| >> |
05/28/09(Thu)15:18 No.1862950  During
the 1997 Daytime Emmys, the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to
Rogers. The following is an excerpt from Esquire Magazine's coverage of
the gala, written by Tom Junod:
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."
And
then 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, seven 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. |
