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LeVar Burton
Bill Isler
Brown Johnson
Jane Kaczmarek
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Donna Mitroff
David Newell
Joanne Rogers
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Nancy Steingard
Anne Sweeney
Lily Tomlin
Bradley Whitford
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Scott Bakula
Tyne Daly
Jean Louisa Kelly
John Schneider
Karousel Kids, Inc.
Stan Beard, Musical Director
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First Lady Laura Bush
Kevin Clash & Elmo
Katie Couric
Marian Wright Edelman
Linda Ellerbee
Pat Mitchell
Charles Osgood |
Hosted by David Hartman
Produced by Cliff Dektar, Arthur Greenwald, Donna Mitroff and Nancy Steingard
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I wanted to tell you a little bit about Fred, and I’ve picked one story. I think it’ll be speedier this way. [laughter] Fred and some other producers of children’s television went to India about 20 years ago. Their assignment was to put together sort of a pilot children’s program so maybe the Indian television could use it in some way. And they did. And they taped it. And during one of the tapings of their particular segment, there was a cue that was missed. Something happened, a bell didn’t ring or something, and I think somebody said, "Oh, forget about it, it’s just a kids’ show."
And Fred said, "That’s exactly my point. It’s a kids’ program and they deserve to get the best we can offer." And that was Fred. That was Fred throughout his entire career. I’ve seen him stop taping for one sentence that may be misconstrued. He was such a perfectionist and he cared and respected his audience.
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| Bradley Whitford and Jane Kaczmarek |
Fred Rogers said something else that day on the radio, and that, we learned later, was a very favorite way of his to end a speech.
Fred said, "From the time you were very little, you’ve had people who smiled you into smiling, people who talked you into talking, sung you into singing, loved you into loving."
"On this special day, let’s take some time to think of those extra special people, some of them might be right here, some of them might be far away, some of them might be in heaven. But no matter where they are, deep down, you know they’ve always wanted what was best for you. They’ve always cared about you beyond measure and they’ve always encouraged you to be true to the best within you."
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| Lily Tomlin |
Fred especially loved whimsical humor and irony, and being a minister, he knew a good cosmic joke when he saw one. Like a few years ago when they unveiled Mister Rogers’ star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame right in front of Frederick’s of Hollywood. [laughter] Two Freds, one neighborhood. [laughter] Too good.
Fred was never shy or hesitant about asking someone what it was like to have to use or wheelchair, or asking a blind musician to describe how he hears music more intensely. Or normalizing signing by conducting a spirited conversation with a deaf child. Long before our national consciousness was raised about the importance of having children of color or children with disabilities onscreen, they were on his show. Through his example, Fred Rogers taught us the true meaning of his words, "As different as we are from one another, as unique as each of us is, we are much more the same than we are different."
And the influence that has meant so much to me and the one that has the greatest potential for transforming our work and our lives, is Fred’s understanding of the power of listening. Fred described listening as "a very active awareness of the coming together of at least two lives. Listening," he said, "is a prerequisite of love." Well, I’ve come to understand that listening is a prerequisite of management. Creativity sometimes knocks very softly. If we want to let it in, we have to learn to listen.
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| LeVar Burton and Scott Bakula |
Well, I loved Fred very deeply, and I’m not ashamed, nor am I embarrassed, to say that. Fred was a great teacher and a mentor to me, and I miss him an awful lot.
Fred, simply put, was a great master, in my view. He was a bodhisattva. He had mastered what it means to be in the present moment always. Fred was one of the most authentic human beings I ever encountered. He and Alex Haley had the remarkable ability to, no matter who they were talking to, no matter who they were with, he made you feel like you were the most important person in the room. And his persona never changed.
Before I met Fred about 20-some-odd years ago, I did not believe that that was a real person. I assumed that who he was on "Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood" was some sort of a put-on. And then I met Fred and I realized that that is exactly who he is. Mastering the present moment in every moment, not an easy thing to do.
It is remarkable to think that Fred was a pioneer in this medium of television in so many ways. He was one of the first people to realize the awesome power and potential of this medium in which we work. And it was Fred’s mission in life to use this medium for the good. He understood clearly that entertainment is a part of what it is we do -- that’s a given -- but to educate, to enlighten, to illuminate, he understood that we have an opportunity, and he saw it as his responsibility to use this medium to life each other up and light the way for one another. And he was one of the first people to recognize that in TV.
He’s an amazing being, is Fred. And as I believe that he – you know, he isn’t gone. The physical aspect of Fred is no longer here, but his spirit, as strong as it is, is here.
