If you’ve ever sung the lyrics, “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor… Please won’t you be my neighbor?” you’re probably one of the millions of people who grew up with the classic TV show, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
The sweet and thoughtful children’s show, starring the protagonist Fred Rogers, aired from 1968 to 2001, and taught generations of kids the basics of sharing, counting, going to school, and appreciating the power of make-believe.
Mr. Rogers, who passed away in 2003, was a stand-up neighbor and a good friend to everyone he met, as he demonstrated with this beautiful song he performed for a little boy in a wheelchair.
And Mr. Rogers practiced what he preached, literally. Ordained as a Presbyterian minister, Mr. Rogers used his show to teach kids heartwarming lessons about what it means to be a good friend and a good citizen of the world.
Of course, he didn’t do it all alone! Dozens of crew members, writers, and puppeteers worked together to make the Neighborhood a reality.
Honestly, we have a hard time imagining a more fun and fulfilling task than bringing this magical world of make-believe to kids around the world.
What do you think of these behind-the-scenes photos? Do they bring back fond memories? Let us know in the comments below!
[H/T: Mental Floss, The Neighborhood Archive]
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood brought love, magic, and education to children for years — and it did so with the help of a man named David Smith, pictured above left.
He worked on Mister Rogers' as the Assistant Art Director for many years, and recently sat down with the website The Neighborhood Archive, which chronicles the history of the series, to share some of his rarely-seen collection of behind-the-scenes photos from the set of the show.
Fred Rogers originally started his show in Canada in 1963, as Mister Rogers' on Canada's CBC Television. In 1968, he moved his show to NET, which eventually became PBS.
His show, which generations of Americans grew up with, taught kids beautiful and meaningful lessons about life, being a good friend, and handling obstacles. In each half-hour episode, Mr. Rogers would speak directly to the camera, having a chat with the viewers.
Over the course of the episode, he would usually teach his audience one lesson about the world around them — such as a crafting project or tour of a factory — and one lesson about the imagination, via his puppet world, The Neighborhood of Make-Believe.
Of course, he didn't do it all alone! Even though Mr. Rogers was the star and main producer of the show, each and every episode was crafted with loving care by a whole crew.
Together, they made the show a reality, voiced many of the characters in The Neighborhood of Make-Believe and in the real world, and helped Mr. Rogers to teach his important life-lessons.
Though most of them never became household names like Mr. Rogers, dedicated fans probably remember characters like Neighbor Aber and Lady Aberlin, played by Chuck Aber and Betty Aberlin respectively.
After launching originally in Canada, the show moved to Pittsburgh, PA, and immediately began incorporating the vibrant arts and cultural scene of the city into the show.
The city of Pittsburgh helped to sponsor the production of the show, the Neighborhood made use of local celebrities, like real-life jazz musician Joe Negri, who played Joe "Handyman" Negri on the show for 40 years.
The show was, of course, populated by many puppets. These puppets existed only in the Make-Believe world, but interacted easily with the "real world" characters that crossed over.
Here, you can see Betty Aberlin having a chat with King Friday, one of the many puppets played by Fred Rogers.
King Friday and his wife, Queen Sara Saturday, were both voiced by Rogers, and served as the rulers of the imaginary world.
In addition to piles of backstage photos, Smith's collection also includes beautifully detailed schematics of many parts of the Mister Rogers' world, vestiges of his job as part of the art team on the show.
If you were ever confused by the geography of the many neighborhoods described, then this map is a useful visual aid, showcasing the different areas, including Make-Believe and Somewhere Else, where characters like Prince Tuesday and Daniel Striped Tiger attend school.
Of course, such schematics and designs also made appearances on the show itself! Here, Lady Aberlin and a teacher character played by Tim Scanlon prepare to give Rogers' owl character, X, a test.
Test-taking was just one of many topics that Fred Rogers explored that wasn't within the traditionally "fun" realm of children's programming. In fact, he was one of the pioneers of the process of gently guiding children through some of life's more difficult obstacles, from the death of pets to divorce.
Despite the show's willingness to deal with more difficult topics, the overall theme of the show was lighthearted fun and learning, incorporating elements of goofiness that lots of us still remember years later.
For example, do you remember the Flying Zookeenie Brothers, pictured above? They were a make-believe circus troupe invited to perform for King Friday and even included in their number a future star! Michael Keaton, who went on to play Batman, is third from the right.
Meanwhile, just as these images capture rising stars, they also serve as a lovely way to commemorate some of the unsung heroes of one of television's most successful kids' programs.
Pictured above is Josie Carey, who was Fred Rogers' songwriting partner when the show first started, and co-created many of the familiar tunes we all grew up singing!
At the end of the day, of course, what makes these photos so special is how they bring us straight back to a cherished remembrance, and how they memorialize the world of one of TV's bravest, kindest celebrities.
Mr. Rogers passed away in 2003, but the show is coming back, after a fashion, in a new spinoff based on the story of Daniel Striped Tiger. We can't wait to see what new adventures the beloved cast of characters has in store for the next generation of little neighbors!
If you loved Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, make sure to SHARE with everyone who remembers this classic show!
