Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, an American children’s television institution, was first broadcast on PBS on 21 September 1967.

Celebrated in the latest Google Doodle, Fred Rogers’ syndicated show addressed its young audience directly, gently encouraging kids to be “good neighbours” and to acknowledge and express their true feelings while behaving compassionately and fairly towards others.

The programme ran from 1968 to 2001, meaning generations grew up with its softly-spoken host, teaching them to draw, play with animals and accept one anothers’ differences, welcoming viewers to his picture-perfect house every day.

The best Google Doodles Show all 50 1 /50 The best Google Doodles The best Google Doodles Mister Rogers Google Doodle celebrating children's TV presenter Mister Rogers Google The best Google Doodles Lucy Wills Google Doodle celebrating haematologist Lucy Wills Google The best Google Doodles Falafel Google Doodle celebrating falafel Google The best Google Doodles St George's Day Google Doodle celebrating St George's Day Google The best Google Doodles James Wong Howe Google Doodle celebrating Hollywood golden age cinematographer James Wong Howe Google The best Google Doodles Seiichi Miyake Google Doodle celebrating Seiichi Miyake, developer of tactile paving Google The best Google Doodles Walter Cronkite Google celebrates US broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite's 100th birthday The best Google Doodles Lantern Festival 2016 Google celebrates the last day of the Chinese New Year celebrations with a doodle of the Lantern Festival Google The best Google Doodles Google Doodle celebrating Sergei Diaghilev Google Doodle celebrating art critic Sergei Diaghilev Google The best Google Doodles George Boole Google marks mathematician George Boole's 200th birthday The best Google Doodles Sergei Eisenstein Google Doodle celebrating soviet film director Sergei Eisenstein Google The best Google Doodles 41st anniversary of the discovery of 'Lucy' Google marks the 41st anniversary of the discovery of 'Lucy', the name given to a collection of fossilised bones that once made up the skeleton of a hominid from the Australopithecus afarensis species, who lived in Ethiopia 3.2 million years ago The best Google Doodles Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Google celebrates physician and suffragist Elizabeth Garrett Anderson 180th birthday The best Google Doodles Sir William Henry Perkin Google Doodle celebrating chemist Sir William Henry Perkin Google The best Google Doodles Nelly Sachs Google Doodle celebrating poet and playwright Nelly Sachs Google The best Google Doodles Thanksgiving 2018 Google Doodle celebrating Thanksgiving 2018 Google The best Google Doodles Nigerian Independence Day Google Doodle celebrating Nigerian Independence Day Google The best Google Doodles Mary Prince Google Doodle celebrating abolitionist Mary Prince Google The best Google Doodles Father's Day 2016 Google celebrates Father's Day The best Google Doodles Ebenezer Cobb Morley Google Doodle celebrating "father of football" Ebenezer Cobb Morley Google The best Google Doodles Octavia E Butler Google Doodle celebrating science fiction author Octavia E Butler Google The best Google Doodles Tamara de Lempicka Google Doodle celebrating painter Tamara de Lempicka Google The best Google Doodles Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss Google Doodle celebrating mathematician and physicist Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss Google The best Google Doodles Fanny Blankers-Koen Google Doodle celebrating Dutch Olympic gold medalist Fanny Blankers-Koen Google The best Google Doodles John Harrison Google Doodle celebrating clockmaker John Harrison Google The best Google Doodles Guillermo Haro Google Doodle celebrating astronomer Guillermo Haro Google The best Google Doodles St. David's Day Google Doodle celebrating St. David's Day Google The best Google Doodles Carter G Woodson Google Doodle celebrating Carter G Woodson, a pioneering African-American historian Google The best Google Doodles St Andrew's Day Google Doodle celebrating St Andrew's Day Google The best Google Doodles Gertrude Jekyll Google Doodle celebrating horticulturist Gertrude Jekyll Google The best Google Doodles Children's Day 2017 Google Doodle celebrating Children's Day 2017 Google The best Google Doodles Studio for Electronic Music Google Doodle celebrating the Studio for Electronic Music Google The best Google Doodles Olaudah Equiano Google Doodle celebrating abolitionist Olaudah Equiano Google The best Google Doodles Fridtjof Nansen Google Doodle celebrating Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen Google The best Google Doodles Ladislao José Biro Google celebrates Ladislao José Biro's 117th birthday The best Google Doodles Amalia Hernandez Google Doodle celebrating ballet choreographer Amalia Hernandez Google The best Google Doodles Dr Samuel Johnson Google Doodle celebrating lexicographer Dr Samuel Johnson Google The best Google Doodles British Sign Language Google Doodle celebrating British Sign Language Google The best Google Doodles Eduard Khil Google Doodle celebrating baritone singer Eduard Khil Google The best Google Doodles Fourth of July Google Doodle celebrating Fourth of July Google The best Google Doodles Victor Hugo Google Doodle celebrating author Victor Hugo Google The best Google Doodles Google Doodle celebrating Giro d'Italia's 100th Anniversary Google Doodle celebrating Giro d'Italia's 100th Anniversary Google The best Google Doodles Google Doodle celebrating St. Patrick's Day Google Doodle celebrating St. Patrick's Day Google The best Google Doodles Google Doodle celebrating St. David's Day Google Doodle celebrating St. David's Day Google The best Google Doodles Steve Biko Today's Google Doodle features anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko Google The best Google Doodles The history of tea in Britain Google celebrates the 385th anniversary of tea in the UK The best Google Doodles Nettie Stevens Google celebrates geneticist Nettie Stevens 155th birthday The best Google Doodles William Morris Google celebrates English polymath William Morris' 182 birthday with a doodle showcasing his most famous designs Google The best Google Doodles Professor Scoville Google marks Professor Scoville’s 151st birthday The best Google Doodles Sophie Taeuber-Arp Google marks artist Sophie Taeuber-Arp's 127th birthday

