A glimpse of Duluth in 1948
Scenes of Duluth start at the 1:37 mark in this 1948 documentary on Finnish-American life in Wisconsin, Minnesota and South Dakota. (Thanks to Dwight Swanson for the tip.)
Scenes of Duluth start at the 1:37 mark in this 1948 documentary on Finnish-American life in Wisconsin, Minnesota and South Dakota. (Thanks to Dwight Swanson for the tip.)
“Welcome to the Sax-Zim Bog,” said our guide, Steve Weston. “Tonight we’ll be going through the towns of Sax and Zim, population nothing.” Moments later we drove by a snow-dusted, abandoned trailer, the front door hanging off one hinge. This was downtown Sax. Zim, a few miles to the north, wasn’t much more. Both are remnants of failed attempts to farm the bog that date back to the early 20th century. Now they are ghost towns surrounded by 200 square miles of wetlands.
Former Northland’s NewsCenter reporter Tiffany Tarrolly’s new project is called “Pageant Police,” a video series critiquing the physical beauty of contestants in the 2013 Miss USA pageant.
(This post originally contained an embedded video of the “Miss Maryland USA 2013 Critique.” We have removed the video in the interest of not giving it any more attention.)
The concept of the series is essentially to say mean things about the physical appearance of women who are in pageants. So anyone annoyed by women who are in pageants can experience something worse: women who say mean things about women who are in pageants.
The only thing more annoying would be me, for posting this, but I’ll soon be eclipsed in the annoying rankings by everyone who watches this video and then comments on it.
It has been mentioned on this site before how awful that Holiday sign is on I-35 at 27th Avenue West, but it bears repeating since it is pretty much the worst thing about Duluth, coming in just ahead of the Honking House and the fact that liquor stores can’t sell on Sundays (which is statewide, but so are the Holiday signs).
Well, I just noticed that the agenda for the Jan. 14 Duluth City Council meeting mentions that Councilor Jim Stauber will be introducing an ordinance regarding sign regulations that would seem, if I’m reading it right, to ban the Holiday sign.
[UPDATE: A closer reading of the resolution reveals that “legal, non-conforming signs are allowed to continue.” So Holiday couldn’t put up more signs with bright outlines at its stores in Duluth that don’t have them, but the ones that do have them could keep them.]
I was asked recently via e-mail what the name was of the pizza joint at 1830 E. Eighth St. before it was Vintage Italian Pizza (as seen in the modern photo above).
Since I spent no time at all in that neighborhood in my youth, I looked it up.
Here’s a track from, or a side of, the upcoming Retribution Gospel Choir record, titled 3. It’s a “two-song full-length” album scheduled for release by Chaperone Records on Jan. 22. The songs were tracked live in one take, with the band playing together in the same room, and featuring guest guitarist Nels Cline of Wilco.
Retribution Gospel Choir is playing the Red Star Lounge every Tuesday night this month and also will play Tycoons on Jan. 31.
I’m trying to decide if I should: a) wander around Rice’s and Connors points in search of the elusive snowy owl, b) ice skate up the St. Louis River, or c) visit the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center. Or maybe you have a better idea. I await your recommendation.
Perfect Duluth Day hit a seemingly significant, though maybe not legitimately significant, milestone recently when it crossed the threshold of having 2,000 registered users.
Registered users, of course, are the people who have created an account on this site and are able to create posts and comment on posts. (Anyone can read PDD, but in order to be involved in discussions here you must create an account and log in.)
In recognition of 2,000+ users, we present a bunch of yammering, er, useful information, about PDD user accounts. Call it answers to frequently or not-so-frequently asked questions.
According to the 1943 book Mineral Resources of Minnesota, edited by William H. Emmons and Frank F. Grout, “the Duluth Crushed Stone Company quarried gabbro at Duluth for road stone, railroad ballast, concrete aggregate, rubble for retaining walls, and riprap (large fragments for piers, breakwaters, etc.).”
Time once again for the exciting quiz sensation in which you try to guess where in Duluth a photo was taken.
Eagan native Nicholas David (whose real name is David Mrozinski) has played Duluth a few times with Teague Alexy, and his aunt and uncle own the Duluth Grill.
Above he performs a medley of Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Great Balls of Fire” and Jimi Hendrix’s “Fire” during the Dec. 17 broadcast.
The winner of The Voice will be announced tonight during a two-hour broadcast on KBJR-TV channel 6.1. The prize is a recording contract with Universal Music Group.
Have we mentioned yet that there is a Duluth pennant in the 1979 film Meatballs? It’s on the wall inside Tripper’s cabin.
