Mister Rogers' Neighborhood/Awesome


 * Mister Rogers defending PBS to the United States Senate. And how, really, could one speak against Fred Rogers? He won The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny!
 * His defense of PBS was in response to proposed budget cuts. The outcome after his speech? Budget increase. Yes, that's right... Fred Rogers persuaded the United States Congress to spend more money on educational programming that brought in close to zero corporate profit. No matter what party's in charge, that is impressive.
 * He also defended home recording and was later recognized as one of the most prominent witnesses. That's right, people! If it wasn't for this man, recording TV shows would've been made illegal!
 * Also, almost all PBS Kids apps with licensed characters on the Apple App Store are not available outside the US and UK. Of the two that are available internationally, one of them is a Mr. Rogers App. That man is a saint!
 * Through a bizarre twist of fate, Mister Rogers was the inspiration for Night of the Living Dead. A young George Romero was behind the camera when Mister Rogers got a tonsillectomy, and the experience was so squicky that it got him interested in horror.
 * The story doesn't end there! When the movie was finished, Romero showed Rogers an advanced screening of the movie. What did the most gentle man who ever lived think of this bloody horror film? He thought it was FUN!
 * When he went up to accept his lifetime achievement Emmy, he asked the entire crowd: "...ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are. Ten seconds of silence." And they complied.
 * PBS Digital Studios made this awesome video: The Garden of Your Mind.
 * Among other honors, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nations highest civilian honor, and has an asteroid named after him.