In the late 1980s, attending a journalism conference near Lake Calhoun, I walked to a bench next to the path around the lake. “Is anyone sitting here?” a deep and distinctive voice asked. “No, have a seat,” I said. “I’m Fritz,” he said, holding out his hand. He needed no introduction. Walter Mondale, the former…
Today in History Today is Thursday, Jan. 23, the 23rd day of 2025. There are 342 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On Jan. 23, 1368, China’s Ming dynasty, which lasted nearly three centuries, began as Zhu Yuanzhang (zhoo whan-zhahng) was formally acclaimed Hongwu Emperor, following the collapse of the Yuan dynasty. …
MANKATO — Debby Johnson was Debby Dundas and a high school senior when presidential nominee Jimmy Carter visited Mankato in the fall of 1976. Now a retired Winnebago resident, Johnson then played baritone in the Mankato East High School marching band when Carter and vice presidential nominee Walter Mondale flew into the Mankato airport and…