(00:00:00) From Minnesota Public Radio. I'm Laura (00:00:02) McCullum Xcel Energy crews are still working to restore power to homes in the Twin Cities XL officials said at 11:30 this morning about 2300 homes were still without power because of severe storms earlier this week exhales director of Emergency Response. Denny branca says the company expects to have power restored to all of its customers by this evening nearly (00:00:23) 250,000 Xcel (00:00:24) customers in the Upper (00:00:25) Midwest lost power and storms (00:00:27) Monday and Tuesday including 200,000 in the Twin Cities area the company expects to work through the weekend in Buffalo Lake (00:00:34) where a tornado struck knocking out power to homes and businesses a group in Todd County is combining public and private funds to help the area's immigrant Community Minnesota public radio's Tim post reports Todd County has seen an explosion in its Hispanic population less than a decade ago. The county of about 25,000 was mostly white now, it's home to 1400 Hispanic people with that in mind a local group is created. Multicultural Community liaison office organizer Tim King says the offices main duty is to offer translation services King says Todd County's new residents have revitalized the area. We view it as good business sense to to encourage these people to stay and what was not exactly a Dying World Community but not a prospering world Community either Long Prairie packing will provide much of the funding for the office other funding comes from the central Minnesota Community Foundation and Todd County Tim post, Minnesota Public Radio Collegeville, and the US ambassador to Laos met today with a Saint Paul pastor accused in a killing their the Reverend na Carl Moi and two European journalists are accused of being involved in the death of a village militia guard right (00:01:46) now. It's mostly sunny 66 in the Twin Cities. Good afternoon. Welcome back to midday on Minnesota Public Radio special edition today. I'm Gary eichten along with Stephanie Curtis. Sometimes known as the movie Maven here on midday today. We're talking with Laura hillenbrand the author of Seabiscuit. One of the most inspiring stories that we've come across in a long time Seabiscuit. If you just joined us tells the story of a great race horse who became an unlikely national hero in the 1930s the time in American history the Great Depression when America was hungry for Heroes, it's the story of a horse an owner a trainer and a jockey the owner trainer and jockey probably deserve their own books. It's a story in a book that's already won nearly every award possible and is now being turned into Looks to be a Blockbuster movie author. Laura hillenbrand is our guest again this hour and we'll resume our conversation with her will be opening the phone line. So you can get your questions in in just a couple of minutes. But first of all, I have to ask you Stephanie as the movie Maven. Yeah, what have you heard about the movie movie supposed to be really really good. It's opening up in the middle the end of July, I think July 25th opposite above Dylan movie that's opening up also but enough about that the Seabiscuit movie is directed by a guy named Gary Ross and he's actually a writer he wrote big and he wrote Dave and to Great really funny movies and then he wrote and directed Pleasantville from a couple of years ago, which is that some kids got sucked into a TV show. It's just it was a great movie was a great director. I'm really looking forward to I think you'll do a good job and Tobey Maguire is in it who was Spider-Man last year and he's going to be playing the jockey and I think he lost all kinds of weight so they could look like a jockey when those frail little tiny man who cling to the horses and Jeff Bridges is in it to William H may see so it's got an incredible cast a good day. During writer is based on a popular story. It's really inspiring story. So I'm hoping I'm hoping it will that should be a good movie for adults from Hollywood this summer. We'll see if they actually come through with it should be a good one for kids to well. Okay, we're as I said, we'll be talking with the author here in just a moment. We weren't bring you up to date here on our membership drive because that's really what the business of the day is. This is the effectively the last day of our fiscal year. Certainly the last day we're going to be on the are pledging the last day that we're talking to you about trying to make sure we balance the books pay for the programs like midday that you listen to We have 10 callers on the line right now. We did make our challenge Grant last hour. You guys made it. Thank you very much. We still however course in that old. What have you done for me lately category another $25,000 goal for this hour the total amount that we need to raise by the end of this day. 174,000 $140. Scared off though by that big number just make your call. If you're not a member. We need you to become a member because that's how we pay for the programs. If it's time to renew. You know, how (00:04:59) important your membership is so (00:05:01) call in and renew that membership. If you can make an additional contribution give a gift membership all the better 1-800 to to 728 11 and I think we've got a good package of premiums for people with a package of premiums. Maybe you've already read Seabiscuit or in you've got a copy of it you think well, I don't I've already got a copy that I'm not interesting but you should see this new edition. It's a special collector's edition. It's a hard cover. It looks like a coffee table book. It's a little bit bigger than a regular hardcover and it is packed with photos of the original Seabiscuit book had about 20 photos and this has over a hundred just fantastic photos of the horse of the people who surrounded him of newspaper magazine covers that he was on it's just beautiful beautiful book. So if you love Seabiscuit, or you know, someone who did you want to get your hands on this book, To 728 11 is the number to call and you can get your hands on that book for twelve fifty a month or if you're interested in also, we've got a special deal just during mid-day. Gary said I love the Sea Biscuit book. I love the Grundig radio. I want people to have both of them. There's no connection between the two. Other than that. It's a Gary wanted you guys to have the option to have both of them. So if the Dollar Day level you can get the Sea Biscuit collector's edition book and the Grundig radio, which is his wind-up radio. It's AM FM and shortwave got a little light and so you don't need any batteries. You don't need to plug it in. You just grab it you crank it and will last for an hour. It's a fantastic thing. You can get that and the Sea Biscuit hardcover collector's edition book at one eight hundred two to seven twenty eight eleven and we need to hear from you now because we've got to go of $25,000 this hour to stay on track so we can wrap things up. This is the last day of our pledge drive and what a snuck up on you because it was a short pledge drive. But this is it folks. We need you