January 25, 1997 - The St. Paul Winter Carnival is underway this weekend. To get in the spirit of winter-mania I decided to try a device relatively new to this area--a Norwegian kicksled. It looks like a dogsled but it runs on calories. About 70-thousand kicksleds are sold in Norway each year. Sue Bittken is an Interpretive Naturlist at the Lowry Nature Center. She says Americans call them kicksleds but Norweigens call them SPARKS.
January 18, 1997 - The big sports story this week was the "kick felt 'round the NBA." The NBA suspended Chicago Bulls forward Dennis Rodman for at least eleven games for kicking a courtside cameraman in this week's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The suspension will cost Rodman about one million dollars in salary and lost incentives. Weekend Edition Sports Commentator Jay Weiner says in Rodman's case the severe punishment may fit the crime.
January 18, 1997 - Cakes, wizards and stiltwalkers are appearing at the Science Museum of Minnesota today. The Museum marks it's 90th Birthday...and to celebrate the Museum is throwing a party and offering FREE admission today. Over 800-thousand people visit the museum annually---and it's also the number one destination for school field trips. The Museum's Director of Marketing and Communication--Jane Eastwood--says many things have changed over the past 90 years...but the focus has remained the same.
January 18, 1997 - Judith Guest is known for chronicling suburban family life in turmoil. Her book "Ordinary People" examined a family's reaction after the death of it's eldest son. Guest's story was turned into an Academy Award-winning film starring Mary Tyler Moore and directed by Robert Redford. Her new book "Errands" once again takes us into the life of a grieving family, this time the family is dealing with the death of the father. This story is based on the real-life marriage of Guest's grandparents. Judith Guest says she doesn't think she's fixated on death, she says her dark subject matter allows her to explore how families deal with their emotions.
January 11, 1997 -
January 4, 1997 - Faith Sullivan's latest book, "The Empress of One" was born out of frustration and rejection. Her best-selling novel The Cape Ann was printed by a New York publisher. But when Sullivan submitted the sequel to her story, it was roundly rejected by her publisher. That reaction plummented Faith Sullivan into a depression and into a writing block. But the encouragement of local Milkweed Editions publisher--Emilie Buchwald--prompted Sullivan to embark on a new project.
December 14, 1996 - MPR’s Greta Cunningham interviews author Lee Smith about using Christmas letters as an idea for creating a novel…with recipes, of course.
December 7, 1996 - The historic Purcell-Cutts House in Minneapolis will be decorated for the holidays for the first time since it's restoration. The home remains one of the the most significant examples of Prairie School architecture in the country. The Minneapolis Institute of Arts is offering hoilday tours of the Purcell-Cutts home. Visitors will have the opportunity to see how the home might have looked as the Purcell's celebrated Christmas in 1917.
November 24, 1996 - Managed health care is capturing headlines these days. Some say this type of health coverage is a blessing---others say it's a bit of a curse. Commentator Gary Eustice is a social worker from Hibbing. He has first-hand knowledge of trying to work within the confines of today's managed care system.
October 27, 1996 - Emilie Buchwald, publisher of Milkweed Editions, reads the winning essay from Boundary Waters writing contest. Essay is titled “Going Home” by Larry Risser.