July 2, 1999 - First Lady Terry Ventura took over as host of Governor Ventura's weekly radio show today. The talk radio rookie dedicated about half of her debut to discussing stress-management with an chiroprator, then moved on to the farm crisis.
July 2, 1999 - Later today, Mayor Norm Coleman will submit more than 10-thousand signatures to place his proposal for a St. Paul ballpark on the ballot this fall. That strategy is likely to coincide with a public relations campaign to keep the Twins in Minneapolis . And if those two proposals aren't confusing enough, the Minnesota Vikings are voicing stadium ambitions of their own.
July 2, 1999 - MPR’s John Bischoff visits carillonneur David Johnson at House of Hope church along Summit Avenue in St. Paul, as he prepares for July 4th concert. Johnson discusses the instrument and how to play it.
July 5, 1999 - Pulitizer Prize-winning historian and author David McCullough relates some of the great stories that make up American history, focusing on three Americans who played a large role in shaping this nation: John Adams, Abigail Adams, and Thomas Jefferson.
July 5, 1999 - MPR’s Lorna Benson talks with Mark Van Every, spokesperson for the Superior National Forest Service in Duluth, about the BWCA storms. Van Every says it was the worst storm his office has seen the the past decade.
July 6, 1999 - A group of artists, educators and book sellers is trying to save the boyhood home of one of Minnesota's best-known living authors. They are hoping to raise between 150 to 200-thousand dollars to move, rennovate and re-open the home of Jon Hassler. The author of "Staggerford," "A Green Journey" and many other novels is usually associated with central Minnesota because he taught at St. John's University for many years. But Hassler grew up in Plainview, a small agricultural town in southeastern Minnesota not far from the Mississippi River. His home was going to be deomolished to make way for a medical clinic, but fans of the author have managed to move it to a temporary site, while they raise money for the rennovation. A major benefit is planned for tomorrow evening. Executive Director of the Rural America Arts Partnership Ken Flies, says Hassler's house is in fairly good shape.
July 6, 1999 - MPR’s Bob Kelleher reports on impact of ferocious storms that hit the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The wind and rain downed trees and power lines across much of Northeastern Minnesota. Residents of Hibbing were assessing flood damage, while resorters on the Gunflint Trail were taking stock of damaged buildings.
July 6, 1999 - Governor Ventura today signed extradition papers for the Saint Paul woman authorities believe is Kathleen Soliah, a former Symbionese Liberation Army member charged with conspiracy to murder police officers in California. Her attorney says he won't fight extradition, and his client hopes the matter will be resolved quickly in California.
July 7, 1999 - MPR’s Euan Kerr interviews campers Jennifer Sly and Mary Marrow of Minneapolis about their experience during the blow down in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The two recall lightning while paddling across Lake Saganaga with two other friends, and heading for shore to set up a temporary campsite.
July 9, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio’s Leif Enger interviews Wayne Johnson, author of the crime novel "Don't Think Twice." The hero of book, Paul Two Persons, is a Ivy-League educated Chippewa, and owns a remote lodge on Lake of the Woods. Two Persons finds himself in serious trouble when he returns to the reservation he grew up on. The book relies heavily on the land and waters of northern Minnesota, and the traditions of the Indians who live there.