Thirty years ago today — Sept. 18, 1993 — the sci-fi comedy series Mystery Science Theater 3000 mentioned Duluth in “The Train Song” a.k.a. “What a Pleasant Journey.” Specifically referenced in the lyrics is the 1992 benzine spill in Superior known as “Toxic Tuesday.”
The latest music video from Duluth native Sydney Hansen features Aurora Kalligher and Michael Joki and is directed by Bo Allen of Bo Allen Productions.
American architect and designer Frank Lloyd Wright designed many famous buildings, museums and houses — including a gas station in Cloquet. Twin Cities Public Television Reporter Kaomi Lee explores the architectural destination in this video.
Video by Isabel Aalberg.
Duluth native Jeremy Lepak has been a ventriloquist for more than 15 years. In this video he talks about the craft and entertains a crowd in Gary New Duluth during Far West Kids Fest.
In its series The Slice, PBS North presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north.
Sidestreet Detour performed its Superior Porchfest concert on June 15 on a residential driveway near Central Park. Porchfest is a free, family-friendly music and art series in which attendees can bring a blanket or lawn chair, pack a picnic and/or simply stop by to enjoy the show.
The 2023 season concludes on Thursday, Sept. 7, with music at sunset around a campfire in Billings Park.
Steve Solkela performs Wild Cherry’s hit song “Play that Funky Music” on accordion while riding a unicycle … because he’s Steve Solkela.
This short video explores Ojibwe perspectives and cultural stories associated with Lake Superior, with interviews and artwork by Carl Gawboy and Jonathan Thunder. A version of it will be included in the public television documentary, A Sea Change for Lake Superior.
Comedian and sitcom actor Tim Allen referenced Duluth in a scene on the ABC-TV sitcom Last Man Standing in 2015. The scene appears in season 4, episode 19, titled “Summer Internship.”
Duluth’s 50-acre Bagley Nature Area gets its name from Dr. William R. Bagley, who gifted the land to the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Dr. Bagley’s hobby was nature photography. He was known to use a camera mounted on the stock of a gun in pursuit of wild animal photos. His family home movies, however, were probably not shot using wooden parts from weaponry.
The Olcott Park Greenhouse and Botanical Garden in Virginia is open year-round during volunteer-staffed open hours on Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. It offers the chance to view a variety of tropical plants in the comfort and warmth of a unique green space during the long winter months.
In its series The Slice, PBS North presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north.
Sculptor Nick Legeros recently completed a bronze sculpture of Champ the Bulldog, mascot of the University of Minnesota Duluth. The statue was installed on Aug. 8 near the walkway in front of the Darland Administration Building.
The 2004 film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers contains a brief mention of Duluth. Geoffrey Rush plays the role of the famous actor/comedian Sellers, whose agent Dennis Selinger, played by Henry Goodman, encourages him to broaden his audience in the scene embedded above.
Notoriously cold Lake Superior is among the fastest warming of the world’s large lakes. This excerpt from the upcoming public television documentary A Sea Change for Lake Superior documents research at the Large Lakes Observatory at University of Minnesota Duluth investigating how variations in winter ice-cover plays in that change.
The documentary is a coproduction of the Center for Global Environmental Education at Hamline University and WDSE-TV PBS North. It is scheduled for release in December.
It was 20 years ago that Duluth Entertainment Convention Center officials announced plans to build an eight-screen movie theater next to the DECC’s Omnimax theater. Within a few weeks the plan expanded to 10 screens and had the name Canal Park 10. When it opened on Dec. 22, 2004, it bore the name Duluth 10 and was operated by Cinema Entertainment Corp.
