January 20, 1998 - Life is pretty bleak in a small village on the western coast of Ireland until a fugitive named Christy Mahan arrives and promptly announces he has killed his father. So begins John Millington Synge's comic play about a town caught up in the excitement of a dramatic event and a young man who is transformed by his hero's welcome. "The Playboy of the Western World" opens tomorrow at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis . Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling says Synge's play is an Irish classic...that avoids pandering to the stereotypical notions of Ireland and the Irish.
January 22, 1998 - Look for larger boats and plenty of fishing and sailing gadgets at this year's Boat Show. The annual event, which showcase the latest in the boating industry, got underway last night in St. Paul. Most boatmakers and retailers say 1998 is shaping up into a great year for boat sales. But not everyone is optimistic.
January 23, 1998 - Hockey fans greeted the announcement of the Wild name with a little MORE enthusiasm. Here's what some folks in downtown St. Paul thought of the new team name.
January 23, 1998 - Roger Moe wasn't the only one who didn't give the WILD an exuberant welcome to St. Paul. Jay Erckenbrack is the president and owner of Minnesota Wild, not the hockey team, but a natural foods company in Northern Minnesota.
January 23, 1998 - St. Paul's future hockey team has a new name -- the "Minnesota Wild" -- but it may NOT have state money for its new arena. The city has been counting on the state to pay for half of the $130 million dollar project, but a key lawmaker may block the money.
January 23, 1998 - A disagreement between state and federal officials is threatening a wide ranging program to clean up the Minnesota River. As much as 200 million dollars in federal money is at stake, but one person close to the disagreement says there's only a fifty-fifty chance the two sides can reach agreement.
January 24, 1998 - MPR’s Greta Cunningham interviews Minnesota musician Peter Ostroushko about his new album “Pilgrims on the Heart Road."
January 24, 1998 - The fate of Vikings coach Dennis Green remains uncertain this morning. Green has one year left in his contract--but Green may be planning to quit next week. Vikings president Roger Headrick says Green's chances of staying with the Vikings are "failing" and "declining." At a Super Bowl party yesterday Green says he has "no comment" on the situation. In other football news, Former Minnesota Vikings defensive end Carl Eller, safety Paul Krause and offensive tackle Ron Yary are among the 15 finalists for induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
January 25, 1998 - Heartache and the minefields of dating are explored in Laura Zigman's humorous new novel ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. The premise of the book comes from a true scientific theory--the Coolidge Effect. This theory is based on the premise that bulls will only mate with a cow once--then they're off to seek a new cow. Zigman stumbled upon the theory as she flipped through science journals while nursing her broken heart. She jokes, if you bring things back to the animal kingdom--dating behavior makes sense. Zigman says her main character--Jane Goodall--is autobiographical.
January 25, 1998 - We've all seen sex and violence in recent films...but religion is a topic most filmmakers shy away from. Director Martin Scorsese may be the exception to this rule. In "The Last Temptation of Christ" Scorsese made a controversial film about Jesus and His Apostles. In his latest release--KUNDUN--Scorsese examines the life of the 14th Dalai Lama. Weekend Edition Film Critic Debra Alexander is here to discuss KUNDUN.