to call in now 1 800 2 to 7 28:11. Imagine all the good rate. All that while we still have to raise a hundred and seventy-four thousand dollars here to balance the books by the end of today. Imagine all the good radio that that $174,000. Can and hopefully we'll buy that's that's what we're here to do. So do what you can 1-800 to to 7 2011. Do you know you probably heard us yapping about this (00:07:12) already, but maybe you don't know that (00:07:14) only one out of six listeners is actually a member of public radio. Now, you know some some folks probably shouldn't be members. I mean if you're just poor as a church mouse or you just started listening couple of days ago. Yeah and you're still trying to figure out if you like it or not what the routine is, but you know for everybody else if you fall into that everybody else category, you really should be a member and we hope that you'll you'll make that call 1-800 to to 728 11 is the number to call and really I can't urge you enough to take advantage of this offer to pick up a copy of the Seabiscuit collectors book. It was interesting. We had some callers last are talking with author Laura hillenbrand all Whom shared the same blood I don't want to Tire. I don't listen to read. I'm not interested in horses. I don't care about a horse. That's what I thought. When I first heard about the why are why am I getting this book? But of course once people read the story they're just blown away and let me just give you the basics of the story. This horse was came from a long line of really great great Champions, but then he was born and his legs were short their kind of misshapen. He actually slept all the time most horses like nap every once in a while standing up Seabiscuit would full-on lay down your legs spread out and just nap the day away like like an unruly teenager heavy Z's. Yep, and he when he ran his legs kind of flopped out cummock eggbeater style apparently just kind of a crazy and his first trainer the in the train is look Tim said this this horse can never win anything look at it. He's lazy he runs funny but he got into the hands of some trainers of some owners of a jockey who made him into a champion he was a champ and they just need to look and give him a chance it is a An tastic story that if you haven't read the book, you've got to get your hands on it one eight hundred two to seven twenty eight eleven twelve fifty month Kinsman have that book all true all a big part of American history that somehow well, we're trying to Laura hillenbrand the first hour. Somehow it got lost in it in the telling of History. It's her Theory maybe the you know that the onset of World War II just overshadowed that they going to got kind of got lost the weight along the way but it's a true story and it's too good to be true in some respects 1-800 to to 728 11 make that membership call. If you would please we need your support no question about it. We're not going to make this goal without your help. It's it's come down to that nine people are on the line right now making membership pledges. We had a great great show of support last hour. But if we're going to make the goal we need to keep keep rolling along here at one eight hundred two to seven 28:11 1-800 to 270. He had 11. We'd like to thank some people who did call and in pledge Karen beekler called from Rochester and she got her hands on that Seabiscuit book. Thanks a lot, Karen Dan Ryland called from Farmington Minnesota and indeed. He also got the Seabiscuit book people are loving this premium. They just love it Margo Marisol, and she said I decided I needed to pledge because I listen to NPR all the time. If you are like Margo and you listen to NPR all the time and you aren't a member your one your five out of something like five out of six listeners who actually aren't members walk over the phone and call now if you love midday if you love listen Gary eichten, the speech is the political coverage all the great stuff we brought in the past year 1-800 to to 728 11 is the number to call to show your support to pledge your support and say Minnesota Public Radio is important to me listening to mid day every day is important to me. Let me make a deal Let's Make a Deal here. Okay. Try the membership deal for one year. Yeah, that's good idea and don't don't spend a lot. Money on it. I mean I'll call in here and pledged a you know, a thousand bucks or something. Just try it at Well, we'd like to have you I'd like you to have this book so pledge 1250 a month hundred fifty bucks for the full year. Try it for one year and if it's if it's seems like a waste of money don't renew now. The fact is most people will renew. Yep because they find it's a good value but give yourself a chance to try it out. I think when you add up the two-for-one discount cards, Minnesota monthly comes your way every month as a special. Thank you get you're going to have the Sea Biscuit books staring you in the face day after day and you're going to have good radio coming out of your radio that you know, you did a part to provide to yourself. I think you'll renew, but try it for a year. Let's make a deal here 1-800 to to 7 2011. There are 12 people on the line on this very last day Stephanie. I'm going to go talk to Laura for a little bit. Let It Go, but keep the phone's ringing those of you who (00:12:04) are listening to us right now so we can make that goal 1-800 to to 7 2011, let's get back to our conversation with Seabiscuit author Laura hillenbrand if you have a question or a comment for Laura, give us a call here our Twin City area number six five one two, two seven six thousand or 1-800 to for 22828 our regular call in numbers Laura hillenbrand. Thanks for joining us again second our midday. Well, thanks for having me back say we were talking about the movie and you served as a consultant to the movie. Are you expecting good things pretty good things can okey-doke things. What are you expecting for you right from the start because this wasn't my project and I had no real control over it. I kept my expectations very low and I have been more than pleasantly surprised all the way through it. I love the screenplay. I absolutely love the parts of the movie. I've seen the movie is not completely done. It isn't completely. Yet but I've spoken to a number of people who have seen it and they said it's absolutely brilliant. It's breathtaking. The studio is seriously thinking best picture with it. Wow, if not to put you on the spot here, but if people have read your book is it were seeing the movie or vice versa if they see the movie. Is it still going to be worth reading your book? Well, I really hope people do both, you know for obvious reasons. I stand to profit from if they if they read the books like I mean, there are certainly things that you can't put in the movie that are in the book. I mean, it's a 340 page book and and you know, some detail gets lost on the other hand the movies done. What I couldn't do which is tell it visually and they have I've seen some fairly long parts of the movie and I just can't overstate how beautiful it is to see racing shown this