Catalog
March of the Governors: Arne Carlson
Paul Nelson and Tom BeerArne Carlson, Minnesota’s thirty-seventh governor, was a Swede and a progressive Republican, like several before him, but unlike them, too. He grew up poor in New York City and had no connection to the dominant Harold Stassen political lineage. Carlson came to Minnesota for graduate school—then won election after election:…
March of the Governors, Governor #36: Rudy Perpich Part II
Paul Nelson and Anne FieldPart II: Following his gubernatorial defeat in 1978, Rudy Perpich (1928-1995) spent a few years in Vienna, Austria, working as a trade representative for Control Data Corporation, but it wasn’t long before he began planning another run for the state’s highest role. Voters remembered him fondly and ushered him back…
March of the Governors: Al Quie
Paul Nelson and Tom O'ConnellAlbert H. Quie (1923-2023) left a safe seat in Congress after twenty years to run for governor in 1978. In that, his timing was good. He rode around the “Minnesota Massacre” and into office as the state’s thirty-fifth governor along with fellow Republicans Dave Durenberger and Rudy Boschwitz, who were…
March of the Governors: Rudy Perpich
Paul Nelson and Anne FieldMarch of the Governors, Governor #34 Rudy Perpich (Series Podcast #37) Rudy Perpich (1928-1995) served as Minnesota’s thirty-fourth governor in the years 1977 and 1978. He got there by succession when Wendell Anderson resigned. Perpich then appointed Anderson to the US…
March of the Governors: Wendell Anderson
Ken Peterson and Paul NelsonMarch of the Governors, Governor #33 Wendell Anderson (Series Podcast #36) Before an ignominious electoral end, Wendell “Wendy” Anderson was one of Minnesota’s most significant and popular governors. Born and raised on St. Paul’s East Side, he had been an Olympic hockey…
March of the Governors: Harold Levander
Paul Nelson, Matt WrightMarch of the Governors, Governor #32 Harold Levander (Series Podcast #35) Harold Levander (1910-1982) ran for political office once in his long life, in 1966. He defeated incumbent governor Karl Rolvaag, served four years, and never ran for office again. He had been…
March of the Governors: Karl Fritjof Rolvaag
Tom Beer, Paul NelsonMarch of the Governors, Governor #31 Karl Fritjof Rolvaag (Series Podcast #34) Karl Fritjof Rolvaag (1913-1990) grew up in Northfield, the son of acclaimed novelist Ole Rolvaag. Upon his father’s untimely death in 1931, Rolvaag roamed the West for five years, working…
March of the Governors: Elmer L. Andersen
Paul Nelson, Hampton SmithMarch of the Governors, Governor #30 Elmer L. Andersen (Series Podcast #33) For Elmer L. Andersen, his single term as governor (1961-1963) marked a brief episode in a life of remarkable accomplishment. From modest beginnings in Muskegon, Michigan, Andersen rose from salesman…
March of the Governors: Orville Freeman
Paul Nelson and Tom O'ConnellMarch of the Governors, Governor #29 Orville Lothrop Freeman (Series Podcast #32) Orville Lothrop Freeman (1918-2003) was, like governors Floyd Olson and Luther Youngdahl before him, a product of the streets and schools of Minneapolis: His parents ran a clothing store on…