Why is the Wizard of Oz still so popular? | Good News on WCCO

0:00 Welcome friends to another episode of Good News.

0:02 Here on WCCCO, we pull together the feel-good community pieces all in one

0:07 place for you to enjoy for just a few minutes of that good news.

0:12 Okay.

0:13 Well, from our hometown airport to passengers,

0:16 MSP is being called the least stressful airport in America.

0:22 Mosio is a company that connects travelers to travel

0:25 companies and they made that ranking right there.

0:27 They say MSP got the title because it has one of the highest ontime departures.

0:33 Parking is on the lower end about $30 a day

0:36 and it's just 20 minutes from the state capital.

0:40 Coming in right behind MSP was Phoenix Sky Harbor

0:43 and then San Francisco International for being pretty chill airports.

0:47 The most stressful they said Chicago O'Hare and then

0:50 both of the New York airports, Lagoria and JFK.

0:55 But a change is coming to MSP.

0:58 Frankie McLister talked to some flight attendants working

1:01 to preserve history amidst the changes at Sunountry Airlines.

1:07 In January 2026, one of Sunount's original

1:10 flight attendants heard something that hit hard.

1:13 It was horrible.

1:15 It was horrible.

1:16 In a 1.5 billion dollar deal,

1:18 Allegant would take over the Minnesota based carrier.

1:21 I asked the president, Mr.

1:22 clicked it.

1:23 I said, "Oh, would you like to finish my puzzle?"

1:25 Which had been in operation since 1982,

1:28 started by a group of crew

1:30 members from the former Braniff International Airways.

1:32 To know that it's our brand is going to disappear.

1:36 It was devastating.

1:37 It really was.

1:37 I I just don't know how to put it in words.

1:40 Maggie Hill retired in 2022 after working

1:43 in the skies since the airlines first flight.

1:45 And then we slipped to something a little more lightweight.

1:48 her, Jen, who's a current flight attendant of nine years, and Karen,

1:52 who was previously in corporate for 22 years,

1:55 all came together with an idea around the pandemic.

1:58 We feel like we are giving a gift

2:00 to everybody who's ever flown Sunount or worked for Sunountry.

2:04 That idea now a book discussing their beloved airline success story.

2:09 The employees of Sunountry held the airline together.

2:12 The three say much of who Sun Country is can

2:15 be thanked to one of its founding pilots, Jim Olsen.

2:19 Jim would always say that's one for the book.

2:21 Olsen passed away in early 2026.

2:23 WCCCO spoke with his family when he was inducted

2:26 to the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame just weeks ago.

2:30 He's a great character.

2:31 Uh loved his loved his airline.

2:34 They did whatever they could to keep the cost

2:35 down and then that pass that on to the customers.

2:38 She went through bankruptcies and you know 9/11

2:42 and despite times changing for the airline again

2:45 Sun Country is the people that work there and that's not going to go away.

2:49 Frankie McWister it's the motans

2:52 WCCCO News.

2:53 The merger with Allegian is expected to close in the second

2:56 half of 2020 since they'll eventually take on the Allegant name.

3:01 Photojournalists Ray Campos and Adam Dexter show us a new

3:04 way to float down the Mississippi River this summer.

3:10 Floating down river in Minnesota usually means canoes,

3:14 kayaks, maybe a fishing boat or two.

3:16 We love the water.

3:16 We love getting out on the water.

3:18 We love boating.

3:18 We love it all.

3:19 But for Matt Whit,

3:20 I lived in Seattle for a little bit and then visited Seattle a lot.

3:23 Uh Seattle has a few different hot tub boat companies,

3:26 so I tried out the idea there.

3:28 Loved it.

3:29 It was a really cool experience.

3:30 I just thought it was an awesome idea and I was like,

3:32 man, this would totally work in Minneapolis.

3:33 The approval from Minneapolis Parks and Wreck means

3:36 the idea of bringing hot tub boats is reality.

3:40 Did have to do some convincing.

3:42 It's a new idea.

3:43 So, uh, as many people hear it, they're like,

3:45 "What is that?" And the city was no different.

3:48 And the location Boom Island Park

3:50 eventually landed here because it's a beautiful view of downtown.

