News and Current Affairs
Low fights for rights to master recordings
I’m surprised I didn’t know about this yet, but the Star Trib just posted a story about the difficulties Low and other mostly indie bands are having with re-releasing and/or getting the rights back for their older recordings. What a goofy system to deal with art! Art belongs to the artist(s)!
PDD Quiz: 2023 Coming Attractions
Peek into the future with this week’s quiz about 2023 Duluth area happenings.
The next PDD quiz will review this month’s headlines; it will be published on Jan. 29. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Jan. 26. (more…)
Many new Duluth-area restaurants kept it in the family in 2022
Twin Ports food fans gained some favorable new restaurant options in 2022 — from high-end dining to downhome comfort food, tacos and the return of an old classic. (more…)
Miller Hill Mall Perkins leads list of 2022 restaurant closings
The Miller Hill Mall Perkins closed in March after 37 years of service. The national chain still operates at two other Duluth sites. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
Restaurants come and go all the time but some seem like they will be around forever. The Miller Hill Mall Perkins is a perfect example. The naugahyde booths, chrome-plated tables, gigantic breakfast menu and sweet pies made each visit feel like the one before — like eating in a time machine that would never end.
But then it did end. (more…)
PDD Quiz: 2022 in Review
Look back on 2022 in the Duluth area with this end-of-the-year quiz.
The next PDD quiz will preview coming attractions for 2023; it will be published on Jan. 15. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Jan. 11. (more…)
“Joel in Duluth” on “Structural Weaknesses in the Democratic Campaign Apparatus”
Santos Scandal Reveals Structural Weaknesses in the Democratic Campaign Apparatus
“Joel in Duluth” currently has an essay on the front page of Dailykos.com, a hive of fightin’ mad progressives. The essay is a cogent analysis of the recent Santos scandal in New York, where a Dem candidate’s oppo research was so underwhelming, he lost to Santos (above) who immediately became embroiled in a scandal about whether his bio is full of lies. Joel in Duluth diagnoses the problem using his own campaign experiences.
Globe News, landmark store in Superior, changing ownership
Globe News owner Tom Unterberger, left, has sold his store to a new ownership group led by longtime customer Jon Fritsche of Poplar. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
A landmark Superior collectible store — along with its iconic sign — has been sold to new owners who plan to maintain all its nostalgic charm.
Globe News owner Tom Unterberger announced last week that he has sold the historic building at Tower Avenue and Belknap Street along with all its contents to a partnership group headed by a longtime customer. Unterberger and his wife, Jill, purchased the building with the help of his parents in 1982 and slowly converted its corner newsstand into a retail store filled with books, music, trading cards and a wide variety of vintage gifts. (more…)
Loiselle Liquor ends 88-year run; new owners plan name change
Loiselle Liquor Store, 413 E. Fourth St., was owned and operated by the Loiselle family for 88 years. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske).
The oldest liquor store in Duluth has changed hands and will take on a new name for the first time in nearly nine decades.
Loiselle Liquor Store, 413 E. Fourth St., was sold by the Loiselle family this spring to Matthew Krueger and Katherine Eagle of Cloquet. St. Louis County property tax records showed the sale price at $360,000 for the two-story building — which was constructed in 1893 as the Goering Block. (more…)
Great Lakes Now episode: “Great Lakes Wildlife”
This contains several segments including one about Enbridge Line 3 (@17:15), and a mention of Duluth’s “Water is Life” festival (@24:58).
PDD Quiz: November 2022
Shake off the post-Thanksgiving malaise with a little current events trivia!
A holiday-themed PDD quiz will come your way on Dec. 11. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Nov. 7. (more…)
Bob Dylan’s Hibbing High School love letters sold for $670K
The Associated Press reports 42 handwritten love letters from Robert Zimmerman to his high school sweetheart, Barbara Ann Hewitt, were sold at auction to a Portuguese bookshop for nearly $670,000.
