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.
December 16, 1996 - Hour 2 of Midmorning, featuring a "double header" of Voices of Minnesota with playwright Barbara Fields, best known for her adaptation of Dicken's "A Christmas Carol" for the Guthrie Theatre. Also hear from Mike Nelson, the host of the TV show, "Mystery Science Theatre 3000." Arne Fogel discusses a new 2 cd set, "Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters: The Complete Recordings" on the MCA label.
December 18, 1996 - Newspapers -- dailies and weeklies, all over Minnesota -- are rushing to incarnate themselves on the Internet. Less than a year ago, seven papers had online editions; now, fifty Minnesota newspapers can be found on the World Wide Web, and more are going on-line every week. This, even though the electronic readership is still small -- some papers reach only dozens of readers per issue.
December 20, 1996 - Voices from the Heartland: Kent Nerburn, "Blue" from his new book, A Haunting Reverence: Meditations on a Northern Land.
December 21, 1996 -
December 24, 1996 -
December 24, 1996 - MPR’s Eric Friesen interviews local composer Stephen Paulus and poet Kevin Crossley-Holland about carols. They have collaborated on the creating the piece “Pilgrim Jesus” for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College, Cambridge.
December 25, 1996 - Minnesota author Ann Daly Goodwin commentary on the holiday surprise of cookies and joy of togetherness.
December 26, 1996 - MPR’s Mary Losure created this report for National Public Radio detailing the efforts to save Native American language by teaching it to next generation. Losure interviews both language teachers and students at Nay Ah Shing school in Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.
December 27, 1996 - We'll hear a few of the winning entries in the Children's Museum annual short story contest. “Feelings Don’t Mix with Maggie” by Ellen Finnegan, 5th grade at Oak Point Intermediate School in Eden Prairie. Read by 10 year old Ben Wareham of Expo Elementary School in Saint Paul.
December 27, 1996 - We'll hear a few of the winning entries in the Children's Museum annual short story contest.Untitled story by 6 year old Corey Kryszak, 1st grade at Saint Rose School in Roseville. Read by Molly Nelson, 4th grade at Bailey Elementary School in Woodbury