3:55 You get kind of a a great mixture

3:57 of nature and then also the urban landscape as well.

4:00 Witz company Minnesota Hot Tub Boats will offer 90minute

4:04 rides where the journey is slow about 5 mph.

4:07 Each boat will fit around six people.

4:10 It's an involved process from our staff to make sure

4:12 that the customers are like comfortable and everybody's safe out there.

4:17 Whit hopes to launch Memorial Day weekend and is already seeing bookings.

4:21 There's a lot of excitement.

4:22 It looks like the summer's gearing up to be good,

4:24 but I've already also had some booking

4:26 requests for the fall and the cooler months.

4:27 The floating attraction will run until November,

4:30 where Wit says watercraft can operate to temperatures just above 20°,

4:35 giving the rest of us an extended season for boating.

4:38 I think the hot tub boat will do

4:39 a good job at expanding that season a little more.

4:41 Now you can get out even when it's still kind of cold,

4:43 you can still get out on the water.

4:45 With photojournalist Ray Campos, Adam Dter, WCCCO News.

4:49 Bookings are open now.

4:51 90minute rentals start at $300.

4:53 Again, the company is called Minnesota Hot Tub Boats.

4:57 We wanted to share an update on our friends from the Elk River Culinary Team.

5:02 They competed on the national stage and we are happy to report

5:05 that they came in ninth place out of 48 teams from across the country.

5:10 In case you're not familiar,

5:11 the culinary competition that these high schoolers do

5:15 has teams prepare a threecourse meal in 60 minutes,

5:19 but they do it without running water or electricity.

5:23 These student chefs prepared luxurious meals including seared steel head trout,

5:29 a panroasted lamb loin,

5:31 and for dessert, a raspberry orange curd,

5:35 plus all the sides and fixings for each course, of course.

5:38 Ninth in the country.

5:40 Super impressive.

5:41 We are proud of you.

5:42 Von Appetite Elk River.

5:45 Minnesota native Taylor Heisy has quickly become

5:49 superstar to the next generation of skaters.

5:52 WCCCO Kid reporter Mara reports with an assist from her mom,

5:58 our own Heather Brown.

6:02 She is a two-time PW champion.

6:06 She grew up in Lake City, Minnesota.

6:09 She comes from a family of basketball players.

6:12 It's pretty cool to watch your hero practice.

6:15 When she played on the golfer, she was number nine.

6:19 And what is number nine?

6:21 My number.

6:21 But it's even cooler to meet her.

6:23 Give me a hug.

6:25 How are you?

6:26 Good.

6:27 And share your fourth grade essay about why she's the best.

6:31 That's why I chose Taylor Heisy as my American hero.

6:34 Look at you.

6:35 You could be a writer one day, too.

6:38 Yeah.

6:37 But today's task was to ask the tough questions.

6:41 Did you like winning the PWHL championship or winning gold?

6:45 Who set me up for this?

6:47 Um, I would say both are very special,

6:53 but my ultimate dream in life was to win a gold medal at the Olympics.

6:56 So, I would have to say that's probably the most special.

6:59 Are you good at basketball?

7:01 I'm not bad, I'll tell you that.

7:03 What's your favorite pregame meal?

7:05 Ooh, this is dynamic.

7:07 I will have three pancakes, an egg, and orange juice.

7:12 Who did you admire growing up?

7:15 Ooh, I admired a lot of people, but I really admired my mom.

7:19 Um, she really pushed me to be better.

7:21 And I think for me, she always was there

7:24 to support me when things went wrong, but also pushed me.

7:26 Um, whether that be shooting more pucks or um,

7:29 getting better in the classroom, reading more books.

7:31 And I just think that she did a lot for me

7:33 and um really just helped me to be a better person.

7:36 Wait, I just want to make sure you heard that right.

7:38 I did.

7:40 Taylor gets it that most young skaters today.

7:42 I started playing hockey on a co-ed team outside,

7:45 so we didn't have an indoor rink where I grew up.

7:48 Won't remember a time without a professional women's hockey team.

7:51 What advice would you give Wait, do you have for young players?

7:55 It's a good question.

