June 26, 2026 • 19 mins
Magic Sam, Clearing the Air on Restructuring, the Latest World Cup Buzz, and Highlighting Contributions from North Dakota on the World Economy.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to Dacota Mornings. I'm your host, Michael Bell
kf y R five A ninety nine point seven FM.
We're an iHeartMedia production and we are joined on the
phone by Magic Sam, who's called in. We we have
a couple of things. She reminded me. We have a
couple of things that we were going to talk about
the other day that we we didn't get to and
(00:20):
I really want to and I'm Magic Sam. Thank you
for taking the time out of your busy day.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Here's is so welcome. Always happy to be here. I
forget what it feels like to talk on the phone.
It's it's weird.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Well, there is a delay, and I do have a
dump button, so if you swear inadvertently then I can
always take care of that.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Here. Wonderful. That's good to know. Love to hear it.
I wanted to tie up John Oderman's little lost segment there,
just to clear beer a little bit. I think. So
with this, with all these iHeart layoffs, to be clear,
this was not a local decision. Correct, This wasn't a
(01:02):
k f y R decision.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Correct?
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Is that the iHeart decisions? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (01:07):
And and uh, the I Heart sent out an email
to all of us employees, laying out in a in
a very comprehensive fashion, the the what was going on
and what was happening and why I I just don't
I don't think that as far as North Dakota is concerned,
they communicated, uh, very well what was going on and
(01:32):
why it was happening. And that's why I wanted to
clear it up. I mean, the first the first thing
to note is that Dakota Mornings is safe. Is We're fine.
We're more of the model that they're moving toward than
than you know, some of the other programs on the
show and some of the other programs on other stations,
(01:54):
Dakota Mornings. You know, I I made it clear when
when I started that I wanted to be revenue positive
and that the that I hoped that there was an
appetite for the programming that that we bring every single day,
and that appetite has turned out to be massive. You know,
number one, the number one show across every demographic, across
(02:17):
every metric you know, and and the top show from
a listener perspective, from a revenue perspective, you know that
from a a forward thinking perspective, you know, these were
the fundamentals of what I wanted to bring to the
to the airwaves through kfy R and iHeart and so
Dakota Mornings is more of the model, and that is
(02:39):
that you need to be revenue you know, iHeart k
f y R. Whether you like it or not, they
are for profit businesses. They are in the business of
generating revenue, of making money. And this is an alignment
from a country wide perspective to align the goals of
of iHeart off we are specifically, but to align those
(03:04):
those revenue goals to specific performances.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I see. So it's kind of just I mean, like,
if you think about it, radio wasn't the same now
as it was thirty years ago. So it's just, you know,
kind of a switch and what people want to hear
and what people are listening to. And I think that's good.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Yeah, well, I mean the rules of gravity still apply
to radio. And by rules of gravity, I mean capitalism works.
It's the greatest economic system in the history of the world.
What we're seeing here with these layoffs is is the
negative effect of capitalism. But you know, everybody will be fine,
Everybody will be okay. And this is iHeart saying you know,
(03:47):
we are in the business of making money.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Sounds good. We love capitalism, yeah, to make sure that, Yeah,
capitalism is great.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
I feel like you.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Kind of like capitalism. Every time I'm.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
On gotden Capitalism is my two shine bright northern lights.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
I love it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Hey, real quick, I have to just bring up a
World Cup. I'm not a big World Cup watcher, but
I just have to shout out the Ghana black Stars.
I know.
Speaker 1 (04:21):
Oh yeah I did.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
And actually I moved back into I moved back to
North Dakota in twenty ten from Ghana and that was
the last time. It was June twenty ten. We were
watching at Res's pitch. Shout out to Resa's pitch. That
was a great place in Denmark, but we were watching
there and that was when Ghana kicked the US out
(04:45):
of the World Cup to go on to I think
the quarterfinals, Nicing. So that was the knockout thing to
see for us as we had just moved back from
that country. You know. But anyway, Ghana plays Saturday again.
They tied with England, I want to say, the other
day and they are tied for first in their group.
(05:07):
So go them, Yeah, go Ghana.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
I mean if you're gonna root for. If you're going
to root for anybody outside the United States, Ghana is
as good as any I agree, although although I am,
I did through personal connections. I'm a big Norway fan,
so and I've become a big Norway fan. Scotland, Norway.
You know, the people that came to the United States
(05:32):
with and are demonstrating such enthusiasm for all things US
just it just warms my heart.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
M hmm, yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
It's also it's it's crazy to see all of these
videos of people who have never been to the United
States and they are just in awe and so it's
they it's just people.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
That don't realize how wonderful we have it here, and
so it's it's it's just funny to watch. If you
haven't seen any of those videos, highly recommend that ranch
is a big, big thing.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Yeah, the Scots drank Boston out of beer, and I
think that the Norwegians are going to drain the United
States dry of ranch and I love every second of that.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
That's wonderful. They're going to have to expand their markets.
It sounds like, you know, and I.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Was fascinated when I first started coming to North Dakota.
