October 8, 2012 - Stephen Smith, host of Bright Ideas, talks with playwright Christopher Hampton. They discuss Hampton's long career and his new work, "Appomattox." Also a screenwriter, Hampton won the Oscar for "Dangerous Liaisons" and was nominated for "Atonement." Hampton visited Minnesota for a festival of his plays at the Guthrie Theater.
October 25, 2012 - Minnesotans are involved in a passionate debate about marriage during 2012 election season. The two sides began squaring off more than 40 years ago. This project draws from MPR's extensive audio archive to explore the origins of this election day showdown over same-sex marriage.
November 22, 2012 - A traditional noon hour Thanksgiving special from MPR's John Birge, featuring music and stories for Thanksgiving.
November 28, 2012 - Salman Rushdie delivers a Pen Pals Lecture in Hopkins about his memoir and his nine years living with death threats and a fatwa issued upon the publication of his novel, 'The Satanic Verses.' He lived under the pseudonym Joseph Anton.
January 4, 2013 - Journalist and humor writer Calvin Trillin speaks in Minneapolis at the Talk of the Stacks series about his new book "Dogfight: An Occasionally Interrupted Narrative Poem About the Presidential Campaign."
January 31, 2013 - Arthur Phillips speaks in Hopkins at the Pen Pals Lecture Series about his latest best-selling book, "The Tragedy of Arthur," a contemporary novel that contains an Elizabethan play.
February 28, 2013 - Maya Angelou speaks with award-winning African Americans Kofi Annan, Oprah Winfrey, Jennifer Hudson, Regina Taylor and Alicia Keys. They tell their own stories of success and community.
March 8, 2013 - On this MPR News Presents program, Minnesota author Louise Erdrich speaks at Concordia University in St. Paul about her National Book Award-winning book, "The Round House," and her love of writing. Erdrich also reads from the book.
April 26, 2013 - Minnesota writer Patricia Hampl presents a staged performance of "The Big Time: F. Scott Fitzgerald." Commissioned by MPR in 2010 for the 100th anniversary of the Fitzgerald Theater, Patricia Hampl and Dan Chouinard perform a literary and musical story about Fitzgerald's version of making it big.
May 16, 2013 - Two people from Red Wing, Minnesota who are important figures in Minnesota history, culture and the arts are featured in separate documentaries by Minnesota Public Radio's Stephen Smith. Part 1: "Song Catcher: Frances Densmore of Red Wing" and Part 2: "Artist Charles Biederman."