MN90: Minnesota History in 90 Seconds

The Minnesota State Capitol is a must-see building. Allison Herrera tells us all about the men who built it...by hand.

Born on the Iron Range to Finnish immigrant parents, Gus Hall (born Arvo Kustaa Halberg) grew up in a rich brew of socialism and political activism. MN90 Producer Andi McDaniel discovers how Hall’s early life set the stage for him to become the longtime leader of the American Communist Party and a perennial Presidential candidate on the Communist ticket.

To say that Frederick McGhee had a remarkable life would be an understatement. Born into slavery, he became the first African American attorney to practice in MN. He was among the founders of the NAACP. He argued against separate but equal laws in 1910, nearly forty years before Plessy vs. Ferguson. MN90 producer Allison Herrera tells us about his legacy.

When you’re in the middle of it, every blizzard seems like the worst blizzard. But the Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940 really was one of Minnesota’s most lethal storms, primarily because there was so little warning.

The Spanish Flu descended on Minnesota in 1918, at a time when the world had no effective answer to major pandemics. The state's disjointed response had mixed results, but helped future health workers decide how to prepare for infectious outbreaks. Produced for Ampers by Art Hughes.

The invention of the satellite newsgathering truck by lifelong Minnesota broadcaster Stanley S. Hubbard was met with skepticism when he first demonstrated it in 1981. But as MN90 producer Marisa Helms reports, nowadays every T-V station that has a meaningful news operation has a satellite newsgathering truck. No matter where news is happening or when it’s happening, we can all watch it live thanks to Mr. Hubbard.

Carole Lombard was the queen of 1930’s screwball comedies, and she was married to Clark Gable. The two Second Lieutenants from Minnesota never expected to end up on a night flight with her, and, says Britt Aamodt, never expected it to be their last.

In 1940, John F. Kennedy was 23 and sick, which explains his visit to the Mayo Clinic. But he was also a newly published author. Britt Aamodt has the story behind JFK’s radio interview at KROC-AM

In 1872, the Minnesota State Board of Health was created to coordinate sanitation and disease control statewide. And by 1918, the average lifespan for Minnesotans was inching up—until September when Spanish flu arrived. No one had anticipated an outbreak like this so there was no plan in place. Britt Aamodt has the story.

Totten “Tot” Heffelfinger was an amateur golfer who worried that Minnesota’s golf courses were becoming too small and cramped for a new era of hard-hitting pro golfers. What was needed was a bigger, better course. Britt Aamodt investigates the origins of Hazeltine National Golf Club

Allan Spear accomplished a lot in his three decades in the Minnesota Senate. But it’s the 1993 Minnesota Human Rights Act that he would call his “proudest legislative victory.” MN90 Producer Andi McDaniel finds out how one of the first openly gay Americans serving in elected office made Minnesota proud.

James Douglas Falconer might have chosen to become a vet like his dad Thomas. Instead, the young man from Alexandria, Minnesota, trained as a druggist. September 1918, Falconer started his new job at Rexall Drug Store in Marshall—in the very month Spanish flu appeared in Minnesota. Suddenly, the 29-year-old found himself on the frontlines of an epidemic that had no cure. Yet that didn’t stop customers from lining up. Britt Aamodt has the story.

July 2014, Patrick Sawyer just wanted to finish his conference in Nigeria and get home to Coon Rapids. Two of his daughters had birthdays coming up. Britt Aamodt has the story of the Minnesota man’s encounter with Ebola.

Intercollegiate basketball conjures up images of March Madness and games played at some of the nations most popular universities. The birthplace of this pastime happens to be right here in Minnesota-Hamline University in St. Paul to be exact. Allison Herrera tells us about the infamous Hamline Pipers

The Ham Lake Fire of May 2007 devastated thousands of acres in Northeast Minnesota. Britt Aamodt looks at how it also turned up evidence of a cataclysmic event that took place 1.8 billion years ago.

