RtS: A Prairie Home Companion

ozron · 04-16-2007, 06:36 PM

I remember the early days of PHC (yeah...God, I'm old!) before any of us had ever seen Garrison Keillor. I had a distinct picture of him in my head...a short, stocky, somewhat dumpy man in a rumpled suit sitting behind a desk reading the "News from Lake Wobegon". Even after I saw him, I still kind of had that picture in my head.

A few years later I saw PCH live at the Schnitz here in Portland. It's true, it's a completely different experience. The Kronos Quartet played..."Purple Rain" for string quartet! And watching Keillor extemporate the news forever banished my previous image. The man is extraordinary. Truly a successor to Twain, Rogers, and the entire Round Table.

I just wish he wouldn't try to sing...

But that's just me.

see you at the zoo

ron

Alex · 04-16-2007, 06:47 PM

I remember reading an account of (Dave Barry?) being involved in one show and apparently while things may change very last minute almost nothing is extemporaneous. Of course, making it seem that way is a beautiful thing. (And, of course, I could be misremembering)

Despite the fact that I tend to change station whenever one of the musical acts start I do enjoy the show. But I rarely get to listen since Lani has zero tolerance for it and we have to change the station permanently if we're in the car together (which we usually are).

Snowflake · 04-16-2007, 08:37 PM

I grew to love PHC, but I really do love Keilor's Writer's Almanac on NPR. Always 5 minutes of good stuff. Also available on iTunes for free.

3894 · 04-17-2007, 05:24 AM

It's great to hear how many of you enjoy A Prairie Home Companion. We live in rural Wisconsin. I'm married to a Swedish-American who grew up Lutheran. For us, Lake Woebegon is very real.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

while things may change very last minute almost nothing is extemporaneous. Of course, making it seem that way is a beautiful thing. (And, of course, I could be misremembering)

It takes a lot of work to look that relaxed.

We saw the final rehearsal. I didn't mention that the evening ran about 3 hours, including a 15-minute intermission. They were obviously trying out material, seeing what worked. My guess is that almost nothing at the performance for radio the following night was extemporaneous, what with timing issues and all.

04-16-2007, 06:36 PM	#1
ozron The once and former... Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 421	I remember the early days of PHC (yeah...God, I'm old!) before any of us had ever seen Garrison Keillor. I had a distinct picture of him in my head...a short, stocky, somewhat dumpy man in a rumpled suit sitting behind a desk reading the "News from Lake Wobegon". Even after I saw him, I still kind of had that picture in my head. A few years later I saw PCH live at the Schnitz here in Portland. It's true, it's a completely different experience. The Kronos Quartet played..."Purple Rain" for string quartet! And watching Keillor extemporate the news forever banished my previous image. The man is extraordinary. Truly a successor to Twain, Rogers, and the entire Round Table. I just wish he wouldn't try to sing... But that's just me. see you at the zoo ron
	Submit to Quotes

04-16-2007, 06:47 PM	#2
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	I remember reading an account of (Dave Barry?) being involved in one show and apparently while things may change very last minute almost nothing is extemporaneous. Of course, making it seem that way is a beautiful thing. (And, of course, I could be misremembering) Despite the fact that I tend to change station whenever one of the musical acts start I do enjoy the show. But I rarely get to listen since Lani has zero tolerance for it and we have to change the station permanently if we're in the car together (which we usually are).
	Submit to Quotes

04-16-2007, 08:37 PM	#3
Snowflake lost in the fog Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: San Francisco Posts: 7,831	I grew to love PHC, but I really do love Keilor's Writer's Almanac on NPR. Always 5 minutes of good stuff. Also available on iTunes for free.
	Submit to Quotes