15 Reasons Mister Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever

I remember there was a time when I was embarrassed to be a Mr Rogers/PBS fan--I was 4-6 years old, & my cousins were watching cartoons, and laughed at me for wanting to switch over to my special friend--but looking back, I'm proud to've known the man... ...figuratively, anyway... I'm pretty sure he affected how I see things, even to this day.

mental_floss Blog - 15 Reasons Mister Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever

I'll give you all the info on my favorite reason--#5--but you'll have to follow the link for the rest of the stories.

01. Even Koko the Gorilla loved him

02. He Made Thieves Think Twice

03. He Watched His Figure to the Pound!

04. He Saved Both Public Television and the VCR

05. He Might Have Been the Most Tolerant American Ever
Mister Rogers seems to have been almost exactly the same off-screen as he was onscreen. As an ordained Presbyterian minister, and a man of tremendous faith, Mister Rogers preached tolerance first. Whenever he was asked to castigate non-Christians or gays for their differing beliefs, he would instead face them and say, with sincerity, “God loves you just the way you are.” Often this provoked ire from fundamentalists.

06. He Was Genuinely Curious about Others

07. He was Color-blind

08. He Could Make a Subway Car full of Strangers Sing

09. He got into TV because he hated TV.

10. He was an Ivy League Dropout.

11. He composed all the songs on the show...

12. He was a perfectionist, and disliked ad libbing.

13. Michael Keaton got his start on the show...

14. Several characters on the show are named for his family.

15. The sweaters.

h/t to Brett McKay (brettmckay) on Twitter