A Prairie Home Companion was a liveradiovariety show created andhosted byGarrison Keillor. The show ran on Saturdays from 5 to 7 pmCentral Time. It was usuallybroadcast from theFitzgerald Theater inSaint Paul, Minnesota. The program was also taken on the road.A Prairie Home Companion was known for its musical guests, especiallyfolk and traditional musicians. It was also known for itstongue-in-cheek humor and Keillor'sstorytelling segment, "News fromLake Wobegon".
Theradio program inspired a 2006 film of the same name, written by Keillor, directed byRobert Altman, and featuring Keillor,Lily Tomlin,Meryl Streep,Lindsay Lohan,Tommy Lee Jones,Kevin Kline,John C. Reilly, andWoody Harrelson.
A Prairie Home Companion started as a morning show, running from 6 to 9 am onMinnesota Public Radio.[1] The first program aired on 6 July 1974 before an audience of 12 people.[2] The idea for the name came from acemetery inMoorhead, Minnesota called the Prairie Home.[1] It was located across the street from theradio station.[3]
In April 1974, Keillor travelled toNashville. This was the last broadcast of theGrand Ole Opry from the oldRyman Auditorium and Keillor was doing a story forThe New YorkerMagazine.[1] He decided to host a variety show based on that format on the radio. On July 6, 1974, the first live broadcast ofA Prairie Home Companion took place.[4]
In 1978, the show moved into the World Theater inSaint Paul, Minnesota.[a] In 1987, he decided to move to Denmark with his new wife.[5] He then moved toNew York City. In 1989 he began a new show "The American Radio Company of the Air."[5] The format was the same, but the program was geared to the New York audience. But after four seasons he moved back to Minnesota and brought back the Prairie Home Companion.[5]
In 1985, the program was taped for audiences inAustralia andSweden.[2] In 1990 digital tapes were rebroadcast inTiwan. By 1995 the program was rebroadcast in numerous countries viasatellite.[2]
Music was a main feature of the program. It included many different kinds of music, includingcountry,bluegrass,blues, andgospel. The program also has guestperformers from a wide variety of other styles of music, includingclassical,opera and music from a number of different countries.
One of the show's best-known features was Keillor's "News from Lake Wobegon". This was a weekly storytellingmonologue, claiming to be a report from Keillor's fictitious hometown ofLake Wobegon.[6] The segment always began with "It's been a quiet week in Lake Woebegone, my hometown."[7] It almost always ended with "And that's the news from Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average."[7]
Because the program is aired onpublic broadcasting radio, they are not allowed to have realadvertisements. Instead, the show producedfictional advertisements for fictional products. The ads were performed in the style of live old-timeradio commercials. The show was "sponsored" by fictitious products including "Powdermilk Biscuits", "Cafe Boeuf" and the "American Duct Tape Council".[8]
The program celebrated its 40th year in 2014.[4]