Chris Higgins
Mr. Rogers: The Crayon Factory
by Chris Higgins - October 6, 2009 - 9:15 AM

Remember when Mr. Rogers explained how Crayons were made? I have heard this Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood segment referenced by friends as a sort of touchstone of their youth, but I had never seen it until now. Interestingly, it looks like Mr. Rogers himself never actually went to the Crayola factory, but he does narrate the whole process. This rare clip has suddenly popped up on YouTube, so I thought I’d link to it before it disappears:

For more Crayon-making goodness, see How Crayons are Made, which was a Sesame Street video on the same topic. You might also enjoy 5 Times Crayola® Fired their Crayons or of course the seminal 15 Reasons Mister Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever, one of our most popular blog posts of all time.

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Comments (20)

  1. Thank you for posting that! That was one of my favorite segments from Mr. Rogers, because I was a crayon fanatic. I still have a giant plastic box with most of the crayons I had growing up.

    I want to take off my sneakers and toss them through the air now. :)

    posted by Jess on 10-6-2009 at 9:29 am

  2. I saw this when it first aired, I was about 4 or 5 in the late sixties (at least I think it was the first time it aired). There were quite a few segments in which Mr. R didn’t actually go to where they made something, but just showed a clip instead; the subject matter escapes me, but it made an impression that he wasn’t there since he was in many other pieces. Great Memory!

    posted by Will on 10-6-2009 at 10:13 am

  3. Oh, but he DID go to the Green Grocer! :)

    posted by Helenann on 10-6-2009 at 10:26 am

  4. I remember this! Aw, I feel 4 years old again. Wonderful post!

    posted by Jo on 10-6-2009 at 10:26 am

  5. I remember this too! I loved this clip b/c I loved the colors and the way the crayons looked w/o their wrappers.

    posted by Megan on 10-6-2009 at 10:39 am

  6. When I found out that the REAL Crayola Factory in Easton, Pa is not exactly like this, I was crushed.

    posted by Erica on 10-6-2009 at 11:04 am

  7. Thanks for posting. Brings back fun memories. I remember watching that episode. It was a favorite of mine. Watching the crayons being made along with Mr. Rogers narrating and the soft jazz in the background is absolutely soothing.

    posted by Jay on 10-6-2009 at 11:16 am

  8. I remember this clip vividly! What a nostalgic feeling, thanks for sharing. The world is a poorer place without Mr. Rogers.

    posted by Kirsten on 10-6-2009 at 11:18 am

  9. This show was the first place I ever saw any “How It’s Made” or “How It Works” type segments. This clip in particular is top in my memories, too.

    posted by nutmeag on 10-6-2009 at 11:58 am

  10. I watched Mr. Rogers when I was little– in the 90s!– and I remember this clip vividly. Thanks so much for this post… nothing like a little slice of childhood to brighten up a dreary Tuesday!

    posted by Roo on 10-6-2009 at 1:42 pm

  11. I used to watch Mr. Rogers at my great-grandmother’s house, and vividly remember watching this episode in the kitchen. I can practically smell the SpaghettiO’s. Thank you for bringing back some truly great memories!

    posted by Benton on 10-6-2009 at 2:17 pm

  12. There was a wonderful segment at the crayon factory on Reading Rainbow, for the episode “How Much is a Million”. I think (I know, hard for all us Mr. Rogers fans who remember this clip) Reading Rainbow’s segment might have been cooler. Includes sarcastic disgruntled crayon makers (“Crayons are my life! I go home and I color!”) as well as incorrect math lovingly corrected by LeVar.

    posted by Elizabeth on 10-6-2009 at 2:23 pm

  13. A favourite memory. Thanks for posting it.

    posted by Jeff on 10-6-2009 at 4:13 pm

  14. Now I want a brand new box of crayons and a coloring book!

    posted by ann on 10-6-2009 at 4:14 pm

  15. I don’t know what it is that was so amazing about old crayon making, but it is just captavating… the sesame street one was my favorite beacause of the music I think, but Mr. Rodgers is a badass too! I was thinking I would want to work in a crayon factory as I watched this, but then realized it’s not 1979 anymore… and it wouldn’t be as awesome:(

    posted by Kelly on 10-6-2009 at 4:22 pm

  16. I loved this clip… this was one of the most memorable for me

    posted by Sarah on 10-6-2009 at 6:31 pm

  17. This was my absolute favorite episode of Mr. Rogers EVER. It’s actually the only one that I remember the content of, too.

    posted by Andréa Fernandes on 10-6-2009 at 10:24 pm

  18. This clip was a defining moment of my childhood that sealed my fascination with color, and figuring how things work. I still remember the first time I saw it back in the eighties. Thank you for posting this!!!

    posted by KerriD on 10-6-2009 at 11:45 pm

  19. This clip (and many other Mr. Rogers classics, including my personal favorite: ‘you can never go down the drain’) are online and not in danger of being taken down at: http://pbskids.org/rogers/videos/index.html

    posted by Becca on 10-7-2009 at 6:35 am

  20. I was thinking of this just yesterday!

    posted by Sara in AL on 10-7-2009 at 11:41 am

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