Tales of the Road

A dashing silent film star, a crusty former trapper and his Disney movie otters and the legendary Bob Dylan have all played big parts in making Highway 61 in Minnesota the iconic highway that it is.
Cathy Wurzer's Tales of the Road documentary will air on TPT Sunday, May 31, 7:00 PM on Channel 2 and Wednesday, June 3, 7:00 PM on Channel 17.
Beautifully filmed, this first-of-its-kind documentary uses a little known, antique travel guide to Minnesota, the WPA Guide to the Arrowhead Country, published by MHS Press. Driving a 1946 Cadillac sedan, Cathy Wurzer takes that guide and her viewers down Highway 61 to see what historic sites have been lost along the road and which are still there. A non-descript machine shop outside of Winona used to be a rollicking nightclub. A creamery on Barnum’s Main Street was home to a business that saved the town. Cathy explores the secrets and stories along the highway that will leave viewers saying, “I didn’t know that!”
After years spent behind the microphone for Minnesota Public Radio and in front of the camera for TPT-2 as the co-host of the long running show “Almanac”, this is Wurzer’s first opportunity to be an executive producer, and she did it, balancing the demands of production with her full-time job and in the midst of a tour for Tales of the Road: Highway 61 the companion book published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. The book has been a regional best-seller since making its debut in October of 2008.
Cathy Wurzer is one of the Upper Midwest’s premiere broadcast journalists. The Minnesota native is the host of “Morning Edition” on Minnesota Public Radio. She has won numerous Emmy Awards for her work as the co-host of “Almanac” on Twin Cities Public Television. Click on the “Upcoming Events” section of the MHS Press website for information on area events with Cathy Wurzer.