A dream come trueAlumna meets her idol, radio star Garrison KeillorBy Sarah Colvin, Kent State public relations studentThis is a story of a star-struck groupie, Cynthia Beckes-O’Connor, who got the chance to talk with the star of A Prairie Home Companion, Garrison Keillor. Beckes-O’Connor graduated from Kent State University with a Master of Education in higher education administration in 2001 and a Master of Liberal Studies in 2003. She met Keillor at The Chautauqua Institute in New York years ago, the first time his show played there. “I went up for the weekend with the express hope of being able to speak to him for a few minutes,” she says. She stood in the rain watching the troupe rehearse all afternoon in the amphitheater where they would perform live that evening. “I noticed Mr. Keillor asking someone who I was because I stood there under my umbrella for the whole rehearsal,” Beckes-O’Connor says. “Needless to say, whoever he asked had no clue who I was!” That night, she got as close as she could to the stage to be able to see the show. “It was a very instructive afternoon for someone who writes humor pieces like I do,” she says. “I learned about timing, about getting it right the first time and about teamwork. After the performance, she went back to her hotel for a late night dinner. After dinner, she decided to go for a walk and someone who passed her said, “Garrison Keillor is signing autographs behind the amphitheater if you want one.” “I sped to the spot, and there, about five people were in front of me,” she recalls. “As more people joined the line, I kept offering people to go ahead of me so that I was always last in line. I hoped in that way I could have a few minutes to speak to him about humor writing. As luck would have it, he is so tall that he saw what I was doing.” When her place in line finally advanced, she introduced herself and asked what words of wisdom he could give her. “As the consummate professional that he is, he sat down with me on a bench, and we talked for 20 minutes,” Beckes-O’Connor says. “He told me how hard it is to make a living at writing any genre, let alone humor. He advised me to keep my day job but to never give up trying to be published. He was bone tired but took the time to be supportive and encouraging to a novice like me.” “I told him I was the person watching the rehearsal and how valuable it was to me,” Beckes-O’Connor adds. “I also asked him how they managed to be fresh and new every week. He explained that they generally get into a town in which they are performing on Thursday night, then write all day Friday and then rehearse and perform as I saw them for the 6 p.m. Saturday night broadcast.” “What if you’re not ready by 6 p.m.?” she asked. Keillor replied, “Well, you know, that’s just not an option!” “At that time, he and his colleagues wrote about 90 percent of what you hear on the show,” Beckes-O’Connor says. “He has actively canvassed for new younger writers to join the staff of the show.” Beckes-O’Connor wrote material that was submitted to The Minnesota Bumper Sticker Contest that Keillor ran and also submitted a few episodes of Guy Noir that they liked but did not purchase. The Bumper Sticker Contest is still on the Web with her name on her entries, which are listed below:
“I have followed Mr. Keillor’s advice,” Beckes-O’Connor says. “I keep writing and have an entry in this year’s Emma Bombeck Humor Writer’s Contest co-sponsored by the University of Dayton, and I’m also at work on a novel.”  Read more about Garrison Keillor in "It must be summer . . . WKSU Brings Garrison Keillor Back to Blossom" from the Summer 2008 issue of Kent State Magazine | |||||
