“Mister Rogers' neighborhood”: Dealing with death on a children's television series

Abstract

“Mister Rogers' Neighborhood,” the PBS children's television series, has provided a vehicle for death education. The program, produced in 1970 and repeated regularly, deals with some of the intellectual, emotional, and social aspects of death in a low-anxiety way. Mister Rogers discovered a dead goldfish in the tank, buried it, then discussed many childhood concerns about death in dialogue, songs, and through a puppet drama. This article outlines the primary considerations given in producing these segments. It also includes some dialogue from the programs and the reactions from some viewers.