Virginia, MN

As many of you know, I'm writing a book about "Slap Shot."

My research has taken me to Johnstown, PA, where the movie was inspired and filmed, but I was unable to make it to Virginia, home of the Carlson brothers, Jeff, Jack and Steve.

I'm putting the finishing touches on the manuscript and I think it would be good to include some colo(u)r about Virginia. I just don't feel it's sufficient to say "it's in the Mesabi Iron Range, near the Canadian border".....I'd like to have something more than that.

I'm hoping there might be a Minnesota-based SJer out there who would be willing to supply me with some information. For instance, I mentioned Virginia is near the Canadian border - but roughly how near?

Any and all info would be appreciated, either on this thread or via PM. Thanks in advance!

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Cullen

 

Not to piggy-back too much on JJ's request, but here's something I'd like to know (since part of my research has taken me to that area, as well, although for far different reasons):

Why is that region now universally called the "Mesabi Iron Range" when nearly every contemporary reference I can find from the late 19th century to about the mid-20th century refers to it as the "Mesaba Iron Range"? When and why did that change?

 

After Moonlight Graham quit the Giants...

 

Paging Rosie...

 

I lived in Virginia for a little more than a year. It was my first job out of college, writing sports for The Mesabi Daily News. The main street is still full of bars, leftover from the hard-core mining days. On one side of town, there is a giant hole in the ground, the remnants of a mine pit. Most of the pits have been filled with water and stocked with fish. It's not really near the Canadian border; it's about halfway between Duluth and International Falls. It is/was a real union town -- if you've seen the movie North Country, about the sexual harrassment lawsuit against the mining companies, that took place in Eveleth, just south of Virginia. Lots of hockey up there. Big rivalries with Hibbing and Eveleth. I would hear bits and pieces about the Carlsons, and it sounds like they weren't much different than the Hansons.

 

Double J -- Not swiping at you, really I'm not, but you've stumbled upon a pet peeve with that "for instance, how far from the border" thing. I've run into reporters asking similar stuff over the years, and that one grates on me every time. Google maps. An atlas. Look it up. Even if you ask someone and they answer, are you going to take their word for it? Ultimately, you've got to verify it anyway...

Now, as far as local color, call the local rag. A good columnist would surely point you in the right direction of someone who's perfect for your purposes. No matter how much of a passing point that info's going to be in your work, do the legwork (or in this case, phone work). Maybe the mayor's a big hockey fan, or the Carlsons' coach, or someone else with a neat tie to local hockey lore -- the columnist is probably going to know, and would be a dick if they don't help you out.

Good luck. Sounds like it could be a must-read book for fans of the movie and non-fans alike.

 

Double J knows there are Minnesotans on this board so I don't see the problem with him asking general questions. What's wrong with asking? Doesn't mean he'd use any of it. Shouldn't he ask questions? How else do you learn?

Rosie would be the best person to talk to, but she doesn't seem to be around, now does she?

On the Minnesota Recount thread you started you asked me what Hennepin and Ramsey were. That's pretty basic stuff. Remember?

 

Difference between asking for personal edification and asking for information for something you're writing, Rough. If I'm writing a story that includes Hennepin and Ramsey, I'm damned sure going to look it up.

 

You think he wouldn't verify anything he's told here?

 

That's my point. Why ask if you have to look it up, anyway?

 

Do you really think all he wants is to know how far away Canada is?