way. He's done a lot of really novel things in the way. He's Shot the movie he has cameras. Horses and under horses and and very very close to jockeys while they're riding and it's all done at top speed and it's it's really colorful and gorgeous. I have to bring up the question of the or the the issue that jockeys and I have to ask you about that because in the book there is this both riveting and horrifying section about jockeys and the I mean the interesting lives they lead but what horrible existence. Yeah, it's jockeys. I think are the least appreciated athletes in the Sports World. They are truly great athletes and the sacrifices they make our incredible. There's nothing that compares to it in the Sports World. These guys have to weigh a little over a hundred pounds and at the same time be extremely muscular because you talking about riding a 1200 pound horse at 40 miles an hour. They the sport requires a maximum of balance and coordination. Someone actually did a study of this. Watching athletes from a number of different professions basketball and football and they got a jockey in there and they tested their elements of athleticism in the jockeys appeared to be the greatest overall athletes of the bunch. It's also just extremely dangerous what they do. It's your average jockey spends eight weeks a year sidelined by injuries incurred on the job and they have to starve themselves to do it. It's it's really something else what they do and they deserve a lot of respect. Well, you're right here if I may quote from your book you Hmong. I mean, this is one of those wow sections. I found in the book you write here on a running horse a jockey does not sit in the saddle. He crouches over it leaning all of his weight on his toes which rest on the thin metal bases of stirrups dangling about a foot from the horses Top Line and horses in full stride. The only parts of the Jockey that are in continuous contact with the animal are the insides of the feet and ankles. Everything else is balanced in Midair in other words jockeys squat on the pitching backs of their mounts a task much like perching on the grill of a car while it's speeds down a twisting potholed freeway in traffic lord. It's a it's a tough job. It's and it's and you can see from that how dangerous it is if they shift too far forward they're going to fall off of a shift too far back or they're in a fall off and they're going to go right down under the Hooves of horses who are hitting the ground at 6,000 pounds of force. And does it matter much whoo, which which jockey rides which horse? Oh absolutely there. It's this is something that people really don't appreciate how important the jockey is a great jockey can timeout he can sense how quickly his horse is moving to the fifth of a second which is very important within an animal moves at this speed a fifth of a second is about 8 feet and so they really need to measure these things well in a great jockey can do that predictably every time they also need to be able to sense where Tabs are going to open up or close in front of them. They need to know all the horses around them to know what their habits are. Who's going to go for the lead who's going to lay back. It's strategically a very difficult sport to be in and and strategy is everything very often the horse who was not the best horse wins the race because his jockey had Superior strategy now with the horse be smart enough kind of run its own race if left to its own devices, I have seen there was a horse and a few years back. It was a very big race horse who was retired in turn out to be sterile and brought back to the track and his jockey fell off coming out of the starting. It was very interesting to watch what the horse had done. His name was Precision assist. He the horse ran the race exactly. Like he would have had the jockey been on him. He weigh in the pack until the heart Barn he swung out he took the lead and the wonderful thing was right at the Finish or are that the finished photo caught him leaping for joy as he crossed the wire ahead. He had a wonderful time up there. Just kidding, but Tommy Without jockeys on them horses are gonna you know, they're going to make bad decisions. They're going to run into each other. They're going to trip on each other and fall and they're very Reckless animals, when they when they get together, you know, they're teenage boys is what they what they are and they're very Reckless and wild and left to their own devices. They're probably hurt themselves Naomi your question place. Where the question for Laura. Laura I'm not a big racing fan but I always get drawn into the triple crown and this year's Triple Crown races. I found very very interesting and I just wanted your opinion on that because people were comparing our funny side to what you're discussing here. And I wanted your opinion on whether you considered there any parallels between the two horses in the jockeys. It's a good question. And yeah, I think I think there definitely are parallels there funny side was something of a not exactly a rags-to-riches horse, but kind of a horse from the wrong side of the tracks. He's a gelding. He's a New York bread when the best horses come out of Kentucky and his owners were a bunch of high school buddies who wore came our jackets and arrived at the races in a school bus and you know, this isn't a sport where a lot of the top owners are multi multi millionaires. And so he had that sort of Underdog feel that that kid from the wrong side of the tracks feel the the comparison sort of runs out because He sighed is was a horse who really was good throughout his career where Seabiscuit was really pretty bad and and the jockey that rode him has been a top jockey for many years whereas Red Pollard was Seabiscuit was his only decent horse that he ever wrote but there definitely were comparisons and funny side became incredibly popular is when he went for the Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown it actually was the number one Primetime TV program of the week. And that was the week that Hillary Clinton talked to Barbara Walters. So people were responding to that Underdog hero kind of story and they really wanted him to win. I was sorry to see that he didn't ya if I'm reading your book correctly given even with all the all the excitement and interest in funny cide this year. It kind of pales in comparison to the impact that Seabiscuit had on this country in 1938-39. Yeah. He was really at such an enormous hero to the public and I don't know. You can compare any athlete in terms of his following to Seabiscuit because it did reach across to a lot of people who never watch sports at all or never listen to sports rather in those days. It was just radio. I think the figure you could compare him to would be Lindbergh just wildly wildly popular when he ran his greatest races match race with War Admiral 40 million Americans tuned in that was one out of every three Americans at the time. 40 million people or 80 million people tune including the president who had a cabinet his whole cabinet meeting in the next room and they were all