This documentary by Bill Draheim follows Mike Watt and his band at the time, the Jom and Terry Show, as they drive into Duluth and load in for a performance at the NorShor Theater on May 28, 2002. They tour the old R. O. Carlson’s bookstore, do some sightseeing in Canal Park and spend the night at Shaky Ray Records before heading south for shows at the Turf Club in St. Paul and the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis.
Watt wrote extensively about the tour, and the Duluth stop, on his “Our Oars Became Wings” Tour 2002 Diary. He marvels in the diary and in the film about seeing Lake Superior for the first time. He also mentions in the diary getting a tour of “the secret tunnels” under the NorShor and how it “feels haunted down there.”
This past weekend was Chapel Con, a comics and pop culture convention in Albert Lea, Minn. Two Duluthians were guests — two of our favorite comics creators.
So our friend Ezra had his bike stolen last week. I created a Go Fund Me page to help him replace it. He saved for a long time to buy that bike and it’s not possible for him to replace it on his own. Help out if you can. Thanks.
Does anyone have any info about the workout area at Pattison State Park near the swings? I remember that it used to have a sign posted that showed how to use all the equipment but that sign is now gone. Anyone know any background about it or have a photo of the sign when it was still posted?
We don’t have a video clip, and the specific air date isn’t known, but at some point in mid-July 2007 — ten years ago — Duluth was the answer to a final puzzle on Wheel of Fortune.
A post in the PDD archives notes the clue was “on the map.” The contestant had just two letters to guess with, making it pretty much impossible, but anyone from Duluth could figure it out instantly.
My favorite tree in Duluth hangs right over the lake at the water’s edge, down below Leif Erikson Park. It’s a great place to bring a cup of coffee and get some living done.
Joe Nease will open a gallery space in the 101-year-old building at 23 W. First St. in October.
A fire-damaged former formal-wear store in a historic downtown building is being remodeled and will open this fall as one of the largest art gallery spaces in Duluth.
Joseph Nease purchased the former Arthur’s Formal Wear building at 23 W. First St. in December and has launched a major renovation of the two-story, nearly 10,000-square-foot property. A contemporary visual art gallery will open on street level in October.
Have you ever wanted to travel back in time? Not to brag or anything, but I have figured out a way to time travel. I can usually manage to go back a few decades, maybe a couple hundred years at most. I can’t stay for long, and I’ve yet to taste or actually touch a cup of tea from 1915, despite a fervent desire. I’m more like a traveler passing through, a tourist in a world different than mine, peering in from the side, presuming to understand what is going on around me.
This world can only be reached through research and imagination, and with the determination of a detective piecing together scraps of evidence. It also depends on helpful archivists, online databases and the support of public grant money and fellow dedicated history nerds. The path is sometimes long and slow, a little bit dusty, but sometimes it pulls us along with the thrill of the hunt and a spectacular find, like a full-on glimpse of faces, journals, conversations and the insides of shops. Tracking down history mysteries is an addicting little hobby.
The recent purchase of a 102-year-old building at 1917 W. Superior St. by the Duluth Folk School led to an off-hand request for more information about the building’s history. I found myself drawn into this request, spending free time browsing 1915 online editions of the Duluth Herald from the comfort of my computer desk, no dusty pages required courtesy of public access grants and diligent scanners. The new owners and I knew some facts, and now we wanted to see what that place had looked like when it was built. I had a hunch some pretty good time travel was possible.
The Duluth Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in locating Kenneth Jay Gordon. He was last seen on July 18 at approximately 9 p.m. in a small red or brown vehicle leaving the area of the 2500 block of Rice Lake Road in Duluth’s Kenwood neighborhood.
Gordon is described as a 63-year-old Native American male, 5-foot 10-inches tall, 180 lbs., black hair in a pony-tail, facial hair and no teeth. He has a tattoo on his left forearm, uses a two-handed silver walker, and was last seen wearing a cream-colored long-sleeve shirt, grey sweatpants and a worn out baseball cap.
The Duluth Police Department would like to check Gordon’S health and welfare based upon medical health concerns. Anyone having information as to his whereabouts is asked to contact the Duluth Police Department by calling 911.
This documentary by Bill Draheim follows Mike Watt and his band at the time, the Jom and Terry Show, as they drive into Duluth and load in for a performance at the NorShor Theater on May 28, 2002. They tour the old R. O. Carlson’s bookstore, do some sightseeing in Canal Park and spend the night at Shaky Ray Records before heading south for shows at the Turf Club in St. Paul and the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis.
