Jeff Strate: A Mike “Stretch” Gelfand sighting

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Joan Rivers, Lewis Black, Jackie Vernon and Phyllis Diller were among the comedians Mike “Stretch” Gelfand and I talked about yesterday (September 4th) during a retreat to a Linden Hills caffeine pump, a kind of comfort zone for chronically under employed Wi-Fi junkies. We were unaware that Joan had passed away in Manhattan earlier in the afternoon but understood that she was on her way out.I recalled a scene in the riveting 2010 documentary “Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work” in which a stoked-up heckler in a rural Wisconsin casino fails to shame Rivers for pitching one-liners about Hellen Keller. With cinema verite footage, the film (co-directed by Edina native Annie Sundberg) essays a survivor recapturing her perch as one of America’s most funny and edgy comics.This is a Community Voices submission and is moderated but not edited. The opinions expressed by Community Voices contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the TC Daily Planet.We inconclusively pondered why Joan had allowed herself to be booked into a dead end comedy club in Wisconsin. Late of the KQRS Morning Show and with a textured life as a newspaper man, Canterbury Park horse racing tout, public relations flak, sports cableTV co-host, and cab driver, Mike Gelfand has also earned pocket change by booking Twin Cities comics into upper-midwest clubs. Continue Reading

“He fought to level the playing field”: KFAI volunteers remember Andy Driscoll

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Andy Driscoll, longtime KFAI volunteer and host of Truth To Tell, passed away on Sunday, July 20th at the age of 74. Andy had spent years in a struggle against pulmonary disease, and within the past year he went through chemotherapy for esophageal cancer and endured a series of strokes. In spite of the challenges, Andy continued to work with his Truth To Tell team to produce compelling radio programs through his nonprofit organization, Civic Media Minnesota.Andy’s final KFAI broadcast was a conversation on June 23rd about the recent trials of the Minnesota Orchestra and the renewed excitement of classical music fans with the signing of a musician contract and the return of Osmo Vanska. Appropriately, Andy’s sign-off was followed by another rich, deep voice – a cello played by the orchestra’s own Tony Ross. The audio of that program is included on this page [below].A tribute to Andy is in the planning stages.His fellow KFAI volunteers have expressed their sadness at Andy’s passing and their appreciation of his talents and passion. Continue Reading

BEHIND THE STORY | Thank you, Mary Turck!

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I just wanted to take a moment to thank TC Daily Planet’s editor, Mary Turck, for all she’s done for me and for the Planet. Mary’s last day is on Tuesday, July 15th and I’ve been preparing myself mentally and emotionally for her departure. My mentor, editor, collaborator and friend, I owe so much to her for her guidance and support.As someone who had zero training in journalism before I started contributing to TCDP in 2008, I had a lot to learn. Over the years I’ve gotten a lot of help from the staff and my fellow writers at the organization- Jay Gabler, Lisa Peterson de la Cueva and Ann Alquist, to name a few- but Mary has been the person that has encouraged me to take on the most challenging stories, has helped me wade through the wonkiest issues, has helped me find my voice as a writer and been my ally and defender when the waters got rough.With her strong sense of justice and her keen eye for bullshit, she has had no fear as an editor. Her background in law has been a handy asset in the trickiest of stories, but most of all she is always the quickest to tell when something just doesn’t seem right.She’s also patient as she guides new writers through the process, helping people at whatever stage they are at write the best story they can write. Continue Reading

Interviewing skills, values help MPR reporter uncover church’s secrets

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Madeleine Baran isn’t used to being in the spotlight. The Minnesota Public Radio reporter is more comfortable asking the questions and listening to others’ stories.But when she took the lead on an investigative story about sexual abuse by local Catholic priests, she started getting noticed. Her use of documents and interviews shed light on coverups and inaction by top-level church officials and prompted legal authorities to dig deeper into allegations.And that, Baran said, is a victory for her profession.”It shows the value of journalism, because here’s a story where the public did not know about it, and it was important and it required journalism – it required doing interviews, knowing how to fact-check things” and analyzing documents, she explained. “People want investigative reporting. It resonates with people. Continue Reading