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| Donna Mitroff |
Well, I’m one of the lucky ones who had a chance to meet Fred. I first met Fred – and I’m supposed to say Fred Rogers – Fred – in the late-seventies. It was my first week as the new director of educational services at WQED in Pittsburgh where "The Neighborhood" is taped. And there was Fred Rogers right in the elevator. I was awe-struck.
Well, Fred not only put me at ease in his own inimitable way, but he soon knew the names of my husband and my child. He knew what my daughter said about his show. He invited me to meet his staff. And soon, we were building a curriculum for home daycare providers based on "The Neighborhood." All that in one elevator ride, and WQED only has three floors. [laughter]
Fred Rogers was the first children’s show producer or performer to study – in fact, I mean, really to immerse himself in child development, and then to design programs to meet children’s developmental needs. Now, he didn’t do it just as a part of a show or as a PSA tacked on at the end, but every minute of every show for 35 years.
Let’s face it. Fred Rogers set the bar pretty high for the rest of us. But that was not his goal. In fact, he did take obvious delight whenever anyone of us in television uses our skills to serve the needs of children and families. I first learned this in the seventies, but I’m still inspired by Fred Rogers, by his uncompromising respect for children.
During my years at Fox, I constantly met program executives eager to spice up their scripts with double entendre, with humor. And I would call them on it. "What’s the problem?" they’d say. "The kids don’t get it anyway." But you know what? Children do get it. Namely, they get a feeling of exclusion. They know there’s a joke, and nobody will explain it to them.
Sometimes I win those fights, but when I don’t, Fred’s influence always puts me right back in the battle.
We were walking one day on the beach, and I said to Fred, I said, "Fred, do you really think there’s a heaven?" And he said, "Yes, I do." And I said, "Well, what do you think it’s like?" And he said – he thought for a moment and then he said, "Well, Beth, the one thing I do know is there’s going to be an awfully lot of surprised people there." [laughter] And I thought that said it all.
Hello, I’m Linda Ellerbee. I’m not going to read from a teleprompter here. I’m just going to speak from the heart, because that’s what Fred Rogers did. He spoke from the heart to the heart. He gave kids comfort. He gave kids ideas and knowledge. He gave them self-confidence. He gave them permission to just be kids. And he never ever talked down to them.
He understood that kids were human beings, only younger and shorter. It’s amazing how rare that attitude is in children’s television. However, 12 years ago, when we began "Nick News," even though our audience would be older than that of Fred Rogers, I was determined to do the one thing Fred Rogers did best: I would show respect for kids.
Why? Because they deserve it, and because it works. And sometimes I would say to myself, I wonder if Mister Rogers has seen our show? Am I doing him proud?
And then one day, we both attended a conference at the White House on children’s television. Most people there were thrilled to be seated at the same table with the President of the United States. I thought the President of the United States ought to be thrilled to be seated at the same table with Mister Rogers. I know I was, and I introduced myself to Mister Rogers and I asked him what advice he had for "Nick News."
He said, "Just keep it on the air. That’s the hard part." Well, he’s right. That is a hard part. But we’re still here. And all of us who try to produce television for kids that we can be proud of, know what a debt we owe Fred Rogers. He made the whole world "Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood." He made that neighborhood a place you want to be.
And every time I see something on television for kids that’s really good, I know in my heart, with all my heart, that somehow, somewhere, Mister Rogers is still in the ‘hood.
Good evening. I have two quick personal stories I’d like to share. Once, in the middle of a television program, my two-year-old son ran up to the set and turned it off, and announced, "Mister Rogers said that if something on television scares you, you can turn it off. That makes you the strongest one of all."
When he first started preschool, like many kids, he had a lot of difficulty when I left. It was very hard for him to say goodbye. So he came up with an idea: the two of us would sign "I love you" the way he learned from "Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood." A year and a half later, we still do it every day.
Here are two tools that empowered a child to navigate through difficult times of his young life. Turning off the television or creating a goodbye ritual are two things, but empowering a child to take control of his life is huge.
It’s rare that any of us finds true wisdom in our lives, whether it’s from parents, teachers, counselors or anyone else, friends. Yet, every day for over 35 years, all we’ve had to do is turn on the television set and we’ve been guaranteed life lessons from a soft-spoken, mild-mannered sage.
I want to say that I consider it a privilege to work in the same field as Fred Rogers. And as a mother and as a professional, I’d like to say to him, who we all can agree is here with us in spirit, thank you so much. [she signs "I love you."]
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| Jane Meadows, Academy Chairman Dick Askin, Lily Tomlin and Joanne Rogers |
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