May 7, 1985 - Special segment on the "very old", those who have lived more than one hundred years. The program is entitled "voices of age: life after one hundred", and was produced by John Biewen of MPR.
May 27, 1985 - WWII marks a watershed in the life of this nation and in the lives of all who lived through it. In the documentary “We Were the Lucky Ones,” MPR’s Mark Heistad examines the experience of the war and its legacy through the stories of residents of New Ulm, many of which were German-American.
August 23, 1985 - Recollections of World War II as told by residents of New Ulm, Minnesota. Their stories were told to former Minnesota Public Radio producer Mark Heistad, who now teaches journalism at the University of St. Thomas. This documentary was produced with a grant from the Minnesota Historical Society.
August 28, 1985 - Jerry Cassidy examines issues of Indian hunting and fishing rights in his documentary "American Indians in the 1980s: New Struggles for Old Rights." Program includes numerous interviews and commentary on treaty rights.
September 2, 1985 - MPR’s Mark Heistad presents "The Strike is On!," an oral history of the early labor movement in Minnesota, with emphasis on the struggle to organize Iron Range workers, Austin’s Hormel strike, the Minneapolis truckers strike of 1934, and more.
October 21, 1985 - A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation documentary on AIDS, dealing with its history and development, epidemic proportions, myths, prospects for a cure, and the extent of its global presence. Program is hosted by Christopher Thomas.
November 8, 1985 - MPR’s Mark Heistad unravels a chapter in Minnesota history and lore with documentary titled “A Story of Crime, Criminals and Corruption." Heistad tracked down numerous stories about some notorious gangsters in Minnesota, including John Dillinger shooting it out with G-Men in St. Paul, Al Capone buying moonshine in Stearns County, and Barker-Karpis gang vacationing in White Bear Lake.
November 28, 1985 - A special Thanksgiving presentation of “Blessing of the Fields,” a documentary program about how farming has changed over the years in our region especially the change from horse power to tractor power. That transition was one of the most important factors leading to the Midwest's amazingly productive agricultural system. But it had other affects - not all of them as highly thought of.
December 27, 1985 - MPR’s Stephen Smith presents the documentary "Shelter for the Night," which examines the plight of the homeless over a period of 12 hours in the St. Stephen's Emergency Shelter.
December 27, 1985 - A Midday program on the subject of homelessness.The first part of program presents Stephen Smith’s documentary report "Shelter for the Night," which examines the plight of the homeless over a period of 12 hours in the St. Stephen's Emergency Shelter. Following documentary, Mary Jo Jackson, director of Housing Resource Program for Lutheran Social Services and 1986 chair-elect of the Minneapolis Coalition for the Homeless, discusses the homeless problem in Minnesota and what can be done about it. Jackson also answers listener questions. Homeless, discusses the homeless problem in Minnesota and what can be done about it. Jackson also answers listener questions.