Small circles of NPR nerds were aflutter this week with the rumor that Garrison Keillor, host of A Prairie Home Companion, would be retiring in two years. He did respond to the rumors on the internets by stating, in short, that he was wanting to “step quietly into the wings” in spring of 2013.
I have real mixed feelings about the show. Over the past several years I found myself initially enjoying it, with its olde-tyme charmmes and all, but lately I’ve found it to be too cloying and precious for me. Maybe it’s me, but I definitely can’t listen weekly anymore; there’s not much in it for me unless a musical guest I like is performing.
But I will say that I’ve really enjoyed the shows I’ve heard at Ravinia. And Garrison Keillor does have a fine voice for radio. I do wonder, though, what the future of the show will be without him. I’m very curious about the show’s demographics and, in particular, if this still connects for a lot of people. I suspect it does, and I do hope the transition away from Keillor is a smooth one.
We’ll follow up on this one in 2013. Stay tuned.
Posted in Television, Movies, and Music