TVSquad

According to the AP, the producers of the classic PBS children's show Mister Rogers Neighborhood want to create a new show. Kevin Morrison, the CEO of Family Communications, Inc. told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that they are in talks with producers of various children's shows about creating a new program that is completely different from the one Fred Rogers hosted from 1968 to 2001. Rogers died in 2003.

No concrete plans were reported, but even Rogers' widow, Joanne, seems to be in favor of the move. "I really think Fred would be proud of the organization for trying to continue their leadership in the field of children's television," she told the Post-Gazette.

Muppet News Flash, my favorite place for all the latest Muppet information, reports that a repeat of A&E's Sesame Street Biography will air in two parts: the first part on December 18 at 4 AM, and the second part on December 19, again at 4 AM. Unless you're a farmer or a garbage truck driver and you're used to being up that early, I suggest you fire up the ol' DVR and record it. I caught the episode when it first aired, and it's a great look at the inner workings of the program, how ideas are developed, and how the performers and artists bring the Muppets to life.

The following morning of December 20, also at 4 AM, A&E will re-air the Biography episode featuring the late Fred Rogers of Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. That's three days to relive your favorite childhood PBS memories.

Man, I miss Fred Rogers. There are plenty of icons in children's programming, but you were never quite sure if the people you saw on screen were really that kind and nurturing in real life, or if the whole thing was just an act. Rogers, however, was the same kind and avuncular gentleman off camera as well as on camera. I'll admit his show didn't thrill me as a kid the way Sesame Street did, but there was something very genuine and very real about the man. Waxy.org found this clip of Fred Rogers addressing the US Senate in 1969, concerning a proposed endowment for the newly-formed Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

You know, this would answer so many questions as to why Fred Rogers, host of the legendary Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, was the quiet, personable man we saw on television every day; deep down inside he was a skilled Marine sniper and he needed the calm persona to hide his honed killing skills.

However, this is all urban legend. The rumors began in the early 1990's when Rogers' military exploits became a hot topic on the Internet. At first he was a Marine sniper with nearly 40 kills during the Korean conflict of the 1950's. As the decade wore on he became a Vietnam vet with tattoos all over his arms (hence the sweaters and long sleeve shirts). By the time of his death in 2003 Fred Rogers was no longer a Marine sniper, but a Navy Seal with over 25 kills in Vietnam.

In reality Mr. Rogers never served any time in the military. In fact, after graduating from college in 1951 Rogers embarked on a nearly uninterrupted broadcasting career that lasted over 50 years and became an ordained minister in 1962.

As for his dealings with the mafia and his involvement with the Kennedy assassination . . . Well, that's a story for another day.