Joanne Rogers death: Widow of late Fred Rogers dies aged 92

Joanne Rogers, the widow and lifelong partner of Fred Rogers, has died at the age of 92.

Fred Rogers Productions, the production company behind the iconic programme Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, announced her death on Thursday.

“Fred Rogers Productions is deeply saddened by the passing of Joanne Rogers,” the company wrote. “The loving partner of Fred Rogers for more than 50 years, she continued their shared commitment to supporting children and families after his death as chair of the board of Fred Rogers Productions.”

The company described Joanne Rogers as “a brilliant and accomplished musician, a wonderful advocate for the arts, and a dear friend to everyone in our organisation”, adding: “We extend our heartfelt condolences to Joanne’s family and the thousands of people who had the privilege of knowing and loving her.”

Born Sara Joanne Byrd, Rogers married Fred in 1952. A 2019 profile in the Los Angeles Times described how he proposed to her in a letter, after which she ran to a pay phone to enthusiastically accept.

At the time of the profile, Joanne Rogers still kept her late husband’s letters “in a tote bag”, “by her favourite chair”.

After Fred Rogers died in 2003 aged 74 of stomach cancer, Joanne Rogers worked to preserve his legacy. “When Fred died, she wasn’t going to step in to be Mister Rogers, but she was going to step in,” producer and family friend Bill Isler told The LA Times in 2019.

Joanne Rogers was seen at promotional events and tributes. In 2018, she attended a special screening of Won't You Be My Neighbor?, a documentary about Fred Rogers and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

The following year, she went to a screening of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, the biopic in which Fred Rogers is portrayed by Tom Hanks. Joanne Rogers is played in the film by Maryann Plunkett.