homosexuals. Mr. Rogersās response? Heād pat the target on the shoulder and say, āGod loves you just as you are.ā Rogers even belonged to a āMore Lightā congregation in Pittsburgh, a part of the Presbyterian Church dedicated to welcoming LGBT persons to full participation in the church.ā
According to a TV Guide piece on him, Fred Rogers drove a plain old Impala for years. One day, however, the car was stolen from the street near the TV station. When Rogers filed a police report, the story was picked up by every newspaper, radio and media outlet around town. Amazingly, within 48 hours the car was left in the exact spot where it was taken from, with an apology on the dashboard. It read, āIf weād known it was yours, we never would have taken it.ā
Once, on a fancy trip up to a PBS execās house, he heard the limo driver was going to wait outside for 2 hours, so he insisted the driver come in and join them (which flustered the host). On the way back, Rogers sat up front, and when he learned that they were passing the driverās home on the way, he asked if they could stop in to meet his family. According to the driver, it was one of the best nights of his lifeāthe house supposedly lit up when Rogers arrived, and he played jazz piano and bantered with them late into the night. Further, like with the reporters, Rogers sent him notes and kept in touch with the driver for the rest of his life.
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