city: minneapolis
bryant junior high school (former)
from oregon trail posted in video games by pete_nice
In the fall of 1971, three student teachers (Bill Heinemann, Paul Dillenberger and Don Rawitsch) were trying to figure out how to make the historical subject unit of “The Western Expansion of the Mid-19th Century" more interesting to students.
Rawitsch was already developing a board game, but they came up with the idea of making it into a video game. Computers were rare in those days, but the crew used a teletype computer in a former janitor's broom closet at Bryant Junior High School to crank out an early prototype of the video game in 2 weeks: Oregon Trail was born.
The success of the game grew rapidly, the ownership of the game and the company changed hands several times. Oregon Trail helped to begin an era of educational video games and still remains popular to this day.
Source: Mental Floss
view full location details...marcy playground
from marcy playground posted in music by donkeyoti
The band Marcy Playground is named after the playground of the Marcy Open School where lead singer and guitarist John Wozniak attended as a youth.
cheetahs eating zebra mural
from broken crow posted in art and design by prof_improbable
Behind the Peace Coffee Shop and Trylon Microcinema is a mural by Broken Crow that depicts some cheetahs feasting on a zebra. Yum...
view full location details...the wedge co-op
from stuck between stations posted in movies by chewing_the_scenery
Casper and Becky Fine go to the Wedge Co-op on Lyndale for a late night snack during their trek through Minneapolis in Stuck Between Stations. It's not really open at three A.M. in case you were wondering.
view full location details...birchbark books
from louise erdrich posted in literature by nevereatshreddedwheat
Birchbark Books is an independent bookstore in Minneapolis owned by author and Minnesota native Louise Erdrich. She won the 2012 National Book Award for her novel The Round House.