Today in History - June 7: The question nobody expected to be asked on a show for preschoolers
An episode of children's television show Mr Rogers' Neighbourhood took the highly unusual step of explaining a confronting adult issue on June 7, 1968.
The program aimed at preschool-aged children had been recorded the day before in response to a major news event.
The episode begins with a slow and seemingly directionless scene of cast member Lady Aberlin blowing up and deflating a balloon for the childlike puppet Daniel Striped Tiger.
Then seemingly out of nowhere, the puppet asks in a soft voice: "What does assassination mean?"
Two days earlier presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy had been murdered moments after declaring victory in the California primary.
His assassination was one in a series of high-profile murders in the United States in recent years.
Martin Luther King had been gunned down only a few weeks before, and Kennedy's brother had been killed in 1963.
Creator of the show Fred Rogers was conscious that the constant media coverage of Kennedy's death had not spoken to young children.
The specially-made 30-minute episode, which aired in prime time, was intended to explain what was going on, and how children should respond.
Share a tip-off, video or photo with us