waiting for him and he kept them all waiting while he listened Jim your question. Yes along the well, first of all, I to and many of my friends were chanted by your book the other the question I had had to do with funny side as well. First of all was Seabiscuit a good mutter and second of all, what's your opinion of the outcome of the Preakness had the conditions been different for funny cide, I think baby you mean the Belmont that he said he didn't feel comfortable here and a big race. He finished third, but he Couldn't quite make it and it was a shame. I think perhaps on a dry track. He did appear to be coming up to a very very big race and horses form is often radically different when they run over mud in terms of see this kid as a mutter his trainer maintained beyond the end of his career that the horse is a much better mother than people thought he was his record in the mud was medium good he lost the Santa Anita handicap in the mud by a nose and and ran a superb race, but he didn't win any big races in the mud. His jockey said that he just was uncomfortable in it that his feet were not the right size and shape to run in it and that he really struggled over it Seabiscuit was seem to be heard a lot. Is that right? Yes. He had he was not very well put together and he had a very disorganized Gallop. He had a tendency to whack himself in the front angle with his ankle with his own hind hoof. He did this a number of times and that was definitely a problem and I think he was very heavily raised and not well managed by his first trainer and that that may have created some sound as problems in the long run. We're talking this hour was Seabiscuit author Laura hillenbrand. If you've just joined our conversation, of course, the the book Seabiscuit was a runaway bestseller when it was released a couple of years ago one pretty much every award to book can win. Well, it's being reissued in several different versions now or several different manifestations. There's a movie coming out about Seabiscuit next month and among other things. There's a brand-new collector's edition of Seabiscuit, which has a hundred and fifty photos in its coffee table style book beautiful full text of the book itself, and we're offering that as a special thank-you gift on this last day of our membership drive. If you call us at one eight hundred two to seven 28:11, we will send Out to you as a special thank-you gift $150 per year. Pledge will get you the book $12.50 per month 1-800 to to 728 11 and just one caller on the line right now on this last day. Let's see if we can balance the books. Meanwhile, if you have a question for Laura hillenbrand the number to call our regular call in number is 6512276 thousand 6512276 thousand toll-free 1-800 to for to to 828 Pam your question, please hi. I have a question for Laura. But first I want to say that I've been a member of MPR since 1978 and I renewed my membership Wednesday. So that means I'm out of luck for Laura's book. Oh, no, I think we could probably work out something. You're nice enough to call in and give us a plug here where I think we can work out something. Well, I'm a big fan but Laura what I wanted to say to you is I don't know anything about horses, but my Is that distance runner in college and was in high school so over the last eight or so years. I've learned a huge amount about it track and cross country and what I reckon you're I'm trying to get him to read the book because what I read in your book was so much like what we worry about when we go to track meets we figure out who the competition is how fast they run what the strategy should be and a far less talented Runner can win with the right strategy just like what you wrote. Sure. Well, there's an interesting phenomenon in horse racing and I bet it's true in people racing to and you can tell me whether or not it is if one Runner goes out to the lead and can set a loan lead. He tends to run the best race of his life if he's running alongside another Runner he tends to slow down and closers can can come past him. I don't know why that is they can go the same speed but for some reason when another horse is alongside him he sends to to poop out a little faster and Things are really important to know when you're a jockey and I imagine when you're a distance Runner as well. Well, you know the it depends on the runner, my son's coach is always telling him not to lead because what he's good at is coming in at the end really fast. So if he leads a uses up all his energy too soon, but you know, it's exactly the same thought process. I'm sure with horses. They figure out what the horse does best and then teach it to do it sure and the one on the lead has this commanding position in that he can set the pace and the pace is going to dictate how quickly everybody closes and if he sets a slow pace he's going to have a lot of gas left at the end. It's terribly important and I imagine people think this of track and field the way they think it of racing that is just sort of whoever's fastest wins. And that's about all that happens out there. When in fact a lot is going on. I was fascinated. Well there again so many things that that I found interesting about this book one of the things though was the training and I think it was for the match race against War Admiral concern was that Seabiscuit couldn't get out of the Of the shoot fast and also the trainer Tom Smith had this came up with this deal where they would ring a bell and so on could talk about that a little bit. Yeah. It's um, it's an odd phenomenon of mattresses which used to be run all the time and now are very rare that the animal who can take a commanding lead almost always wins the match race and see this kid was put in this match race against War Admiral who is one of the fastest breaking horses who ever lived he had absolutely brilliant breaking speed C this.get generally did not display that kind of speed and it's an old adage and raising that you can't change a horses running style. Well, that's exactly what Tom Smith set out to do with him because otherwise he had no chance and what he did was he built a little starting bailout of telephone batteries and a little telephone Bell and put it in a redwood box took it out to the track and he would line the horse up on the track standing still and walk up behind him with a buggy Whip and The Bell just as he flicked the buggy whip across the horses heels horses will always respond by going forward when they feel that kind of stimulus on their back end because their interests they instinctively try to get away from predators. So he would break very quickly off of this and they did it over and over again and after two or three tries the horse didn't need the whip. He just heard the bell and through classical conditioning. He understood he needed to run and he started breaking faster and faster and faster. And when the mattress came along no one thought he was going to be War Admiral offline and it's exactly what he did better not go further though. We don't want to give it away for for people who who don't know how this turns out. Yeah Pate your