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{{quote|''"Well, it's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, Minnesota, my hometown, out on the edge of the prairie."''|'''The traditional opener for the "News from Lake Wobegon" segment.'''}}
One of the more popular old-time [[Radio]] [[Variety Show|variety shows]]
Though the guest stars and location vary the segments almost always included are:
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** '''Beebop-A-Ree-Bop Rhubarb Pie''': In a similar vein to the Catchup Advisory Board, usually involves a long and drawn-out tale of failure and humiliation narrated by Garrison with appropriate sound effects. Always finishes with the catchy jingle and the phrase "Nothing gets the taste of humiliation out of your mouth like Beebop-A-Ree-Bop Rhubarb Pie."
* ''''[[French Cuisine Is Haughty|Café Boeuf]]''': An elite restaurant with Maurice the maitre d', who tends to be especially snooty, sometimes even insulting customers that do not meet their standards of class.
* '''Shout-Outs''': Before the show, people in the audience write down their hellos and personal messages to their loved ones. Post-[[Intermission]], Keillor tries to read as many as he can. (Example: Mick and Sharon want to say hi to Ed and Doris: Congratulations on the baby, Doris! Sorry we can't enjoy the cranberries and stuffing with you this year, but we'll see you next Thanksgiving, God willing. We promise to bring the oyster stuffing, and we also promise
* There is also always lots of folk music and general humor.
The radio show was [[Sound to Screen Adaptation|adapted into a film]] (famed director [[Robert Altman]]'s last) in 2006 - starring an [[Ensemble Cast]] and Garrison Keillor [[As Himself]] - which was generally well-received.
=== Tropes found in the radio show: ===▼
{{tropelist}}
* [[Affectionate Parody]] (Much of the source material, especially ''Guy Noir'' and ''The Lives of the Cowboys'', based respectively on old-time private eyes shows like ''[[The Shadow]]'' and lesser-known [[The Western|radio Westerns]], respectively.
** The Lake Wobegon skits are all parodic takes on nostalgic small-town media.
* [[Catch Phrase]] ("Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average." It's even given rise to [
* [[Celebrity Endorsement]] (For the Select Comfort SleepNumber bed, every episode since it was invented.)
* [[Defictionalization]] (Powdermilk Biscuit mix is sold at the Lake Wobegon store at the Mall of America.)
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* [[Filk Song]] (Frequently, for example a tribute to Leonard Bernstein to the tune of "[[West Side Story|Gee, Officer Krupke]]". When Marni Nixon (a great singer famous for having dubbed over many [[The King and I|great]] [[My Fair Lady|movie]] [[West Side Story|musicals]] and never once getting credit) performed at the Hollywood Bowl, she sang a parody of "[[My Fair Lady|I Could Have Danced All Night]]," called "[[Crowning Moment of Funny|I Could Have Dubbed Myself]]."
* [[Foreign Queasine]]: Lutefisk, lutefisk, lutefisk. Prepared in the trunk of the local seafood store owner's car, since it kills all his other business if he makes it in the shop and his wife won't allow it in the house.
* [[Foreigner for
* [[Harpo Does Something Funny]]: The Lake Wobegon monologues are totally unscripted.
* [[Hey,
** Actor and Sound Effects artist Fred Newman has also played [[Doug|Skeeter]] and [[Doonesbury|Uncle Duke.]]
* [[Ho Yay]]: Occasionally between Dusty and Lefty, the cowboys. They tend to say "my partner", which makes people think of the [[Have a Gay Old Time|the newer version of "partner".]]
* [[Ice Cream Koan]] (The following joke is a [[Running Gag]], because it has no real meaning:)
{{quote|
* [[If I Had a Nickel]]: In a Guy Noir sketch set in New York:
{{quote|
* [[Keep Circulating the Tapes]]: It's one of the few public radio shows not archived in its' entirety online, due to music licensing issues. Comedy segments are available, however, and there are cassette and CD sets floating about.
* [[Key Under the Doormat]]. Howie Humde, inventor of the Cow-Pie Key Hider, is a sponsor of the show.
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* [[Quirky Town]] (Lake Wobegon, natch)
* [[Real Song Theme Tune]]: "Tishomingo Blues", but with lyrics rewritten for the show:
{{quote|''Oh, hear that old piano, from down the avenue.
''I smell the [[Couch Gag|<insert city-related objects>]], I look around for you<br />
''My sweet, sweet old someone, comin' through that door<br />
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* [[Slice of Life]]/[[Life Embellished]]: Lake Wobegon, a take-off on nostalgic anecdotes you read about all the time.
* [[Strawman Political]]
* [[Tongue
* [[Where the Hell Is Springfield?]] Lake Wobegon is in central Minnesota, but doesn't appear on any maps because the state was charted by four surveyors, starting at opposite corners and meeting in the middle, and Lake Wobegon is right where the maps they'd made overlapped. [[Blatant Lies|True story]].
** Furthermore, the "hole" in the map consists of Mist County, of which Lake Wobegon is county seat. The only way they have any train service at all is because the tracks were laid there by mistake. And you have to petition for each and every train to come there, because nobody has heard of the place.
* [[All
* [[Angel Unaware]]: Asphodel
* [[As Himself]]: Garrison Keillor. Actually, the character he playes is credited as "G.K.", with some notable personality differences: the [[Real Life]] Keillor doesn't have any problems with giving memorials on the radio, including moments of silence, and is only ''slightly'' less of a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] than his film equivalent.
* [[Cloudcuckoolander]]: Guy Noir most definitely ''and'' a lot of his clients; Garrison to a lesser extent.
* [[Dead Air]]: After one of the singers passes away backstage during the show, they briefly consider having a moment of silence for him on the show.
{{quote|
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]:
{{quote|
'''Garrison Keillor:''' ''Every show is your last show. That's my philosophy. ''
'''Rhonda Johnson:''' ''[[Sarcasm Mode|Thank you, Plato.]]'' }}
* [[Folk Music]]
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* [[Mood Whiplash]]: Done ''brilliantly'' when the Johnson Sisters' [[Tear Jerker|heartbreaking]] duet "Goodbye to my Mama" is followed up immediately by Dusty and Lefty singing "Bad Jokes" which is 4 1/2 minutes of pure, unadulterated [[Crowning Moment of Funny]].
* [[Murder Ballad]]
* [[Never Say "Die"]]: Averted; we're told outright that, at the request of Guy Noir, {{spoiler|Asphodel caused the critic's car to plunge fatally over a cliff}} because [[You Can't Fight Fate|it makes no difference in the end]].
* [[Only Sane Man]]: The two stage managers, hustling around behind the scenes trying to make sure the show happens ''despite'' the talent.
* [[The Show Must Go On]]
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** [[George Clooney]] was offered the role of Guy Noir, but regretfully turned it down due to scheduling conflicts. Keillor jokes in the screenplay that he actually wanted Clooney to play ''him''.
* [[While Rome Burns]]: The singers bravely put on one last show for the memories.
* [["Well Done, Son" Guy]]: "Well done daughter woman", more like. Guy Noir helps quite a few people with these issues.
* [[Woman in White]]: Pops up a few times in Guy Noir.
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:Radio]]
[[Category:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prairie Home Companion, A}}
[[Category:Radio of the 1970s]]
[[Category:Radio of the 1980s]]
[[Category:Radio of the 1990s]]
[[Category:Radio of the 2000s]]
[[Category:Radio of the 2010s]]
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