Fred Rogers never shied away from difficult subject matter, always trusting in the ability of children to process hard truths about the adult world. Divorce, the death of a pet goldfish, even mass shootings, nothing was off limits.

In one groundbreaking moment, he invited African-American actor Francois Clemmons, who appeared on the show for 25 years as a friendly local cop, to share his paddling pool, the two men sat side by side bathing their feet to give children a clear and potent illustration of racial equality.

In another, he sang with wheelchair-bound 10-year-old Jeff Erlanger to address disability, interviewing the boy about his condition. As an adult, Erlanger appeared on stage to induct his old friend into the Television Hall of Fame in 1999.

“What children probably need to hear most from us adults, is that they can talk with us about anything and that we will do all we can to keep them safe,” he once said.

A huge source of nostalgia for many, Mr Rogers – always twinkly-eyed in trademark cardigan and tie – offered a gentle, wholesome and above all kind vision of America it was impossible not to fall for.

And the host’s belief in his message was entirely sincere.

In a superb David-and-Goliath moment worthy of Mr Smith Goes to Washington (1939), he appeared before the Senate Committee on Commerce’s Subcommittee on Communications on 1 May 1969 to speak up for the federal funding of public television, then at risk of having its $20m budget slashed in half by the Richard Nixon administration.

Explaining the purpose of his show as taking seriously “the inner drama of childhood”, Mr Rogers spoke from the heart about the value of broadcasting that addressed the emotional needs of young people, never once mentioning money.

“This is what I give. I give an expression of care every day to each child, to help him realise that he is unique.

“I end the programme by saying, ‘You’ve made this day a special day, by just your being you. There’s no person in the whole world like you, and I like you, just the way you are.’

“And I feel that if we in public television can only make it clear that feelings are mentionable and manageable, we will have done a great service for mental health.

Fred Rogers (Family Communications Inc/Getty) (Getty)

“I think that it’s much more dramatic that two men could be working out their feelings of anger – much more dramatic than showing something of gunfire.”

Visibly moved by Fred Rogers’ forthright conviction and profound decency, waggish Democratic Senator John Pastore commented: “Well I’m supposed to be a pretty tough guy and this is the first time I’ve had goosebumps for the last two days...”

The presenter then recited the lyrics to a song entitled “What Do You Do With The Mad That You Feel?” to demonstrate his argument:

“What do you do with the mad that you feel? When you feel so mad you could bite. When the whole wide world seems oh so wrong, and nothing you do seems very right. What do you do? Do you punch a bag? Do you pound some clay or some dough? Do you round up friends for a game of tag or see how fast you go? It’s great to be able to stop when you’ve planned the thing that’s wrong. And be able to do something else instead – and think this song...”

“I can stop when I want to. Can stop when I wish. Can stop, stop, stop anytime... And what a good feeling to feel like this! And know that the feeling is really mine. Know that there’s something deep inside that helps us become what we can. For a girl can be someday a lady, and a boy can be someday a man.”

“I think it’s wonderful. I think it’s wonderful... Looks like you just earned the $20m,” Senator Pastore said.