Instead of Mr. Rogers, I get stuck with a neighbor whose favorite pastimes include midnight dance parties and sautéing onions? Life’s not fair. If only Mr. Rogers were still here to teach me a lesson on neighborly tolerance. Alas, the childhood icon has since passed, but today, on what would have been Fred Rogers’ 90th birthday, it was announced that a documentary about Rogers will be released on June 8th. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? delves into the history of the iconic Mister Fred Rogers, and the unbelievable success of his hit, children’s show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. The show ran for an astonishing 856 episodes, and was one of the first to tackle some of the scarier issues children face. As seen in the trailer, Rogers found a tactful way to teach children about things like divorce and death, and used the show as a means to demonstrate inclusion and kindness. In a world as scary as it has become, this documentary looks like it might be the bright spot many of us need. Earlier this year, it was also announced that Tom Hanks will star in You Are My Friend, which is a feature film about the special impact Rogers had on a young reporter. All of this is good news, and should be enough to keep our spirits bright for a while.
“The greatest thing that we can do is to help somebody know that they are loved and capable of loving.”…..oh. So that’s the lesson on neighborly tolerance…
Take a look at the trailer below!