University of Minnesota professor Brenda Child heard a story growing up on the Red Lake reservation about a sick girl and the vision her father received of a dress and a dance that would—and did—heal her. Professor Child wanted to know if that story gave a clue to the origins of the Ojibwe jingle dress and dance of healing during the Spanish flu epidemic.

Victor Frankenstein and his Creature never had a true heart-to-heart in Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel. Britt Aamodt looks at how playwright Barbara Field finally brought the creator and created together in her 1988 Guthrie Theater stage play.

Minnesota is the only state that took on the tobacco companies and won. Now, thanks to a settlement of more than 6 billion dollars, Minnesotans and citizens all over the country are more aware of the dangers of smoking and second-hand smoke. Producer Allison Herrera tells us why we can breathe easy.

For nearly 50 years, Charles Albert Bender was the only Minnesota-born baseball player inducted into the Hall of Fame, in part for inventing the slider, a powerful pitch for striking out batters. Bender’s rise to fame is poignant. He was an Ojibwe, born on the White Earth reservation in northern Minnesota, and later forced to live at a boarding school in Pennsylvania. Listen to MN90 producer Marisa Helms’ story about the inspirational life of Charles Albert Bender.

September 16, 1918, Nora Emilie Anderson was embarking on the biggest adventure in her 37 years. The native of Rock Dell, Minnesota, was one of hundreds of nurses boarding a ship en route to the Great War in Europe. Unfortunately, a stowaway—Spanish flu—boarded with them. Here’s Britt Aamodt with Nora’s story

"Well, everybody's heard about the bird. Well, uh, bird, bird, bird, bird is the word." Britt Aamodt traces the origins of the 1963 surf rock hit, "Surfin' Bird", to Minneapolis.

Pete Docter imagined adventures at his childhood home in Bloomington, MN. But at Pixar, says Britt Aamodt, he animated them.

St. Paul has had a lot of mayors. But, according to Britt Aamodt, only one Supermayor.

Carrie H. Lippincott was merely looking for a way to support her mother, sister and brother-in-law. But out of necessity grew a flourishing seed business. Britt Aamodt reveals the Pioneer Seedswoman of America.

There was Gene Vincent. There was Chuck Berry. And there was Eddie Cochran. But Britt Aamodt reveals that only one of these '50s rockers made "Summertime Blues" a hit—and hailed from Minnesota.

While many powerful and deadly tornadoes have battered Minnesota, those that struck on May 6th, 1965, stand out because they hit the densely-populated Twin Cities metro area. Six separate funnel clouds moved across Chanhassen, Deephaven, and North Minneapolis, taking 13 lives and causing $50 million in damage. The fast-growing city of Fridley was hit particularly hard, with three funnel clouds touching down there over the course of just a couple of hours. MN90 producer Marisa Helms takes a look back at the Fridley tornadoes of 1965 with the voices of those who survived the disaster.

Cy Thao wanted to tell the story of the Hmong people. Britt Aamodt finds out that he did it not with words but with paint and canvas.

Architect Frank Lloyd Wright may have made a name for himself with his legendary homes all over the country, but he also had a reputation with the ladies. Producer Allison Herrera tells us about one incident that happened right here in Minnesota...resulting in Wright's arrest!

In 2010, Grant Moos finally decided to go through the boxes left behind by his dead father, Malcolm Moos, President Eisenhower’s chief speechwriter. Britt Aamodt looks at how some housecleaning uncovered the creative development behind one of Ike’s most famous speeches.

Growing up in Minnesota, Michael Wilson knew he wanted to work with primates after he watched a documentary on Dian Fossey. Britt Aamodt looks at Wilson’s work with the research team that studied the primate version of HIV (simian immunodeficiency virus) in chimpanzees.

Minnesota weather isn’t known for its steaminess. So Britt Aamodt wonders how the state ended up with the oldest Finnish steam bath in North America.

