This collection encompasses 50-plus years of interviews, readings, speeches, and reports on the vibrant literary scene in Minnesota. Not only home to giants F. Scott Fitzgerald and Sinclair Lewis, our state has an array of incredible contemporary poets, novelists, and playwrights. Their words make up majority of this collection.
Repeatedly being named the “Most Literate City in the United States,” the Twin Cities has played host to numerous visiting national writers via book tours, festivals, and lectures. Many recordings of these are also included.
This project was funded by the National Historical Publications & Records Commission.
September 7, 1998 - Labor Day marks the end of the Minnesota State Fair. If you got a chance to walk around Machinery Hill this year, you probably noticed lawmowers have replaced many of the tractors. Farm equipment that might have been state of the art at past fairs is now on display at the Old Iron Show, a farm antique show. MPR’s Lorna Benson takes a stroll through Machinery Hill with Michael Dregni, editor of "This Old Tractor."
September 7, 1998 - Readers of the Douglas Wood best-selling fable "Old Turtle" know the work of Duluth artist Cheng-Khee Chee, who brought the book's world to life with stunning watercolors. Since the book's publication in 1992, Chee has been wined and dined by the publishing industry, but has yet to accept any more commissions. Instead, these days he is working on his own, painting full time and teaching, as he always has, about the creative act.
September 15, 1998 - In Minnesota Public Radio's Mississippi River series, we've reported on cities' efforts to re-integrate the riverfront into city planning, and we've looked at efforts to balance commercial and recreational uses of the river. We've also looked at the environmental impact of using the river as an industrial thoroughfare. In this final segment, we'll focus on the geology of the river, and in particular, its waterfalls. The only waterfalls along the 23-hundred miles of the Mississippi are all clustered in the Twin Cities. Author Richard Arey recently published a limited edition book called "Waterfalls of the Mississippi" that tells their story. Arey says the biggest falls, River Warren Falls, in what is now downtown St. Paul were once the largest in North America.
September 17, 1998 - The small family farm is a dying breed, even in Minnesota. But it remains important in our consciousness as a haven from the ills of society and a refuge to raise strong, wonderful children. In a way, there's some truth in that ... at least for author Kent Meyers.
September 18, 1998 - State conservation officers are already planning for the autumn waterfowl hunting season. With specail goose hunts set for both September and December, this could be a long fall. Near New London, officers this week took a crash course to get ready-- think of it as spring training, for game wardens.
September 21, 1998 - Author and storyteller Bill Holm, of Minneota, Minnesota. He gave the keynote speech at the "Healthy Living for Seniors Conference" in St. Cloud last week, and talked about the importance of telling your own story, and the stories of your community.
September 21, 1998 - A strange tale of lawnmowers and the people who use them.
September 23, 1998 - South African president Nelson Mandela received the Congressional Gold Medal today, becoming the first African awarded the honor. Lawmakers cited Mandela for having dedicated his entire life to the abolition of apartheid and said he sacrificed his own personal freedom for the good of everyone. Mandela spent 27 years in prison before becoming president. A South African play set on the eve of Mandela's release from prison opens in Minneapolis tomorrow night. "Playland" by Athol Fugard explores the difficulties for blacks and whites of coming to terms with apartheid. The production is being staged by Pangea World Theater at the Hennepin Center for the Arts.
October 5, 1998 - David and Daniel Kamish, father and son writing team discuss their book "The Night the Scary Beasties Popped Out of My Head." Their work will also be featured in an art exhibit at the Children's Museum, opening October 31st.
October 6, 1998 - A new production at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis brings a bit of Minnesota's Iron Range to 18th-century Italy, or perhaps its the other way around. "The Venetian Twins" is a classic Italian farce relying on the age-old formula of two twin siblings who are constantly mistaken for one another. In the Guthrie production, an internationally known director of Shakespeare and a popular Minnesota writer have teamed up to give the play a truly regional flavor.