question, please hi, Laura really appreciate your book and end the public television documentary was excellent too and I just wondered what you thought of exterminator and also maybe comments on the book that made him a childhood hero. Me and I'll take your response offline. I actually haven't read the book on exterminator. I certainly know about the horse. He's one of the greatest race horses who ever lived he ran in the 1920s and he was just magnificent, but I have not read that book. Although people have mentioned it to me before in and in the same way you do that. It was very influential on them. Is there a way to compare horses horse race horses over time or is it one of those endless arguments? That really doesn't have a correct answer like arguing about well who which baseball players the best of all time on ever played against each other? So who knows it's true and it's even more difficult than it is with baseball when you're talking about racehorses the two horses that that most historians put at the top of their list are Manowar who ran in 1919 and 1920 and Secretariat ear and 72 and 73. There's half a century between them and in that half century racetracks got several seconds faster distances. Back shorter secretary carried a lot less weight than Manowar it became very difficult to compare them. It's really pretty much impossible. But in a way, I like it that way. I like having it not all clean-cut because we can all sit around by the stove and talk about who might have been best in everybody has an opinion and it's great. We've talked so much and rightly so about Seabiscuit and Red Pollard the jockey and Tom Smith the trainer Charles Howard the owner. We should talk a little bit about you Laura hillenbrand people may not know that you wrote this book Against All Odds to really overwhelming odds. You've been very very sick for the last many years. Yeah I have for the last 16 years had a disease called chronic fatigue syndrome, which is not very well understood by the public. It is a disease that causes truly profound exhaustion when I am at my sickest I can't Over in bed. I can't talk. I can't sit up. I spent a number of years about a total of six years. That way I am still very much handicapped by it. I can only walk about four blocks there. A lot of other symptoms you get fevers and night sweats and swollen lymph nodes and for me vertigo, a lot of chronic disease - that I've had for 10 years which made reading and writing very difficult made writing the book a pretty terrible ordeal. It was worth writing the book, but I had to really ruin my health to do it how the heck could you do that? I mean most people couldn't write a book if they were in Tip-Top shape. It's um, it was definitely not easy. It required a lot of remodeling of my life around the project. I really did nothing else. I didn't have a social life. I didn't go anywhere. I didn't think about anything else and I had to really redo everything around me. I put a refrigerator right next to my desk so I wouldn't have to go downstairs for a meal. And when I was too dizzy to write I would get in bed with a pad and I would just write with my eyes closed and I would put my books and kind of a horseshoe shape around my desk so that I wouldn't have to get up to get them. There was a lot of things like that that I had to do. I got all of my library books through interlibrary loan. So I wouldn't have to travel it was very hard. It took me four years seven days a week just working myself until I was exhausted but it was very worth it. I love the story and writing this story enabled me to redefine myself as a writer instead of a as an invalid and it enabled me to escape my body and get into the bodies of these these amazing vigorous people and live in 1938. Is there a reason to hope that that your health will improve significantly here in the near future people who have had CFS for five years or fewer have a moderately good chance of recovering maybe 50 St. People who've had it as long as I have in spent 16 years have unfortunately a very poor chance of recovering without research and some breakthroughs and new treatments. I don't have a very good chance of ever being anything other than I am physically unfortunately, but I am hopeful that this will happen there have been some good advances in research in recent years. You have the energy and the interest to try to write another book this this one was so great. Thank you. Most definitely I have the interest I am struggling a lot with vertigo right now and that would make writing a book impossible for me at the moment, but it has been steadily improving for about a year. I couldn't read or write more than one line at a time back then the year after I finished the book my health collapsed as a result of doing the book, but I've been doing better since then couple more questions here about Seabiscuit before we wrap up first of all, I was you know, given all the attention this horse received when we noted last hour about the literally thousands of people who would show up just to watch the horses train go by to say nothing of the 40,000 who would show up to watch him work out and all the people who came to his races do horses know when their big stars. Yeah. I kind of strut. You know, I think I think most aliens think that they're big stars. They certainly act like to see this kid got very accustomed to being a huge celebrity and he was followed constantly by reporters and news real people and cameramen and he actually became so accustomed to being posed for photographs that all a guy had to do was raise a camera and he would strike the pose and hold it until the camera came down or he heard the click and you could do this reliably the reporters started calling him movie star because he could do this so reliable. He was a very very sweet tempered animal and loved people and so he I think he really liked the attention one of those. Sorry, thank you. Describe it in. The book is one of those classic looking out over the horizon pictures that that he like to pause again could really wasn't a pretty horse and he couldn't pull it off but he gave it a shot. You know, he was raised his head voices Talent, you know arches neck and try to look good and it next to a horse like War Admiral he couldn't pull it off but he gave it a shot. And what do you think was the highlight of his career that the match race against War Admiral his comeback at Santa Anita or something else? I think the thing that really displayed what he was made of was his Epic Quest to win the Santa Anita handicap, which was at the time the richest horse race in the world in a time when your average American was making less than five hundred dollars a year that race was worth $100,000 all to the winter and they tried to win it in 1937 38 39 and 40 and something got in the way the first three years and and finally at age seven. He came back to make one more try. When tell you what happened, but it was it was quite a performance the mirror effort was worth the worth the price of admission. Yeah, Laura hillenbrand, you've written a great book under very trying