- Joe Negri, the acclaimed jazz musician and beloved Handyman Negri from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, has died just days before his 100th birthday.
- His daughter, Lisa, confirmed to Pittsburgh's TribLIVE that her father passed away on Saturday from natural causes, having been due to turn 100 on 10 June.
- Negri was a fixture on Fred Rogers’ iconic children’s programme for over three decades, from 1968 until 2000, portraying a fix-it man and music shop owner in the Land of Make-Believe.
- Fred Rogers Productions issued a statement expressing profound sadness, praising Negri's warmth, musical talent, and gentle spirit, and acknowledging his role in teaching children that everyone's contributions matter.
- Beyond his television career, Negri was a lifelong musician who toured with swing bands as a teenager and later founded the jazz guitar programme at Duquesne University, where he taught until 2022.
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