Photos of an Empty Skywalk
The Duluth News Tribune recently published an article about the Downtown Task Force’s recommendations to improve conditions in downtown. This summer, I spent some time walking through the Skywalk system and was a bit shocked by how empty it was. The summer might not be the most popular time to use the Skywalk, but it wasn’t just the absence of people. So many of the shops that I remembered were gone. I didn’t intend to make a themed photo series about this, but I had my camera and kept turning a corner to find another impossibly long, completely empty hallway. (more…)
Cruising the Great Lakes with Dan Kraker, MPR
Minnesota Public Radio’s Dan Kraker talks about the Great Lakes cruise ship industry.
Duluth 2022 General Election Results
With 4,103 of 4,103 precincts reporting, here are the statewide numbers for races relevant to Duluth.
FEDERAL OFFICES
District 8 United States Representative
Pete Stauber | 188,070
Jen Schultz | 140,433
Write in | 325
(more…)
Lumberjack World Championships: Cut Above the Rest
CBS Sunday Morning reports on Hayward’s Lumberjack World Championships, aka “The Olympics of the forest.”
Mimi Parker of Low has died of ovarian cancer
Duluth News Tribune: “Mimi Parker, of Duluth band Low, dies of ovarian cancer
Pitchfork: “Low’s Mimi Parker has died”
NPR: “Mimi Parker, vocalist and drummer of the minimalist rock band Low, has died”
Rolling Stone: “Low’s Mimi Parker, whose otherworldly vocals helped define slowcore, dead at 55 after cancer battle”
PDD Calendar: Mimi Park Vigil at Sacred Heart
PDD Quiz: October 2022
See how many of this month’s headlines you remember with PDD’s current events quiz!
The next PDD quiz focus on football in the Twin Ports; it will be published on Nov. 13. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Nov. 10. (more…)
Duluth Grill makes big Lincoln Park land moves
Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants co-owner Tom Hanson stands atop OMC Smokehouse. The former Kemps Dairy property and new parking lot are in the background. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A popular Duluth restaurant group has acquired the largest piece of open land in the Lincoln Park business district and plans to build apartments, a parking garage and new street-level business space on the property — similar to plans announced by its previous owner.
The purchase is part of several big land moves revolving around the Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants. (more…)
Former St. Louis County Jail renamed Leijona
The Duluth News Tribune reports that remodeling of the former St. Louis County Jail is near completion. It is expected to open in January as a 33-unit apartment building named Leijona, the Finnish word for lion.
Know Your Candidates: 2022 County Sheriff Race
As promised following the initial coverage of the St. Louis County Sheriff race in the primary election, the embedded PDF below contains in-depth interviews with the two remaining candidates, Jason Lukovsky and Gordon Ramsay, about issues that are important to LEAN Duluth. The Law Enforcement Accountability Network is a volunteer-run data-analysis group and public communications resource for organizers working for police accountability. (more…)
Northeastern Minnesota Book Award Winners for 2022
Ojibwe homesteads, shipwrecks and working class haunts provide just some of the backdrops for works honored by this year’s Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards. (more…)
Duluth 2022 General Election Sample Ballot
The Minnesota State General Election will be held on Nov. 8. Above is the front side of the ballot for Duluthians on the western side of the city. Those on the eastern side will see candidates for Minnesota State Representative for District 8B instead of 8A. Duluthians living in the center of the city will also see the St. Louis County Commissioner race for District 1 on their ballots. A few Duluthians on the western edge of the city will also vote on the Minnesota House of Representatives District 3B. And the backside of everyone’s ballot has numerous judicial races. (more…)
Warrior Brewing opens tap room
The Duluth News Tribune reports Warrior Brewing Company opened a tap room at its Lincoln Park neighborhood brewery on Sept. 24. The brewery began producing off-sale beer for distribution in cans and bottles in 2021.
PDD Quiz: September 2022
With the month coming to an end, it’s time to test your memory of headlines and happenings with a PDD current events quiz!
A Halloween-themed PDD quiz will creep your way on Oct. 16; submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Oct. 11. (more…)