circumstances. But thank you so much for telling this story. Thanks so much for having me on Laura hillenbrand the author of Seabiscuit bestseller award-winning book about a character in American history that really changed history and completely captivated this nation for three four years of time Stephanie Curtis. So what a story it sounds like an amazing store actually haven't gotten to read the book yet. I'm dying to read it now once he (00:36:32) got the horse sleeping all the time as I read I read so I did some homework before I did some homework. I did some homework because we were talking earlier this week and you were raving about can't wait to talk about this book. I love this book and I've never heard you talk about a book before Gary. So I was quite interested in that one 800. Well, it's got 720P. T8 the collector's edition has big big print and pictures so that helps me. See I've been sitting here when we well we've been lately. I've been listening to Laura talk. I've been looking through the book. It's just fantastic. These photos are beautiful and the jockey Red Pollard is just incredible looking guy with really rough face and looks so determined not a handsome guy, but an interesting-looking blind in one eye trying to race these horses amazing story if you want to learn if you want to read the store or if you already have CBS Community. Yeah. I already have the book. I read the book. I don't need it. I checked out the library you want the copy of this book? This is a collector's edition and Laura hillenbrand went went went around and she scoured the country for photos of Seabiscuit. And the people that surrounded him that have never been seen before that are in private collections that were the law healing Dusty old boxes. She found them and his put them together in their incredibly dramatic photos and just fantastic. We need we need you to call right now 1 800 to to 728 11. This is the last day in our School year and dry folks we've been it's been a short drive. So you might not have noticed. Well, maybe you have noticed we've been going for a couple days, but it's shorter than usual. So this is the last day we have still $15,000 to raise this our to stay on track. We need they can step down. I figured out all the money they looked at what we what we need to buy what we need to pay for and what money we have and they said we still need $700,000 to wrap up this year 1-800 to to 728 11. If you'd like a copy of the collector's edition Seabiscuit. It is $12.50 per month pledge $150 for the full year. I'd like to give you a special offer to during mid-day here. I particularly like that Grundig wind-up radio to so cool. That's a great deal will put both of those the book and the radio in a package for you for a pledge of a dollar a day three hundred sixty dollars for the year and I can't you know, I really I really want people to have this book but enough about the book. A moment. The important thing is that we need your membership support to pay for the programs on this station. There. It is. The radiologic aired. I actually we haven't had a right Ray. Gary has not been allowed to be in the studio with the wind up radio so far this drive because everyone is afraid he is going to run off with it or that maybe he'll break it because he's so enthusiastic about winding this thing Gary. You only need to wander a little bit run for an hour. You don't wind it and why didn't wind up this is a great-looking radio. It is an AM/FM and also has shortwave radio. So if you're interested in losing to rate your China, you can do it with this radio it is and it's got a little bit of it's got a little light you just wind this thing up. And the radio will run. That's why I was taken away from me because I had a little bit too much wine 802 to 728 11. The premiums are here. This is the last day of our Drive last chance here the last 15 minutes for those of you who want to call in during mid-day. I know a lot of you listen on a, you know, a fairly regular basis you enjoy the speeches the documentaries. These are things you don't hear elsewhere, you know, the full-length speeches gosh, you're lucky if you can hear a 30-second sound bite anymore much less a full-length speech documentaries National Press Club luncheons newsmaker Collins. The governor's come in and the Senators and stuff. So you get a chance to call in with your questions. We think it's a pretty good program. And if you agree we have about 15 minutes left. We'd like to get you signed up. We need to (00:40:24) get you signed up on this last day of our Drive 1-800 to to 728 (00:40:29) 11 and can't can't urge you. Off to take a take a flyer on this book. If you I don't care if you really hate horses, you'll love this story kind of scared of them and I still want to read this that's a it's a part of American history that that's our intern really an inspiring story 1-800 to to 728 11 is the number to call 16 people are on the line. We've got about 14 thousand dollars left to raise this our to stay on track. We can do it if everybody who listens calls and you know, Stephanie if everybody who just called in with questions for our guests in the last year, we would have it all members. Why would be all done 1-800 to to 728 11 20 callers are on the line. Here we go. Only one out of six of you is actually a member. We need to raise that up. I'm hoping that by the end of this drive will be one out of five of you are members. We need a hundred forty two people to call before the end of this hour to stay on track. This is the last time that you can pledge during mid-day in this pledge drive. So if you value Gary if you value the speeches the political information the coverage during the last During the plane crash of Senator wellstone. It was just phenomenal coverage and you know that you value it, you know, you're turning it on in the morning at night while you're making dinner when you're in your car, you're one of those people who listen to public radio like that in their lot of you out there who just are junkies, but only one out of six of you were actually members we need we need you to join right now now is the time don't wait till later. This is the last day the last 15 minutes of midday. We got 23 people on the line that we still need to hear from that they tally up these things in so many ways Gary they tells me $14,000 but they also say we need a hundred and forty two new members before the end of the hour. Okay. All right got 24 on the line right now. So we need to hear about it from another 125 of you getting blizzard. Just getting swamped with all these numbers only one to remember 1-800 to to 728 11. That's right. That's the pledge line number 1-800 to 27 28:11. Thanks to Cheryl sletten from Osceola who called in when? Better three children, 10 12 and 3 all think that this is the only radio station are some others but you know, there are some folks here who don't want their names right on the air, but I wanted to pass along a couple of their comments lady called in making a leadership Circle pledge of thanks a lot hundred dollars said she got a raise and the first thing