Synopses & Reviews
Foreword by Bob Garfield. Afterword by Marian Wright Edelman
Born in 1928 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Fred Rogers began his television career in 1951 at NBC. In 1954, he became program director for the newly founded WQED-TV in Pittsburgh, the first community-supported television station in the United States. From 1954 to 1961, Rogers and Josie Carey produced and performed in WQED's The Children's Corner, which became part of the the Saturday morning lineup on NBC in 1955 and 1956.
It was after Fred Rogers was ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1963, with a special charge of serving children and their families through television, that he developed what became the award-winning PBS series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
Fred Rogers began his television career in 1951 at NBC, and in 1954, he became program director for the newly founded WQED-TV in Pittsburgh, the first community-supported television station in the United States. From 1954 to 1961, Rogers and Josie Carey produced and performed in WQED's The Children's Corner, which became part of the the Saturday morning lineup on NBC in 1955 and 1956. It was after Fred Rogers was ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1963, with a special charge of serving children and their families through television, that he developed what became the award-winning PBS series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
Review
"For forty years, Fred Rogers has been telling children and the rest of us that he likes us just the way we are. No one else in our lives gives us that message. Now, in
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, fifteen essayists show how deeply, and in how many ways, the message has registered. Starting with satirist Bob Garfield's hilarious conversion from Rogers Rejectionism to Rogers Rebirth, through cellist YoYo Ma's respect for Fred's musical messages, through various Fredwatchers' reactions to the depth and honesty of his work, this collection is a reminder of the many and varied lives Fred Rogers has touched, kept sane, kept steady and centered. The book is testimony to this fact: after two score years on television, Fred Rogers remains the best friend America's families ever had."
--National Public Radio
Review
"Discusses the amazing depth of public television's longest-running show with a variety of contexts: aesthetic, developmental, theological, philosophical. Much of that is against a backdrop of a society and an industry that neglects when not exploiting children. . . . The range of commentators, from the humorous Bob Garfield to the charming Yo-Yo Ma examines and illuminates the many hertofore hidden facets of this Pittsburgh jewel."
--Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Synopsis
"The book is testimony to this fact: after two score years on television, Fred Rogers remains the best friend America's families ever had". Susan Stamberg, National Public Radio
Synopsis
In 2003, public tetevision's longest running program celebrates its thirty-fifth anniversary, This book reminds us why Fred Rogers is, as NPR's Susan Stamberg says, "the best friend America's families ever had."
Synopsis
Mark Collins and Margaret Mary Kimmel detail the story of Pennsylvania native Fred Rogers and his classic PBS children’s program Mister Roger’s Neighborhood.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 231-246) and index.
About the Author
Mark Collins teaches in the Writing Program of the Department of English at the University of Pittsburgh and is a contributing editor to
Pitt Magazine. He is the author of
Imperfect Journey, a collection of essays.
Margaret Mary Kimmel is professor in the department of Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh where she teaches children's literature and courses related to the provision of information services to young people. With Elizabeth Segal, Dr. Kimmel co-edited For Reading Out Loud. She also is involved with the selection of titles for Golden Triangle Books--historical classics for children from the University of Pittsburgh Press.