MPR fires three "Prairie Home Companion" veterans, including Garrison Keillor's son

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[Star Tribune]( Talkers Top stories - MPR fires three "Prairie Home Companion" veterans, including Garrison Keillor's son: Minnesota Public Radio has [dismissed three employees with long, deep ties to its landmark show]( "A Prairie Home Companion." - Twin Cities woman dies after vehicle plunges over North Shore cliff: A driver from the Twin Cities miscalculated her surroundings while on a steep drive along the North Shore, [went over a ledge and plunged to her death](, authorities said. - Jail mixup in Sioux Falls sets wrong inmate free: Authorities mistakenly released a suspected violent offender from a Sioux Falls jail, and now they are [turning to the public in their effort to capture the man.]( - Minnesota officials call report on rape investigations "horrific": Lawmakers and law enforcement leaders across the political spectrum [expressed outrage Monday at reports of breakdowns in the investigation of sexual assault]( in Minnesota and called for measures to guarantee justice for women who report rape. - Minneapolis Park Board, developers at odds over access to parkland: The Park Board has hit back against what it says is a unique list of requests by developers to encroach on parkland, with many projects [seeking access to the park system's 50 miles of parkways](. - Convicted sex offender abducts, rapes Otter Tail County woman, charges say: Anthony D. Randklev, 39, of Pelican Rapids, Minn., was charged Tuesday with abducting a woman from her western Minnesota home and raping her, alleged acts that [strongly resemble what landed him behind bars a decade earlier](. - White House to extend $12B in emergency aid to farmers hurt by Trump's trade war: The White House plans to announce [it is extending $12 billion in emergency aid to farmers]( caught in the midst of President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war, two people briefed on the plan said, the latest sign that growing tensions between the United States and other countries will not end soon. - In Iron Range town, Navy vet and city fight a never-ending battle over yard: ll Mike Allen wants out of life, he says, is to be left alone to enjoy a beer on his front porch. But some say that’s exactly the problem in Marble, where a recent Facebook post has [reignited a long-standing feud between Allen and officials]( in this Iron Range community of 680 residents about 190 miles north of the Twin Cities. - Dozens killed in Greece's deadliest wildfires in decades: [Wildfires raged through seaside resorts]( near the Greek capital of Athens, torching homes, cars and forests as they killed at least 74 people, authorities said Tuesday. Twenty-six of the dead were found huddled together in a compound, while a few bodies were recovered from the sea where they had fled to escape the flames and smoke. - Board recommends Cosby be named a sexually violent predator: Bill Cosby should be [classified as a sexually violent predator](, according to an assessment issued by Pennsylvania's Sexual Offenders Assessment Board.  Hey, look at this Winners of Drone Award photography contest unveiled: [This year's crop of Drone Award (Dronies?) winners](, especially the photo of the year of an ice-hopping polar bear in the Arctic and an aerial shot of the Mada'in Salah site in Saudi Arabia, do not disappoint.  Talk to us! Send feedback on this newsletter, questions, story tips, ideas or anything else to [talkers@startribune.com](.  Trending - Dessert-focused North Loop restaurant opens Wednesday: Blackberry-raspberry crumble ice cream. Hazelnut-chocolate mousse with hazelnut-praline crunch. Passion fruit soufflés. Dark chocolate tiramisu. Chinese five-spice Snickerdoodles. Got your attention? Edwards Dessert Kitchen opens Wednesday in the North Loop in Minneapolis, [promising these delicacies, and more.]( - With music, movies and food trucks, Twin Cities cemeteries mix sacred and secular: Cemeteries in the Twin Cities and across the nation are redefining [the balance between honoring a sacred place and welcoming the public to enjoy it]( — as well as teaching lessons about the past, generating revenue and returning to their original role as a parklike respite for urbanites. - Ailing Minneapolis musician Peter Ostroushko inspires supporters at fundraiser: During his introductory remarks, emcee Dale Connelly informed the overflow crowd Sunday at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in Minneapolis that they would eventually hear from Peter Ostroushko, for whom the evening was a potluck fundraiser. The virtuoso Minneapolis mandolinist/fiddler had suffered a stroke in January. [But nobody in the church was ready for Ostroushko’s remarks.]( Not for the humor. The honesty. The warmth. The grace. The inspiration. He spoke for a full 20 minutes.  Sports roundup - Tour de France riders sprayed with tear gas: Four-time champion Chris Froome, race leader Geraint Thomas, and world champion Peter Sagan were among riders whose eyes needed treatment for tear gas when [police intervened to disperse farmers protesting against funding cuts]( by disrupting the Tour de France on Tuesday. - Gophers, St. Thomas and NDSU will play in first basketball games at U.S. Bank Stadium: Eight teams, headlined by a match-up between Minnesota and Oklahoma State, will participate in the first U.S. Bank Stadium Basketball Classic later this year. The games are [a test run for the men's Final Four]( that will be held in April. - Fleck says Gophers football team is young but has potential: For the second time as Gophers coach, [P.J. Fleck took his turn at the podium]( at Big Ten football media days. His message centered on a team that will be young but one he believes holds promise.  Did someone forward this newsletter to you? You can [sign up for Talkers here](.  Quote of the day “I’m not lazy. I’m just old.” -- [Mike Allen](, the 69-year-old Navy veteran feuding with his neighbors and city officials in Marble, Minn., over his yard.  Worth a click Cell phone tower "overspray" in Maple Grove leaves more than 100 motorists with unplanned, custom paint jobs: "When a crew painted a cell phone tower near Highway 610 and Zachary Lane in Maple Grove late last month, car owners in the area soon realized that they were left with a speckled side effect," [KARE 11 reports.](  From the archives July 24, 1993: Derek Desens, 10, on the left, and his brother Jason, 13, perform at one of the corners of the farmers market in downtown Minneapolis. Their father was a vendor at the market and the boys usually played from 9 a.m. to noon. (Photo: Bruce Bisping/Star Tribune) Connect with Star Tribune [facebook]([twitter]([google+]([pinterest]([instagram]([tumblr]( [Manage email preferences]( • [Subscribe to Star Tribune]( • [Privacy Policy]( • [Unsubscribe]( This email was sent by: StarTribune, 650 3rd Ave S, Suite #1300, Minneapolis, MN, 55488 © 2018 StarTribune. All rights reserved. We value your opinion! [Give us your feedback.](