she thought was about sharing it with Minnesota Public Radio leadership Circle contributions are not for everybody. No question about it. It's $100 a month pledge, but it is tax deductible. So, you know, the out-of-pocket cost is not quite that great plus as a special thank-you gift 10,000 Northwest Airlines World perk miles and midday only heck. I'll throw in one of those books. You need one. You need a collector's edition of Seabiscuit. Believe me. You need one of these here's our killer called and I've got to read you this Gary Garrett Deirdre said that the reason why she pledged because she's a sense of obligation because Dog listens to it turns on the radio to soothe the dog and the dog loves and parents and the dog couldn't call in dear to call an employee. She got a copy that Seabiscuit now, let's hear a Seabiscuit invitation to tea biscuits as a little sickly. I think got 27 people and let's get it to 30 folks probably do them dog a little better. Yeah, you probably more practice at the dog. I think are you do that many many other pledge Drive. I don't think we ever said that up. There's the panic button Gary how well it's getting to be that time 12 minutes to go here. If you want to get signed up during mid-day 12 minutes left to go. And again, you know, I I've talked about this incessantly to the point where I'm sure people are getting sick of this but I want to just say it again you really deserve you owe yourself to have a copy of the collectors edition of Seabiscuit. It is a wonderful story. If you don't keep it to yourself, if you look it over to I don't want this thing. I guarantee you there are people who would like the cop book. Even if you already have the paper back, this is terrific. So, you know, here's a great opportunity to pick it up and do yourself a favor by ensuring that good quality news and information will be on your radio 1-800 to to 728 11 if you like. Midday, here's the last opportunity 11 minutes to go 1-800 to to 7 2011 got 23 people on the line. You haven't been up to 30 yet Gary. I know that there are 30 people out there listening to Minnesota Public Radio listening to you right now listening to us talking on. Midday who are not members. We need you to go over the phone. I don't think we ever made clear that you can get the Seabiscuit book and the radio at the dollar a day. Well $360 32625 dead $365 a year. I can say that and everyone who calls in will also be entered in the Vespa giveaway courtesy of Vespa, Minnesota antastic little thing. You may be open the best but you look pretty you look snazzy riding around with your wind-up radio Seabiscuit in hand on your Vespa folks. Probably don't want to load a well. I don't I suppose you Hacker something don't space on the side we can store stuff. Yeah. So then when you stop you can listen to the radio and read your book at the same time 1-800 to to 728 11 10 minutes to go here. If you're not signed up yet we're urging you to do. So, this is the very last day of our membership Drive. We're not going to be on the air tomorrow. We're not going to be here Monday. This is an effect the end of our fiscal year. The accountants will come in they'll figure out how much money has come in from membership pledges from people just like you they'll compare that to the cost of providing the programming and then we keep our fingers crossed and hope that everything balances right now best guess is that we are about one hundred fifty nine thousand dollars short. Now. There's you can't make up all that deficit yourself, but you can do your part. We hope you will $10 a month $20 a month 1-800 to to 7 2011 now, maybe you are maybe just tuned in this year for the first time maybe you turned in during last. Last Fall's election season and maybe you turned it into and in during the conflict in Iraq, whenever you joined up here is how it works. Minnesota Public Radio has been around for over three decades. We are the strongest Regional network of stations in the country where there's nothing else like Minnesota Public Radio out there folks. We turn out American radio worth of documentary and Prairie Home Companion speaking of faith. We are spearheading the public radio collaboration where public radio stations all over the country joined together to look into a topic last fall. It was September 11th this coming fall. It's going to be Democracy in America. There's no other network out there like this. And the reason why we can make these programs and bring you these programs because of listeners like you there's something about the people here in Minnesota that for the past 30 years. I said, yep, I will do my part and little by little we grown into a huge a huge network of stations and a huge network of listener members are one out of six of you as a member, but still those people helped build this network. They are the people who keep this place. Going we need you to call 1-800 to to 728 11 and do your part. Let's 1250 a month. You will know that you're supporting great radio. Plus you're getting that Seabiscuit book that Gary can't stop talking about the collector's edition. You'll get Minnesota monthly every month a great little magazine that looks into looks into restaurants in the Region's day hikes doctors all kinds of stuff. It just gives you a great portrait of life in the region. And you also get the NPR member card. You'll get card. You could special two for one discounts on ticket giveaway sometimes but also all these wonderful restaurants around the region like Sawadee and a Riga all kinds of good good place in French Meadow Bakery, you'll get two points. In fact your membership might pay for itself. If you eat out enough 1-800 to to 728 11, its end of the fiscal year. We've only got 13 people on the line we would get that up to 30 because we've got eight thousand dollars left to raise this hour, we've only got seven minutes left. I have nothing to add. You said everything that needs safe. That was brilliant. I think one other thing I can say that Can't say is if you value Gary eichten being here every day bringing you political stories bringing you interesting speeches. Bring a meeting is just amazing next Monday. He's going to be talking about weather and epidemics what other kind of radio will cover that and you need to if you depend on Gary eichten to bring you the weather and epidemic every day 1-800 to to 728 11 is the number to call well be hidden Monticello. I'd be happy Community Center with Mark see Lee and Michael Oster Holman. So if you're in the area come on by 11 to 1 in Monticello, but it will also be on the air of course just ate callers on the line right now. We had a nice show of support here. Just a few minutes ago. Nice rally. Let's send out a kind of last call here. We have about six minutes left during this mid day period and we want to make sure everybody is signed up who's gonna sign up. Are you a person who you know, you've been thinking I probably And maybe I will join for make the pledge Let's Make a Deal here. Try it for one year. If it if it turns out that we sold you a bill of goods don't renew. Yep, and I'm serious about