WKSU HOSTS LOCAL PREMIERE OF "A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION"
GARRISON KEILLOR/ROBERT ALTMAN FILM AT SHAKER SQUARE CINEMAS
Friday May 26, 2006

Garrison Keillor first welcomed listeners into his world of old-time radio and small town life of "A Prairie Home Companion" more than 30 years ago. In the three decades since, the program, one of the most popular in public radio, has become a cornerstone of Saturday evenings across the country. In June, "A Prairie Home Companion" marks another landmark by becoming the first public radio show to serve as the basis for a full-length feature film directed by someone with a Golden Palm from the Cannes Film Festival – in this case, Academy Award-winner Robert Altman.

WKSU celebrates the launch of the big screen version of "A Prairie Home Companion" with a local premiere at Shaker Square Cinemas on Thursday, June 8, the day before the film opens to the general public. Tickets are $15 and include admission to the showing at 7:30 p.m., a small popcorn and soft drink, and a pre-film reception from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. with live music and food from Marigold Caterers in Cleveland. Seating is limited. Tickets are now on sale at the Shaker Square box office or online at ClevelandCinemas.com (service fees apply to online sales). Proceeds benefit WKSU.

WKSU Public Relations Director Bob Burford says, "The 'Prairie Home Companion' movie is a fun opportunity for listeners to see many of public radio's favorite characters come to life. With the help of our friends at Shaker Square Cinemas, our local premiere offers film and Keillor lovers an early chance to see the movie, as well as a festive atmosphere with live music, good food, film-centered prizes and more!"

Produced from a script by Keillor, the "A Prairie Home Companion" film has an all-star ensemble that includes three Academy Award-winners (Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Kline and Meryl Streep), four Academy Award-nominees (Woody Harrelson, Virginia Madsen, John C. Reilly and Lily Tomlin), rising stars Lindsey Lohan and Maya Rudolph, and members of the "A Prairie Home Companion" radio program (Keillor, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and The Guy's All-Star Shoe Band). The fictionalized storyline is set in the historic Fitzgerald Theatre in St. Paul, MN (the public radio program’s actual home) and follows the cast and crew of a long-running radio show on the eve of what could be its final performance.

Altman first burst into the Hollywood spotlight as the director of the original film version of "M*A*S*H" (1974) and has gone on to build a reputation for somewhat improvised films with large casts, including "Nashville," "The Player" and "Gosford Park." In 2006, Altman was presented with an Honorary Academy Award for his lifetime of innovative work.

Shaker Square Cinemas are located at 13116 Shaker Square. Cleveland Cinemas, which also owns and operates the Cedar Lee Theatre, opened the Shaker Square Cinemas in 2000 in the former Colony Theatre in Cleveland’s historic Shaker Square.

WKSU broadcasts NPR & Classical Music at 89.7 FM, and is a service of Kent State University. WKSU programming is also heard on WKRW 89.3 FM in Wooster, WKRJ 91.5 FM in Dover/New Philadelphia, WKSV 89.1 FM in Thompson, WNRK 90.7 in Norwalk, W298BA 107.5 FM in Boardman, and W239AZ 95.7 FM in Ashland. The WKSU web site is www.wksu.org.

PR06.10 ### 5/23/06
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