Life House and New Scenic Café partner to help homeless kids

Life House will hold its second annual Hors D’Oeuvres that Open Doors event at the New Scenic Café on Tuesday, March 6, at 6 p.m.

Hors D’Oeuvres that Open Doors is a special event that raises awareness and funds for the vital services Life House provides for homeless and at-risk youth in the Duluth community. (more…)

EventsRestaurantsFundraisersHomelessnessLife HouseNew Scenic Cafe

Chastity Brown on KUWS Tuesday

In support of her forth-coming record Back-Road Highways, Minneapolis-based soul, roots and blues musician Chastity Brown will be on be on KUWS 91.3 FM at 7 p.m. tonight and will also be performing an in-studio with KUMD 103.3 FM on Thursday at 2 p.m. On Thursday night, she will be playing a show at Amazing Grace at 7 p.m., tickets are $10. See the Facebook event for more information.
(more…)

MusicRecommendations
Downtown Duluth: Movies in the Park
Pizza Luce: Dililio

FYI: Lakeside Presbyterian Preschool

The Big E and I sent our kids to Lakeside Presbyterian Preschool and we think its a pretty neat place. Our kids are alumni, but one of the teachers there asked me to post this flyer in a nutshell:

Open House Thursday, March 1 5:30-7pm. Preschool for 3-5 year olds.

LPNS Open House flier

That’s all the info I’ve got. Call them for more.

EventsRecommendations

A Prairie Home Companion in Duluth

[This post originally contained an embedded video that is no longer available at its source.]

Here’s the complete broadcast from Feb. 25 at the DECC Symphony Hall, featuring the Grand Rapids High School Jazz Ensemble and Trampled by Turtles.

MusicA Prairie Home CompanionTrampled by Turtles
Fond-du-Luth Casino: Wednesday Top it Off

Canoe from Jasper to Churchill

Three guys are looking for an experienced paddler to go on a 1,700-mile, 85-day canoe trip from the foot of the Rockies, in Alberta, to Churchill, Manitoba, in mid-May to mid-August. If you’re interested, contact Adam Maxwell at adammaxwell601 @ aol.com or Ryan Ritter at ritt0219 @ d.umn.edu.

Outdoors

This week: Mustaches, poetry and hockey, hockey and more hockey

March Madness is nearly upon us, as the East Greyhounds, Marshall Hilltoppers and Hermantown Hawks boys hockey teams all battle this week for trips to the state tournament. Marshall plays Hibbing-Chisholm on Wednesday, East plays Andover on Thursday, and Hermantown plays Rogers on Friday.

In college women’s hockey, the UMD Bulldogs are in the WCHA Final Face-off at Amsoil Arena. They face the Wisconsin Badgers on Friday for the chance to play in the WCHA National Championship Game on Saturday.

In a weirder athletic endeavor, the Mustache March Run happens on Saturday. If you don’t know what that means, well, it’s really no more complicated than a bunch of people with mustaches (real and artificial) running on the Lakewalk. There will also be an after-race party at Pizza Luce featuring the Black-eyed Snakes.

Also Saturday, the Spirit Lake Poetry Series brings Todd Boss and Matt Rasmussen to Somers Lounge at the College of St. Scholastica. Rescheduled for March 24.

There are over 400 events in the PDD Calendar, and we fully expect you to take part in at least 350 of them, so study up.

Events
Downtown Duluth: Movies in the Park

ARAC seeking new board members

The Arrowhead Regional Arts Council is currently accepting applications from individuals wishing to serve on its Board. ARAC offers grant support and technical assistance to individual artists and nonprofit arts organizations residing in the seven counties of the Arrowhead Region of Minnesota: Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, and St. Louis.
(more…)

Art

It’s snowing!!!

I’m hoping by the end of the week there will be an abundance of snow in Duluth. This weekend I’m going to head north and do some snowshoeing. But I would also like to get out on a weeknight after work — can anyone tell me where there are snowshoe trails that are lit up at night? Does Lester Park have snowshoe trails or are they all ski trails? Any web sites or maps to tell which trails are which? Thanks!

Outdoors
Pier B Resort: Rise and Dine
Glensheen Lantern Tours 2026

Things to Know Before You Move to Duluth

Video of Garrison Keillor in Duluth at the DECC Symphony Hall performing for A Prairie Home Companion.

VideosA Prairie Home Companion

What’s the matter with Duluth girls?

This clip didn’t make it to my inbox until after Valentine’s Day, but hey, it’s 100 years old anyway, so what’s a few more days? It’s from the Feb. 4, 1912, Duluth News Tribune. A more readable version of the text appears below.
(more…)

History
Downtown Duluth: Movies in the Park

Duluth: Say Ix-nay to the March 3 Rally

I’m reposting here an open letter written to the Duluth community by Joel Kilgour, a local peace activist, and Sara Thomsen, a local musician. Basically, Duluthians are urged to stay away from the March 3 rally planned by a white supremacist group right here in the Zenith City.
(more…)

News and Current AffairsCreepy

Duluth’s Old Street Signs

OldSigns

Mundane fact of the day: Before Duluth’s street signs were white on green they were black on white. For a while after the switch the old signs were piled up at the spot where Upper and Lower Michigan Street meet. I spent a few minutes browsing them on Jan. 30, 1999, but didn’t take any home as a souvenir.