that. But you know, most people do because it's a good deal. It really is and you'll feel good about this one 800 2 to 7 2011 plus you need that Seabiscuit collector's edition. Do you absolutely need it? Let's talk to tell people about this gal Gary's ready. Yeah. I have I have an announcement here. Today is programming is sponsored in part by John Sullivan to recognize all gay lesbian bisexual transgender and straight friends of our community celebrating Pride this weekend 1-800 to to 728 11. Now you were saying see besting Seabiscuit just remind everybody. This is a story of an underdog a horse that everyone thought couldn't make it couldn't run a championship and the entire nation got behind this horse. He was a hero everyone was And it got forgotten somehow got lost in the pages of history and it was brought back in this fantastic book Seabiscuit, which a lot of you have read as a best-seller won all kinds of awards everybody knows about but now there's a new collector's edition with all kinds of wonderful photos. And this this this copy of the book is one you want to keep on the show. This is the copy that you want. This is a copy you will want to look over and see more photos of these people the story that you read if you've already read the book of got 11 people on the line for asking is gives 1250 month. You become member of Minnesota Public Radio, you're supporting great programming that guilt that you feel will be lifted if you haven't pledged to before and you get a copy of a great book that Gary highly highly recommend. Oh, yeah. No, it's great. What what what did our callers say? It's good for everybody for an 84 year old nuns and two teenagers, right? Well, it's true. You know, I was thinking about kids and I want to say in advance there a couple of spots in there. The language is a little rough. Nothing bad. I mean, you know, but it's it gets a little rough one. So I know we're talking about jockeys and stuff. - you know the hard-living folk, but fundamentally, this is a great story for all ages. And if you got a kid a little special older kid, man, they would this is a great inspiring story. We have only four minutes left and we still have about four thousand dollars to raise on to make the hourly goal here 13 callers on the line. You'll be able to get right through if you're a midday listener boy. We need you to step forward here. This is the last day of the drive if you're signed up, thank you very much for your support. If you haven't had a chance to call in to make that new membership pledge to renew that membership take advantage of the special. Thank you gifts. You have about three and a half minutes to do it at one eight hundred two to seven. 2811 Norman Hamlin called it in pledged and he got that Seabiscuit book. He's in Edina Deborah Sutherland from Chatfield Minnesota. She got that Seabiscuit Grundig radio combo that is only it's only during mid-day folks if you want the Seabiscuit book and you also think hey, Grundig radio sounds really really great. That's the AM/FM wind-up radio. I've got to my hands Gary wants Gary you can't have until we have 20 listeners on the line and then I'll let you touch the radio and I wind it at 20 you can wind it at 20. That's we can check ready in 4 people, please I want to wind this radio radio. But if you call and you pledge a dollar a day 365 dollars for the year, you get the Grundig radio and the Seabiscuit book 16 people. We still need for more for Gary to get his hands on this Grundig radio Margaret and David featuring right outside my reach my arm isn't quite long enough. They pledged that the leadership Circle level, which is just fantastic. That's $100 a month twelve hundred dollars for the year now, not everyone can do this. But if you see fit of 20 or I have to interrupt we've got 20 listeners online here. Gary is being handed the radio right now Grundig radio like the radio and the book 1-800 to to 728 11 a dollar a day pledge. There. It is. Gary's gonna break the radiator. This is great. You know, why radio is really sturdy and you can wind it and wind it wind. It'll be fine. If it even survives. My my mail Tree on We have tree two minutes left to go. Are you signed up? Are you midday listener boy? We need your support here 21 callers are on the line. Thank you very much. We would love to hear from you. If you have not gotten through yet. You need this book. You really need the Sea Biscuit and you I think you should have the radio to exactly dollar a day 365 dollars for the year for the radio and the book or 1250 month. You get the Seabiscuit book, which is just a wonderful book great photos. I think everyone should call in right now and get their hands on it and you can pour over it before the movie opens. Maybe we yeah. No, there you go forward to it 1-800 to to 728 11 is our number you'll be entered in the Vespa. Give away from Vespa Minnesota that it Minnesota monthly will get the MPR member card will give you two for one on meals around town and you'll know that you're supporting great radio both the national programming that we pay for the Comes from National Public Radio like Talk of the Nation and the national All Things Considered things like that and the wonderful local programming mid morning. Midday. So just great great rated and couldn't get anywhere else and we couldn't bring to you if people like you didn't call and pledge 1-800 to to 7 2011, you know, Stephanie, I think if we could get some how get ten people to call us right now in the next minute would make this our legal where that really comes about. I can't believe you know, no more than $3,500. If you're one of 10 people anywhere in this region, if you can hear our voice if you're not a member yet if it's time to renew additional contributions one of 10 people if you'd like a copy of the Sea Biscuit book the radio, whatever it is, if you want to show your support for public radio, and you're now one of seven people who hasn't called us will can make this goal in just seconds here at one eight hundred two to seven 28:11. We're going to break for the news, but then we'll be back with more midday Stephanie. Thanks a lot. Glad to be here. Gary programming is supported by (00:55:35) Clayton Holland and Associates attorneys representing whistleblowers reporting government fraud individuals injured by products and services and employee subjected to discrimination on the web at you have rights dot info. Your to 91.1 Candor wfm Minneapolis and st. (00:55:54) Paul we have let's see if we can get a (00:55:56) new temperature reading here. No Sunny Sky 66 degrees currently in the Twin Cities looking for a high today in the mid 70s under a partly cloudy sky tonight though. The rain returns showers and thunder showers overnight lows in the upper 50s probably get rained on tomorrow morning to but then it should gradually start to clear off and by Sunday partly cloudy sky with a high in the 70s 19 callers are on the line on this last day of our membership Drive the last day effectively of the fiscal year last chance for you to show your support for good quality news and information programming.