Garrison Keilor

I love it when no one from my department is here--I get so much work done that I don't feel bad about taking a little blogging break. So here's a story for you:

Yesterday, as I was checking email and reading American news sites, I was drenched in ads for A Prarie Home Companion, the new movie coming out tomorrow created by Garrison Keilor and Robert Altman.

Most people my age are only vaguely aware of who Garrison Keilor is: some guy who does a radio show on NPR...and there's music??

But not me. Oh no, I know who Garrison Keilor is. And here's why:

Family vacation, circa 1988. The five of us were calmly eating breakfast in a restaurant at Emerald Cove, a Lake Tahoe "harbor" from which the Tahoe Queen paddleboat takes tourists around the lake and narrates local history and folklore (with little distinction between the two). I calmly ate my pancakes, and noticed two little biddies whispering to each other and watching us. At that stage, my brothers--aged 2 and 5--were both adorable and over-active (a situation that hasn't changed in the last 18 years), and I wasn't surprised that grandmas would giggle over them. I kept eating my pancakes, and tried to ignore my brothers and the older women.

We were meandering to our car when the two women came bustling out of the restaurant, waving pens and pieces of paper.

"Mr. Keilor! Mr. Keilor! We're so sorry to bother you, but would you please give us your autograph?" The women giggled nervously as they gazed at my dad. My mom herded the boys toward the car, while my dad politely explained that he wasn't, in fact, Mr. Keilor. The women, crestfallen, returned to the restaurant. From their sharp glances back, and whispers, they seemed to be trying to decide whether my dad had told them the truth, or if Mr. Keilor had just lied to them.

This was not the first or last time this happened, although over the years it has petered out. With this movie coming out, reminding the American public of who Mr. Keilor is, and what he looks like, I think my dad may be up for a new wave of autograph seekers.

p.s. Would someone give me a personal review of the movie? It's directed by Robert Altman and stars Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Kline, Woody Harrelson, John C. Reilly, Maya Rudolph (of SNL fame), Lindsay Lohan (sad sigh), and, of course, the veritable Mr. Keilor. With that cast it has to be amusing at worst, brilliant at best. It's rated PG-13 for " risque language." No really, it says "risque." I'm not paraphrasing. That's what happens when you get a wordsmith like Mr. Keilor involved. :)