A Praire Home Companion With Garrison Keillor
WoW, this is very entertaining, and fun. I highly recommend this to anyone at any age. I especially loved the stories with all the sound effects. I have a great deal of love for this show and all the talented folks on it. I have been a listener for years and getting the chance to see behind the scenes was a treat. Check it out you won't be disappointed
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Perfect gift for any "Prairie Home Companion" fan
Out here in Portland, we get "Prairie Home Companion" broadcasts on both Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons, and nothing makes for a perfect afternoon drive than Garrison Keillor and his team's weekly variety show. A combination of home-spun wisdom, subtle wit (spiced with just a hint of sex), and glorious down-home music make for two of the most enjoyable hours of the week. I'm not sure what the official standards are for these things, but for fans nationwide, "PHC" is a national treasure.
This DVD captures the 30th anniversary broadcast of this immortal show, live from the Fitzgerald Theatre in St. Paul, Minnesota. GK refers to the show as the 30th anniversary broadcast a couple of times, but other than that there is little to distinguish this show from the hundreds of other shows. The usual cast does their usual skits, including Lefty and Dusty as the two cowboys, the ad from the Catsup Advisory Board, a Guy Noir riff, and ads on how to become a trained sound effects master in just 38 weeks.
For music, the Guy's All Star Shoe Band is in rare form, including a few special guests. This is the kind of American music that makes you sit back and smile - watch for some masterful mandolin, steel guitar, and piano work. Also, a rockabilly band from Nashville, BR489, stomps through a few honky-tonk tracks.
And then there's the news from Lake Woebegon, as told by GK. This episode revolves around the adage, "It could have been different." Lake Woebegon's stories always have some Minnesota folk wisdom to impart, along with the jokes, and "It could have been different" is a perfect choice for an anniversary broadcast. What would it be like if GK had instead gone into writing movies, or become a dentist, or been the world's wisest filbert farmer? Here, GK acknowledges his good fortune but is also quick to shrug off the accolades that always come your way on an anniversary or milestone - it indeed could have been different.
If you are a fan of "PHC" or know someone who is, this is a perfect gift.
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