It’s A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood: A Look Back At Mr. Rogers

Mr. Rogers’ Love of Animals

Mr. Rogers was truly a lover of all living things. One famous show featured Koko the gorilla who has become famous for her use of sign language and her love of people and other animals. Koko loved to watch Mr. Rogers show and was a big fan of his. In 1998 Mr. Rogers recounted his first meeting with Koko saying, “Koko watches Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, and when Mister Rogers, in his sweater and sneakers, entered the place where she lives, Koko immediately folded him in her long, black arms, as though he were a child, and then … “She took my shoes off.”

Mr. Rogers famously put his money where his mouth was, so to speak, when it came to his love of animals. He was also vegetarian famously saying, “I don’t want to eat anything that has a mother.” Burger King, famous for their charbroiled meat, produced a commercial that parodied him and Mr. Rogers was not too pleased; he said the ads were “very confusing for children.” Burger King subsequently stopped airing the commercial.

Guest Appearances and Pop Culture References

Rogers became internationally known for his TV program and was asked to appear on a Soviet Union children’s show called Spokoynoy Nochi, Malyshi (Good Night, Little Ones). The show has been airing since 1964, and he was the first ever foreign guest. Mr. Rogers only appeared as a character on a TV show one time. In 1996, he appeared on the show Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman in a guest role as a ministry mentor.

Back when Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood was still airing, there was a recurring comedy sketch on Saturday Night Live, with Eddie Murphy lampooning Rogers in a parody called “Mister Robinson’s Neighborhood.” Eddie Murphy actually used the skit to call attention to the class and race issues. Specifically, he lived in a poverty stricken apartment and also discussed his legal issues. Murphy of course did this hilariously but was also used it to make a point. Mr. Rogers is still referenced in popular culture even within TV shows like Breaking Bad, where the character DEA agent Hank is describing a drug leader who lives a double sided life and says “It’s like Scarface had sex with Mister Rogers or something.”