'Officer Clemmons,' Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Policeman Pal, Tells His Story

Like many kids in the 1980s, I grew up learning how to accept who I was by watching Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

I remember it all: the trolley; the fish tank; the cardigans; the ritual changing of the shoes. Then there were the people who made the show so memorable: Mr. Rogers; Lady Aberlin; Mr. McFeely and, of course, Officer Clemmons.

Now we have an occasion to talk about the man behind Officer Clemmons — Dr. François S. Clemmons — whose ambition, artistry, pain, and struggle informed the character. I admit I at first — because if I didn't like it, I'd be professionally obligated to say so. Then I'd have to pan a book by a man who played an important role in a children's program central to my childhood — and, well, I didn't want to be that guy.