HistoryPhotos
Fond-du-Luth Casino: Wednesday Top it Off
Lake Superior Harvest Festival

Culture Zoo: Emerging Artists Exhibit Opens Tonight in Superior

With so many other things happening again this weekend, I thought it would be worthwhile highlighting what is sure to be an interesting exhibit titled, “Culture Zoo: Looking In and Out of Our Cage.”

The focus of this exhibition is to showcase emerging artists, reflect culture, and display art’s ability to quote the past, comment on the present, and look to the future. Artists include Vince Cody – Sculpture/Painting, Chelsea Morgan of Magic Box Photography – Photography, Christopher Selleck – Photography, Adam McCauley – Painter, Michael Smith – Painter, Jeredt Runions – Painter. Colin Wiita – Mixed Media.

Native American sculpture and painting, portrait and urban landscape photography, abstract paintings and mixed medium on canvas. Their work will fill the North End Arts Gallery at 1323 Broadway Street from tonight through April 21 which coincides with the Art for Earth Day Gallery Hop.

More information and a brief interview with Jeredt Runions here.

ArtEvents

Duluth Rock and Roll Facts and Rumors

I’ve been living in Duluth for a little more than a year and beyond the obvious musical history (Bob Dylan roots, Low and other indie bands, Duluth Armory, etc.) I was wondering if there has been other substantial or fun trivia with musical acts in the Twin Ports. I know Quiet Riot had its first tour start here, and that Crash Test Dummies played Sacred Heart Music Center, stuff like that.

Music
Pizza Luce: Dililio
Grandma\'s YAF MN Mile

A music geek’s wet dream?

The British Arts Council is going to be making John Peel’s entire music collection available on the interwebs in May on a website called The Space.

To anyone who went through the trouble of seeking out his Sessions albums (I had a few…Echo and the Bunnymen, Siouxie, the Cure, and Einstuerzende Neubauten to name a few), Peel was a legend and his passing in 2004 was a big blow to music lovers…

I might just have to buy a bigger hard drive.

Music

Meet Rick Nolan

Rick Nolan is running against Chip Cravaack in the 8th Congressional District.

PoliticsRecommendationsVideos
Fond-du-Luth Casino: Wednesday Top it Off
Pizza Luce: Dililio

Free Local Music

My 5 songs in 5 days project is complete.

Enjoy (or perhaps tolerate) as you would like.

Music

A Nerd Nite Boss’ Guide to Duluth

Beloved Duluth nerd Crystal Pelkey has an article in the debut issue of Nerd Nite magazine profiling the nerdiness of Duluth. The nationwide magazine is published out of Brooklyn, NY. (more…)

RandomGeek PromGeeky
Pizza Luce: Dililio
Downtown Duluth: Movies in the Park

R.I.P. Richard David Wozniak

Richard David WozniakFormer owner of Young At Heart records.

DNT story | Previously on PDD

R.I.P.Record Stores

Happy First Birthday, Pineapple Arts

My wife and I love your demos, your helpful staff, and the fun vibe you bring to First Street.

Art
Ashwabay Alliance / Big Top Chautauqua

Nerdigras

It was a duel for the ages, but eventually, my light sabre sliced off Steve Farnham’s metaphorical hand in the Spelling Bee at Nerd Nite Duluth, at the Zuccone.
(more…)

Geeky

The view down at the lake a couple days ago.

OutdoorsVideosLake Superior
Grandma\'s YAF MN Mile
Ashwabay Alliance / Big Top Chautauqua

Lot of hoo-haw fer nuthin

No change in Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District, except that it now includes more of Betrami County.

News and Current AffairsPolitics

Twin Ports Illuminated Signs

pizzaman hammond2 hammond labor brewhouse skihut pickwick casino guns stadium hookah 1818875625_dff2405b45_o

I’m sad to see that the Big L sign has gone dark. It’s definitely my favorite illuminated sign in the area. Here’s a gallery of a few more of my favorites. I’m sure there are others that I’ve missed, so if you have some photos you’d like to share, please do so in the comments. (more…)

PhotosCollections and Memorabilia
Downtown Duluth: Movies in the Park
Pizza Luce: Dililio

Duluth needs a monster of its own

Earlier today I was reading about the Red Dwarf of Detroit, a harbinger of doom that’s been haunting the Detroit area for hundreds of years. It’s described as “a small child-like creature with red or black fur boots” that has “blazing red eyes and rotten teeth.”

Other communities have monsters that are unique to their location. Point Pleasant, WV has the Mothman. Southern New Jersey has the Jersey Devil. Botetourt County, VA and Mattoon, IL have the Mad Gasser, who was more of a serial killer really but I’m still including it here.

Mayor Ness wants to get the population back up to 90,000. Maybe some good old-fashioned mass hysteria is what we need to put this town back on the map.

If Duluth had a monster of its own, what would it be like? When would would it appear? Where would it appear? What would it be called?

Weird