New one-day attendance record at Minnesota State Fair on Sunday; People’s Choice Awards

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On Sunday, September 1, the Minnesota State Fair’s turn-out of 236,197 set a single-day attendance record, according to Fair officials. The record-setting Sunday came after a week of unrelenting heat and humidity, which lowered attendance  in the middle of the Fair’s 12-day run. The 2013 State Fair started out strong, with the first three days beating the 2012 daily attendance records. Then Sunday, August 25’s higher temperatures caused the Fair to lose gate crowds. Thursday, August 29 saw a slight increase, then a dip again. Continue Reading

The Internet Cat Video Festival: Nine memorable moments

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Everybody loves cats; this is something we all know and have slowly come to terms with over the past 3,000 years or so. There is a beautiful masochism in showering undying love and devotion onto creatures that, more or less, really only care about the food you provide (and probably kind of want to kill you). So I guess that means it’s kind of empowering when we coerce cats into humiliating situations and film it for the viewing pleasure of millions of people worldwide.It’s also why an Internet Dog Video Festival would be kind of depressing.But the Walker Art Center’s second annual Internet Cat Video Festival, August 28 at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand, wasn’t so much fun as it was surreal—which is certainly better than being boring, but most definitely makes it harder to explain. I really took for granted the joys of people watching before today; people are so interesting, especially when they’re dressed as cats.I’m going to share with you, in no particular order, some of my favorite mind-blowing festival moments—because the people who worship our feline friends are actually a lot more interesting than the felines themselves. There were a few moments that I was far too sober to fully appreciate, and all of those moments involve Koo Koo Kangaroo. After they threw giant balls of yarn into the audience I was about to forsake all hope when the jumbo screens in front of the stage flashed a short audience dance number showcasing none other than the Daily Planet’s own Jay Gabler (who probably didn’t know anyone could see him shaking it to the song “Cat Party”). Continue Reading

State Fair diary: Of cats and kids

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If you live in Minnesota you’ve got your own theories about our seasons. Maybe you enjoy the four seasons rationale: spring, summer, fall, winter. Maybe you subscribe to the two seasons philosophy: In Minnesota we have two seasons; snow and construction. I live by the three season code: there is Pre-State Fair, State Fair, and Post-State Fair. Continue Reading

TC Weekend | Labor Day, hot fun at Family Day, Copa Comunidad Midwest, the State Fair and more!

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Believe it or not, Labor Day weekend is here! The kids are back in school, and cooler weather is right around the corner.  But summer is not going out without a fight, or at least one last warm and sticky embrace. Indeed, this year’s Labor Day weekend looks to be a scorcher, but the heat will not be around for long. So why not get out and dance to summer’s swan song?Beyond visiting the lakes, BBQs, Minnehaha Falls, etc., there are a number of community get-togethers, fairs, and festivals taking place. Below are a few events to enjoy in the Twin Cities this Labor Day Weekend: First annual “Copa Comunidad Midwest,” Friday, August 30 to Monday, September 2. Advertised as a gathering of “futbol, fantastic food, community building, leftist/anti-imperialist discussions, art, dancing…” this event includes two days of futbol, a performance showcase/dance party on Saturday and much more. Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | The 2013 Internet Cat Video Festival: Return of the cat people

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The 2012 Internet Cat Video Festival was a zeitgeist moment if ever there was one. Over 10,000 people crowded the green hill outside of the Walker Art Center to pay tribute to the many felines that undoubtdley have gotten them through late nights and workplace tedium. Views of the screen were premium and it was clear that no one, including the Walker Art Center, anticipated just how many people would show up to watch something you could see online. The mood throughout that screening was electric, the sensation of knowing that you were part of something deeply unique and special. In it’s own LOL-way, the cat video festival was the most anyone could hope a film screening would be. Continue Reading

State Fair – send photos!

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Going to the Great Minnesota Sweat-Together? Whether you focus on French fries or love those llamas, send us your best State Fair photos. Sharing your pics with us is easy: just tag them with #tcdpic on Instagram, Tumblr, Flickr, or Twitter—or e-mail them to jay@tcdailyplanet.net. Check back right here to see your photos in our gallery. Continue Reading

Minnesota State Fair: A new year, a new Luminarium

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Last year, the Minnesota State Fair premiered Architects of Air’s Luminarium Mirazozo exhibit, a popular stop with fairgoers. This year, Architects of Air return with a new theme on their Luminarium display: Exxopolis. Co-exhibition manager Jayne Willox said lots of people from last year’s State Fair “came right away the first day of the Fair just to see the new Luminarium.”

The Luminarium is a walk-through sculpture of winding paths, private coves and soaring domes of light and color. Inspired by natural geometry, Islamic architecture and Gothic cathedrals, the Exxopolis is constructed of 32,000 square feet of plastic shaped into 9,000 individual pieces joined by nearly four miles of seams.

Alex Gilham, of Nottingham, England, one of the four on-site exhibition managers, said Exxopolis is slightly bigger, and completely different, than the Luminarium of last year. Exxopolis has been called very “cathedral-istic,” said Gilham. Continue Reading