TRAVELS WITH THE WNP

Literary St. Paul
By Charity Tahmaseb

St. Paul, Minnesota's literary roots encompass everything from classic literature to classic comic characters. Let two famous authors be your guide to downtown St. Paul.

The Jazz Age

It was an age of miracles, it was an age of art, it was an age of excess, and it was an age of satire. - F. Scott Fitzgerald, "Echoes of the Jazz Age"

In Rice Park, in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, stands a life-sized statue of F. Scott Fitzgerald, his gaze somewhere between the Saint Paul Hotel on the left and the St. Paul Public Library on the right. A quick walk through Rice Park, established seven years before Central Park in New York City, brings you to the St. Paul Public Library.

While a library may not be on your vacation agenda, consider a stop inside anyway. Explore the cool, hushed halls and quiet reading rooms. Admire the Italian Renaissance revival style, and pick out publisher marks from the 1910s on the ceiling in the Nicholson Information Commons. On your way out, be sure to take a brochure and map of Fitzgerald sites from the F. Scott Fitzgerald reading alcove and a smoothie from the Zelda Café.

F. Scott (for Francis Scott Key) Fitzgerald was born in St. Paul on Sept. 24, 1896. While his home at 481 Laurel Avenue in the Cathedral Hill District is now a designated National Literary Landmark, it remains a private residence, as are many of the landmarks on the Fitzgerald tour of St. Paul.

Writers may want to visit 599 Summit Avenue where Fitzgerald received the equivalent of "the call" from Scribner's for This Side of Paradise. (Writers should also note that it was accepted after two rejections and Fitzgerald completed a third revision.)

If you wish to follow in F. Scott and Zelda's footsteps - or simply need some pampering -the Saint Paul Hotel is the place to stay in downtown St. Paul. Built in 1910, it is one of the country's top-ranked hotels, not to mention the temporary abode for F. Scott and Zelda in 1921 while they were between homes. The Saint Paul Hotel runs specials such as the romance package that includes champagne and tuxedo strawberries. Have the kids along? Don't worry - try the Science Museum family package for four.

The Play's the Thing

Also built in 1910, The Fitzgerald Theater is the oldest surviving theater in St. Paul. Renamed in 1994 for F. Scott Fitzgerald, the space has hosted films, vaudeville shows, Broadway musicals, and concerts. Today is it home to Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion (a Minnesota icon in and of itself). You can buy tickets not only for the live Saturday evening broadcasts, but also the Friday night previews of the same show (for less).

If a play's your thing, the Fitzgerald isn't the only place in downtown St. Paul to catch one. The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts caters to a diverse audience, offering everything from Broadway musicals to the Minnesota Opera. On a smaller scale, consider the Park Square Theater. A mid-size theater, it produces a wide range of plays, from You Can't Take it With You to Proof.

For the Kids: A Comic Connection

How many inches of snow cover Snoopy's water dish on any given winter's day? Ever notice how cold Linus gets while waiting for the Great Pumpkin?

Perhaps it isn't such a surprise that Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz is a Minnesota native, born in Minneapolis in 1922. Rejected by his own high school yearbook, he began his career as a cartoonist when the St. Paul Pioneer Press published his panel comic strip Li'l Folks in 1947 - published, that is, without pay. Even after selling several cartoons to The Saturday Evening Post, Schulz still couldn't secure a paying position from the newspaper so he pursued syndication.

Eventually, United Features Syndicate picked up Li'l Folks (renaming it Peanuts, a name Schulz apparently hated), and the strip first appeared in seven newspapers, including the Pioneer Press's rival across the river, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

The rest, as they say, is history. At the time of his retirement, the Peanuts strip was featured in 2,600 newspapers worldwide.

To honor Charles Schulz and his contributions, St. Paul put on an art event similar to Cows on Parade in Chicago to raise money for a series of bronze statues and the Art Instruction Schools where Schulz studied. From 2000 to 2004, temporary five-foot figurines of Snoopy, Charlie Brown, and Lucy dotted the city streets.

You can still spy some of the characters in local businesses. In the summer, Lucy, Snoopy, and Linus entice visitors into a St. Paul icon, Candyland on Wabasha Street (try the freshly popped popcorn, especially the Chicago mix).

The permanent bronze replicas of the Peanuts gang now grace two of St. Paul's downtown parks. In the Landmark Plaza Park, you can find Charlie Brown with Snoopy, Sally and Linus, while Schroeder serenades Lucy on his piano. Over in Rice Park, football-kicking distance away from F. Scott Fitzgerald, is Peppermint Patty. Nearby, studious Marcie reads a book on a park bench.

Rice Park puts you about equal distance from two wonderful, family-friendly St. Paul attractions. Overlooking the Mississippi River is the Science Museum of Minnesota, while a few blocks away, you can visit the Minnesota Children's Museum.

Play a few rounds of mini-golf at the Science Museum in the new Big Back Yard. Search for fossils and pan for gemstones. For indoor fun, take in the featured movie at the Omnitheater. Or explore many of the permanent and temporary exhibits, including the Human Body Gallery and the Dinosaur and Fossils Gallery. Be sure to stop by one of the most treasured pieces in the museum's collection: the Triceratops. Not only is this guy one of only four real mounted Triceratops specimens in the world, it is also the most complete.

Not tired yet? Head on over to the Minnesota Children's Museum. Geared for children six months to 10 years, the Children's Museum makes a wonderful outing for the entire family. Children can role-play in the "Our World" exhibit: shopping in the market, cooking in the restaurant, and dancing in the sound stage.

Climb to the very top of the museum and create works of art in the Rooftop Art Park. Or dress up as an ant and explore the innards of the giant (child-size) anthill (one of the more popular exhibits).

If all this makes you hungry, grab a bite to eat at the delightfully retro Mickey's Diner (36 W. Ninth St.). Housed in an art-deco 1930s railroad car, Mickey's Diner serves up greasy-spoon type fare. If you're thinking you've seen Mickey's somewhere before, you may be right. The diner has been featured in at least four Hollywood movies (including The Mighty Ducks and the forthcoming film based on Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion).
 
Baby, It's Cold Outside

Who says there's nothing to do in Minnesota during the winter? Hearty types might want to schedule a trip during the last part of January/beginning of February. During this time, the St. Paul Winter Carnival is in full force.

Established in 1886 after a New York reporter called St. Paul "another Siberia, unfit for human habitation," the carnival has been going strong ever since, proof that there is life in Minnesota during the winter.

Bundle up the kids for the King Boreas Grande Day Parade that kicks off the Winter Carnival. Events range from the expected ice carving and snow sculpture competitions to art exhibits and even an orchid show. Be sure to visit the centerpiece of each celebration: the Ice Palace. Extensive preparation goes into each palace, including pouring concrete foundations, running underground electrical wires, and harvesting ice from nearby lakes.

So whatever the season or literary taste, there's something for everyone in downtown St. Paul.

For more information:

Science Museum of Minnesota: http://www.smm.org/

Minnesota Children's Museum: http://www.mcm.org/

Candyland: http://www.candylandstore.com

The St. Paul Public Library: http://www.stpaul.lib.mn.us/

Saint Paul Hotel http://www.stpaulhotel.com/

The Fitzgerald Theater: http://fitzgeraldtheater.publicradio.org/

The Ordway Center for Performing Arts: www.ordway.org

Park Square Theater: http://www.parksquaretheatre.org/

The St. Paul Winter Carnival: http://www.winter-carnival.com/


Charity Tahmaseb spends her weekdays in downtown St. Paul and passes F. Scott Fitzgerald each morning on her way to work.
 

To read last month's Travel article, click here

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