minow@decvax.UUCP (Martin Minow) (01/07/84)
Since I was one of those who suggested that anyone who was uninterested in A Prarie Home Companion not bother to subscribe, I feel that I should respond to the question "I don't listen to the show, why should I?" How can I describe how a sneeze feels? "There's this, like, need to sneeze, you see; and then you sneeze, you see, and then you don't need to sneeze any more for a while." But, that says nothing. Garrison Kiellor -- who is the central figure of the program -- "stands up on a stage every Saturday night, remembering things that he's not sure actually happened." The program is, at one level, a recreation of Mid-West rural down-home radio with a couple of local fiddle players (and, once or twice a year, maybe Homer and Jethro will come by), some social notes from the local weekly paper, a poem written by Margaret Haskins-Durber, and advertisements for Powdermilk Biscuits "that make shy people get up and do what needs to be done," for Ralph's pretty good grocery where "if you can't find it at Ralph's, you can probably do without it," and for Bob's Bank, "where you save at the sign of the sock." Every week, Garrison gives the news from his home town, Lake Wobegon, Minnesota. He tells of the old guys ice fishing, of the slightly competing philosophies of the two churches: Lake Wobegon Luthern (for the Norwegians) and Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibility (for the Germans). He talks a lot about growing up, of being scared to go out in winter because of the icicle hanging just above the doorway that will certainly fall just as you go out the door. He talks about the child who moved down to the city when she married and is hosting Uncle Ed -- a batchelor Norwegian farmer who is in Minneapolis for the first time. Uncle Ed is pretty old and more than a little deaf. But she will take him to the best resturant in Minneapolis whether he talks too loud or not. (That story, perhaps the best I've ever heart on the program, was posted to net.wobegon a few months ago. It's available on the album "The Family Radio" and I recommend it very highly.) Keillor is perhaps the closest thing we have to Mark Twain. An altogether gentle person. Funny in a very quiet way. Capable of telling stories that move from total silliness to heart-wrenching nostalga in a few moments. Why should you listen to the show? I don't know. Who are you? What moves you? If your idea of humor starts at the National Lampoon and ends at Steve Martin, you probably won't like the show. If it is broad enough to encompass New Yorker cartoons and Pogo, you probably will. Judge for yourself. Martin Minow decvax!minow
andrew@inmet.UUCP (01/10/84)
#R:decvax:-32800:inmet:21100001:000:188 inmet!andrew Jan 9 13:43:00 1984 One thing you forgot to mention - where and when it can be heard: APHC is broadcast every Saturday from 6-8 PM (EST). Many National Public Radio stations carry it; check local listings.
sullivan@cmcl2.UUCP (01/12/84)
#R:decvax:-32800:cmcl2:6800002:000:261 cmcl2!sullivan Jan 11 18:28:00 1984 Fantastic! Mark Twain. I was searching for someone to compare Garrison to, and you pegged it quite accurately! The `feel' is so much the same! David Sullivan, WA1TNS UUCP: ...!floyd!cmcl2!sullivan (212) 460-7287 ARPA: SULLIVAN@NYU New York University -- David Sullivan, WA1TNS UUCP: ...!floyd!cmcl2!sullivan (212) 460-7287 ARPA: SULLIVAN@NYU New York University