Happy birthday (March 20) to Fred McFeely Rogers, a remarkable man whose strength was his kindness and gentility; whose example was his serene, steadfast morality; and whose legacy was the unconditional love he personified and advocated throughout the nearly 75 years he graced this all-too-often heartless world.

An ordained Presbyterian minister, Mister Rogers veered from a career in the cloth to remedy the inadequacy he saw in how television addressed children.

He viewed the space between the stage camera and the hearts and minds of his little viewers as “holy ground,” and devoted his life to broadcasting an uplifting, nurturing children’s television program.

The 895 episodes of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” aired from 1968 to 2001, winning four Emmy awards.

The show’s topics ranged from the fear of going to sleep and getting immunizations to losing a loved one to calming children’s fears during the Persian Gulf War.

A music major, Mister Rogers composed the show’s music (more than 200 songs), including the theme, “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” He also provided several of the characters’ voices.

Perhaps the most eloquent tribute to the power of the man came from Esquire’s Tom Junod, reporting on Mister Rogers’ acceptance of a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1997 Daytime Emmys:

“Mister Rogers went onstage to accept the award — and there, in front of all the soap opera stars and talk show sinceratrons, in front of all the jutting man-tanned jaws and jutting saltwater bosoms, he made his small bow and said into the microphone, ‘All of us have special ones who have loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are. Ten seconds of silence.’

“He lifted his wrist, looked at the audience, looked at his watch, and said, ‘I’ll watch the time.’

“There was, at first, a small whoop from the crowd, a giddy, strangled hiccup of laughter, as people realized that he wasn’t kidding, that Mister Rogers was not some convenient eunuch, but rather a man, an authority figure who actually expected them to do what he asked.

“And so they did. One second, two seconds, three seconds — and now the jaws clenched, and the bosoms heaved, and the mascara ran, and the tears fell upon the beglittered gathering like rain leaking down a crystal chandelier.

“And Mister Rogers finally looked up from his watch and said softly ‘May God be with you,’ to all his vanquished children.”

QUIZ:

1. Where did Mister Rogers get all the sweaters he wore on his show?

2. Mister Rogers was color blind. What color could he not see?

3. Mister Rogers helped sway the U.S. Supreme Court to allow television viewers to do what?

4. For the last 30 years of his life, Mister Rogers kept his weight at precisely how many pounds?

5. Why did he wear sneakers on his show?

6. Which actor got his showbiz start as a backstage trolley operator on “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood”?

7. What current children’s program was inspired by “Mister Rogers Neighborhood”?

8. Mister Rogers was named honorary coach of which professional sports team?

ANSWERS:

1. His mother hand-knitted them. 2. Blue. 3. Tape television shows for later viewing. 4. 143, because the numbers represent the length of the words in “I love you.” 5. They were quieter than his dress shoes when he walked around the set. 6. Michael Keaton. 7. “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.” 8. Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team.