Frederick McKinley Jones was an inveterate tinkerer. So it wasn’t surprising that after a sweltering summer drive in Minnesota, he hit upon an idea. Britt Aamodt looks at the inventor behind the refrigerated truck.

You hardly ever hear about kids writing in diaries anymore because paper and pencils seem to have been replaced by computers and text messages. As MN90 producer Marisa Helms explains, the technology that makes it easier for our children to communicate may be destroying their legacies.

Charles Biederman was one of the great abstract artists in the 20th century. Britt Aamodt tries to discover why this Cleveland-born artist has more art in Minnesota museums than anywhere else.

Charles Perkins Strite was tired of burnt toast. So the Minnesota inventor set out to do something about it. Britt Aamodt offers up a tale of a new kind of toaster.

To prepare lectures for his course on Death and Dying at Hamline University in St. Paul, Mark Berkson visited religious centers around the Twin Cities. But on a lunchtime walk near school, he nearly met his own death. Britt Aamodt has the anecdote of the professor and the hearse.

The Beatles' press conference in Minneapolis, August 1965, played a part in—or rather, added guitar to—the group's 1966 album Rubber Soul. Britt Aamodt opens up the case on the 12-string Rickenbacker guitar with the Minnesota provenance.

The Carlton Celebrity Room was featured in the film Fargo. But Britt Aamodt tells us this dinner club was more than a piece of Coen Brothers fiction.

They were southern Minnesotans who signed up for the National Guard during the Great Depression. Many did it for a job when jobs were scarce. But when America entered World War II, they found themselves on an island. Britt Aamodt tells the story of the Minnesotans stationed on Kodiak Island.

Everybody would like to have the kind of accident botanist Alexander Anderson had at the turn of the 20th century. He went looking for starch granules and discovered breakfast cereal with a bang. Britt Aamodt gets the scoop.

What makes Minnesota unique? The lakes, the weather...and the Minnesota Citizen's League. For over 60 years, the Minnesota Citizens League has helped tackle some of the toughest problems in the state. MN90 producer Allison Herrera tells us more about this influential organization.

Dan Jurgens had a Clark Kent childhood in Ortonville, Minnesota. But Britt Aamodt reveals that Jurgens's relationship with the Man of Steel didn’t end there.

The variety of toys available today seems endless. But in the 1940s, a now-classic toy designed near Lake Minnetonka practically ruled the industry. MN90 Producer Andi McDaniel takes us back the early days of Tonka trucks.

He was born John Wilfart in New Ulm, Minnesota. But legions of fans knew him as Whoopee John. Britt Aamodt resurrects the king of Midwest polka.

Before Oscar Wilde became a dead author studied in literature courses, he was a dandy with a love of beauty, the arts and the written word. Britt Aamodt gets the dirt on his drab overnight in Minneapolis

Will Weaver needed to get away from his father’s dairy farm to have more time to write. And did he write. Britt Aamodt examines how one of Weaver’s story went from New York Times notable book to film and stage.

William Albert Allard spent boyhood summers at Lake Gladstone outside Nisswa, Minnesota. Decades later, the National Geographic photographer returned, says Britt Aamodt, to tell the Minnesota Lake Country story in pictures.

The musician Yanni is famous for his New Age style and prolific solo career. But before he went out on his own, he was part of a “bombastic pop band” in the Twin Cities called Chameleon. MN90 Producer Andi McDaniel gives Chameleon a closer listen.

Babe Ruth was born in Baltimore, traded by Boston and beloved by the world. But Britt Aamodt looks at a day in 1922 when Babe Ruth came to Sleepy Eye, Minnesota.

Franz Halberg, a scientist and physician at the University of Minnesota, was fascinated by the human body’s daily rhythms. Not only did people wake and sleep in concert with the sun, but internal processes, like heart rate and blood pressure, also seemed to vary in a regular pattern. Britt Aamodt investigates the man who coined the term Circadian Rhythm