7:56 I would say the advice that I have for a young

7:59 player would be um to find things that you love to do.

8:03 I think it's really important to have

8:04 other sports and other hobbies outside of hockey

8:08 because hockey might not always make you

8:10 happy and it's really important to, you know,

8:12 have friends and to have hobbies.

8:14 Which led us straight to the perfect final question.

8:18 What is it?

8:19 Do you want me to read it?

8:21 Yeah.

8:20 So you don't have to say it.

8:22 Will you be my friend?

8:23 Duh, girl.

8:25 I'm excited I got to meet you.

8:26 This is amazing.

8:28 Yes, that was amazing.

8:30 Way to go, Mara.

8:31 You nailed it.

8:32 From children's theater to The Whiz and even Wicked,

8:36 the story of The Wizard of Oz regularly pops up.

8:40 So, why is the 100year-old plus story still so popular?

8:45 Good question.

8:48 You're see

8:52 and we're still seeking Oz.

8:54 88 years after the movie, 125 years after the book, the story keeps unfolding

9:03 in all kinds of forms.

9:08 The gravity of the film is hard to deny.

9:11 You're smiling already.

9:13 I'm so excited.

9:13 I love musicals.

9:14 I'm a sucker for a musical.

9:15 At the Lagoon Theater in Uptown,

9:17 Jessica Christensen is bracing herself for a viewing of Wicked.

9:21 Everyone, I have an announcement.

9:26 Oz is a place she's connected with for a long time.

9:29 Why do you think people resonate so much with the Wizard of Oz story?

9:34 It takes you out of your everyday life and gives you a little relief

9:36 and a break from the day-to-day monotony of how everything is in the world.

9:40 Escape to Oz.

9:41 Escape to Oz.

9:42 Yeah.

9:42 And she's on to something.

9:44 I feel like I found the wizard.

9:47 You're the Oz expert right here in Minnesota.

9:52 Well, thank you.

9:53 Jack Zipes, a retired University of Minnesota professor,

9:56 actually wrote the introductions to the newer editions

9:59 of the Wizard of Oz book by Elrank Ball, originally published in 1900.

10:05 I was overwhelmed by his great imagination, his commitment to uh utopia.

10:13 I've been intrigued by uh the type of compassion that he has for humanity.

10:21 What is it about the story of Oz that keeps pulling us back in to us?

10:27 Story of Oz exposes uh to a certain extent what is lacking

10:33 in America and most countries in the world to share things instead of compete.

10:40 Friendship is central.

10:44 Definitely.

10:45 They all have weaknesses.

10:46 They and they they're very kind with one another.

10:49 They share their ideas.

10:51 They help one another.

10:53 They're not violent.

10:54 Actually help poor people wherever they they go.

10:57 He also points to the unique depiction of good.

11:01 All you do is follow the yellow brick room and evil.

11:05 I'll get you, my pretty.

11:06 The two nasty witches are done away with by themselves.

11:11 They're not killed.

11:12 Oh, good point.

11:14 They blow themselves up or in other words, evil does itself.

11:19 Professor Zeke says it's also a story

11:20 of self-discovery as Dorothy's friends realize their weaknesses.

11:24 They show each other their strengths.

11:27 People have to live in a compassionate way with one another.

11:30 And that's what Bal was all about.

11:33 So, does I show us how it could be?

11:35 Oh, definitely.

11:36 It's the opposite of the way we live.

11:39 And uh and I think it gives us hope.

11:42 Hope and joy.

11:44 Any of us could be Dorothy and just like picked up in a in a twister

11:48 someday and end up in this magical world is just a fun thing to like think about

11:52 and a profound one too.

11:54 The utopian hope that we need in this day and age

11:58 because we are faced with a great deal of evil.

12:01 So we need we need us.

12:03 Yes.

12:04 We need this story.

12:05 Definitely.

12:05 I'd I'd like to go there.

12:07 Right.

12:08 Same.

12:14 That'll do it for another episode of Good News on WCCCO.

12:17 You can find us on YouTube or by joining

12:19 us live on TV on Sunday mornings at 7 a.m.

12:22 on WCCCO.

12:24 You can always stream us anywhere, anytime.

12:27 CBS News, Minnesota.