''Almanac'' is a weekly public affairs

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

produced by

Twin Cities Public Television Twin Cities Public Television, Inc. (abbreviated TPT, doing business as Twin Cities PBS) is a nonprofit organization based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, that operates the Twin Cities' two PBS member television stations, KTCA-TV (channe ...

(TPT) in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center ...

, and distributed to other channels around the state via the

Minnesota Public Television Association The Minnesota Public Television Association (MPTA), also commonly known as Minnesota Public Television, is a not-for-profit trade organization of public television stations in the state of Minnesota that operates an interconnecting statewide educa ...

. It has aired weekly on Friday nights since December 7, 1984.

Format

A 90-second monologue, typically by a local humorist, was originally presented near the beginning of each edition of the show. It now occurs in the middle of the program. Some monologists who have made many appearances include Dr. Mark DePaolis,

James Lileks James Lileks is an American journalist, columnist, author, and blogger living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is the creator of The Gallery of Regrettable Foods website. Career Columnist Lileks began his writing career as a columnist for the ...

, Jim Ragsdale, Dominic Papatola, Roy Finden, Kevyn Berger, Carol Falkowski, and J.G. Preston (an employee of the show until his departure in 2005). Members of the leadership in the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint ...

and

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any U.S. state legislature. Floor sessions are h ...

frequently appear during their tenures. Guest political analysts include educators, lobbyists, and former legislators. Frequent panelists of recent years include

David Strom David M. Strom (born 1964) is a Conservative in Minnesota. Personal Strom graduated from Carleton College (1987) in Northfield, Minnesota, with a degree in political science and he holds a master's degree in political science from Duke Univ ...

from the Minnesota Free Market Institute, former Minnesota State Senator Fritz Knaak,

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

lobbyist Sarah Janecek, former press secretary for former U.S. senator

Norm Coleman Norman Bertram Coleman Jr. (born August 17, 1949) is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist. From 2003 to 2009, he served as a United States Senator for Minnesota. From 1994 to 2002, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota. First elected ...

Andy Brehm, DFL lobbyist-turned-educator Wy Spano, former DFL legislator

Ember Reichgott Junge Ember Reichgott Junge (born August 22, 1953) is an attorney, radio personality, and former state senator from Minnesota, representing New Hope and surrounding communities. A Democrat, she was elected to the Senate at age 29 and served for 18 ...

, and

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

professors Hy Berman (history), Kathryn Pearson, and Larry Jacobs (political science). The end of the show features an "Index File" trivia question, though it sometimes gets cut if the show runs long. Credits run over show-ending music, sometimes live but often pulled from TPT's library of musical recordings dating back to the 1970s. A live broadcast to celebrate the series's 20th anniversary in April 2005 was transmitted in

HDTV High-definition television (HD or HDTV) describes a television system which provides a substantially higher image resolution than the previous generation of technologies. The term has been used since 1936; in more recent times, it refers to the g ...

. TPT claimed it was the first live high-definition broadcast in the area. Since the show's inception, its theme song has been "Anthem Internationale" from Dave Grusin's 1982 album '' Out of the Shadows''.

Presenters

Longtime hosts Eric Eskola and Cathy Wurzer were married for many years, but have divorced. They have also spent time at other area stations: Eskola contributed political reports to WCCO radio until being laid off in May 2010, and Wurzer hosts the regional portion of ''

Morning Edition ''Morning Edition'' is an American radio news program produced and distributed by NPR. It airs weekday mornings (Monday through Friday) and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 5:00 to 9:00 A ...

'' at

Minnesota Public Radio Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), is a public radio network for the state of Minnesota. With its three services, News & Information, YourClassical MPR and The Current, MPR operates a 46-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest. MPR ha ...

. Eskola is noted for his fondness for scarves, wearing a different one each week during the cold months. Mary Lahammer provides political reports from the Minnesota State Capitol when the legislature is in session. David Gillette creates illustrated essays and hosts ''Almanac'''s online bonus show, "The Wrap." Lahammer and Gillette also appear on ''Almanac: At the Capitol'' during the legislative session.

References

{{reflist

External links

*
Almanac
' official website 1980s American television series

Format

Presenters

See also

References

External links