March 31, 1997 - Edgar Stark is a murderer. Convinced that his wife was betraying him,and had been since the beginning of their marriage, he killed her in a brutal act of violence. The courts found him insane and he was confined in one of England's most secure mental institutions. Edgar Stark is a fictious character at the center of Patrick McGrath's new novel "Asylum." Kirkus Reviews calls McGrath a worthy descendant of Edgar Allan Poe, a contemporary master of highbrow Gothic fiction. His previous novels have all been optioned for films. "Gentlemen Don't Eat Poets" based on his book "The Grotesque" opens this month. In "Asylum" McGrath explores the fine line between love and obsession. While Edgar Stark could well be portrayed as a monster, McGrath only lightly touches on his brutal crime...instead introducing the reader to a man of culture and charm.
April 4, 1997 - SELF-CONTAINED. BEGINS WITH FILM CLIP, ENDS WITH MUSIC SCRIPT, SUCH AS IT IS: CLIP: IT WAS ONLY A FILM. Maybe it's unfair to use this particular clip from the Peter Greenaway film "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover" to introduce our next piece. But if it's transgressive of radio tradition, that fits Greenaway, who's spent his life seducing and unsettling audiences. Tonite, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis begins a
April 11, 1997 - Midday’s Gary Eichten has a conversation with former Senator Eugene McCarthy during a visit to the Twin Cities for a couple of public book readings. During the program, McCarthy reads from his publication, Selected Poems, and answers listener call-in questions.
April 13, 1997 - Francisco de Goya's 80 images entitled "The Disasters of War" are on display this weekend at Hamline University. This rare Goya exhibit is part of Hamline's ESPANA festival--a celebraion of Spanish culture. The festival includes speeches by American scholar Noam Chomsky--flamenco dancing, music and art. I toured the Goya exhibit with Curator and Art Professor Leonardo Lasansky. Prof. Lasansky says many people are not familiar with many aspects of Goya's large body of work.
April 16, 1997 - MPR’s John Rabe talks with poet/writer Bill Holm about stoicism and exhaustion of Midwesterners during regional floods.
April 18, 1997 - John Rabe reads from "Frederick Manfred"
April 18, 1997 - Ska, the root of reggae, is out of the shadows again with the announcement that Chelsea Clinton favors a ska band. Beyond the beltway, there's a ska fest going on tonight in the Twin Cities. It's Ska Fest '97, featuring FluxSkaPacitor, The Siren Six!, and Let's Go Bowling. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Roberts brought in rock historian Jim DeRogatis and Siren Six! saxophonist John Reinick for a short history lesson in Ska.
April 19, 1997 - Living in an artists loft may be your secret dream...this weekend you'll get the chance to see if the reality lives up to your expectations. Over 160 artists are opening their lofts and displaying their work as part of this weekend's ST. PAUL ART CRAWL. Craig Thiesen is a photographer living in the Northern Warehouse. He says even as a young artist he always dreamed of living in a Lowertown loft. He says loft living may not be as exotic as people think.
April 25, 1997 - Mainstreet Radio’s Catherine Winter talks with northern Minnesota painter Liz Sivertson about her work and what forms her creative inspiration. They preview and exhibition of paintings by Sivertson: colorful, whimsical pictures she did for the children's book “North Country Spring.”
April 28, 1997 - David Parker started with an interest in child labor in the United States, tracking kids in the many jobs they do here, from State Fair booths to fast food restaurants. But as photographer and physician, Parker found his focus shifting overseas, and he's compiled a photo essay documenting the far worse conditions for working kids in the Third World. Children reportedly make up 11-percent of the workforce in some Asian countries, 17-percent in Africa, and maybe 25-percent in Latin America. David Parker is a photographer and physician with the Minnesota Health Department. His photos of child labor have been displayed at the U.S.Capitol and Department of Labor, and will be published this summer in a book called "Stolen Dreams".