Garrison Keillor Negotiating With Minnesota Public Radio

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Former "A Prairie Home Companion" host Garrison Keillor said he's negotiating with Minnesota Public Radio after the radio network fired him over accusations of inappropriate conduct. On Friday, Keillor posted on Facebook that a second day of mediation was being held at a law firm in Minneapolis. He did not elaborate.

Keillor on Monday said he couldn't talk about the negotiations until they were complete. Another session is planned on Thursday.

The two sides "are talking about issues related to the transition of their business relationship," Angie Andresen, a spokeswoman for MPR, said on Monday.

The network announced in late November that it was ending its contracts with Keillor upon learning of allegations of "inappropriate behavior" with a person who worked with him.

In an email to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Keillor wrote that he was fired for putting his hand "on a woman's bare back."

"I meant to pat her back after she told me about her unhappiness and her shirt was open and my hand went up it about six inches. She recoiled. I apologized," Keillor wrote. "I sent her an email of apology later and she replied that she had forgiven me and not to think about it. We were friends. We continued to be friendly right up until her lawyer called."

In a separate statement, Keillor said he was fired for "a story that I think is more interesting and more complicated than the version MPR heard."

"It's some sort of poetic irony to be knocked off the air by a story, having told so many of them myself, but I'm 75 and don't have any interest in arguing about this. And I cannot in conscience bring danger to a great organization I've worked hard for since 1969," Keillor wrote.

Outraged Keillor fans blasted MPR for firing Keillor after four decades of his telling folksy stories about his fictional Minnesota hometown of Lake Wobegon. MPR received more than 150 cancellation requests from its 133,000 members as of Nov. 30. Keillor has said MPR was wrong to fire him without conducting a full investigation. The radio network has said the allegations against Keillor "were carefully investigated before MPR made the decision to terminate contracts with Mr. Keillor."

Former Wisconsin Public Radio head Jack Mitchell said he hopes Keillor and MPR could resolve their breakup. MPR has removed archived "A Prairie Home Companion" shows featuring Keillor as well as "The Writer's Almanac." MPR also removed Keillor's daily reading of literary events and a poem from its website and ended rebroadcasts of Keillor-hosted shows.

"They've tried to make an absolute break, which struck me as overreaction," Mitchell said.

Keillor, 75, retired in 2016 as host of "Prairie Home," an old-time radio variety show he created in 1974. The Saturday evening show, now titled "Live from Here," continues with Keillor's hand-picked successor, mandolinist Chris Thile.

By JEFF BAENEN , Associated Press

Photo credit: Jeff Baenen/Associated Press