This was back two thousand and four or five six time.
Ranch is the primary condiment of North Dakota's It is
used on everything. The ubiquity of ranch in North Dakota
blew my mind, and I have since come to deeply
(06:47):
appreciate ranch with everything.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
We love our ranch, even popcorn. Popcorn and ranch is
almost probably the best combination. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
The first time I went to Space Aliens was a
long time ago, and uh, and they brought out they
didn't bring out ketchup. They brought out ranch for for
the French fries. And they did it without even asking,
and it was just sort of accepted, and I was
blown away. I absolutely love that.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
I love it too, speaking of ranch, not really so
speaking of North Dakota.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
I'm going to continue our.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Segment from the other day since I only got to
name one person who don't have his name on the
top of my head, but he was one of the
co founders of chat Cheep or open Ai, which created
chat cheept. We are going to talk about some more
quote unquote famous people from North Dakota, but we're not
going to go in the direction of, you know, the
(07:43):
Josh Jumels of the world because we all know, you know, those.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Need to keep Josh Tammel away from my wife and
so that's that's just the way that's going to have
to go.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yep, I'll fight her for him anyway. We are going
to talk about kind of the the lesser known people
who have made huge waves in the world that are
from North Dakota or reap ties to North Dakota. Starting
first with which you had told me a little fact
before the show, Gary Tharldson. He essentially he is a
(08:19):
hospitality genius and he bought he essentially was kind of
part of the start of Super eight Motel.
Speaker 1 (08:28):
Correct, Yes, yep, yeah, he's just if you've not if
you've not had an opportunity to to uh to to
examine Gary Tharoldson's contributions to not only North Dakota, but
more importantly the world, please do so. He is a
titan among among people who produce and does it quietly,
(08:50):
does it with a ton of humility. But he uh,
he's a producer.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Mm hmm, he really is. He thought his first super
hotel in nineteen eighty two and built more than four
hundred hotels nationwide, which is huge and he I mean,
he grew up from what I've found, he grew up
in Daisy, North Dakota, which I went to church camp there.
I forgot anyway, grew up in Daisy, North Dakota with
(09:17):
no running water or heat, and he worked at a
farm for fifty dollars a month in high school. And
he has gone on to very humbly. Like I said, hospitality, yes,
create an empire. And he's quoted in some interviews saying
he drives a pickup and he still does. He still
(09:40):
works because he likes it. And that is that is
true North Dakota grit right there if you ask me, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Amen, And that that embodies everything I love about North Dakota.
When you have guys like Jerry Thrreldson who are made
by their time on their farm and ranch. That's in
their DNA and that is a that is a DNA
structure that is immutable, but it's contagious.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Mm hmm, it sure is. And that's what I love
about the people of North Dakota and just the humility
of it all. You know, you never know, you probably
have seen him walking around someday some day and you
never would know. You know, you'd never know he has
built this entire app atmosphere. I don't know this entire
empire world worldwide, So I think that's pretty neat. Second one,
(10:32):
which we I think most of us know this Steve D.
Shield was the Shield what a great guy. Oh, great guy,
great Gret, Gret, great guy.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Steve D.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
Sheel was had started the.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
Original Shields, had turned it into a chain of thirty
four stores sixteen states. They employ about thirteen thousand people,
uh throughout the United States, which is wonderful and.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
I yeah, just super great.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
His son, Steve M. Shield now runs He is now
the current CEO. But from Fargo, North Dakota. There you
go Shields, Shield Sports, Yes, and Steve.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
Has Steve A senior and junior are are just some
of the most likable humans. They are so involved in
their communities. But again they need to be given props
for building an empire that started in North Dakota and
focused on customer service. I don't know that there's any
(11:35):
other state that can have that laser like focus on
customer service and pull it off to where it's not bothersome.
I mean, you walk through a Shields and anytime you
walk through one of one of the employees is always
asking is there anything I can help you with? Do
you need need direction or anything like that. And it's
not offensive and it's not bothersome. I just I really
(11:56):
like the mentality of the business and it clearly has
had a tremendous impact and been manifestly successful. And it's
it's employee owned, right.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Yes, it isn't one hundred percent employee owned. And every year,
all every single full time associate gets five hundred dollars
from the company to give away to anyone they think
that needs it, which I think is really it's given back,
which is really cool.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Yeah, when you think about all those employees that you
know that five hundred dollars goes a long way toward
a new baseball fence or a new baseball dugout, you know,
a new football goalposts, a theater, a theater, arts performance,
you know a theater arts a theater just struggling to
(12:44):
find that word there. You know, choir band, you know,
equipment instruments. That money goes a long way when it's
multiplied over so many people.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
M hmm, it sure does. And it's the shows, how
you know again, North Dakota and Ice. We are great
people that are from here.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
And so humble. That's why, that's why I feel like
it's my job to brag about all these these incredible
humans and I'm proud to do so.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
And if we don't finish this time around with all
of the famous people, we're going to start this again
next week and we're going to keep thanking them for
all that they do.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
You know, that's a great.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
Idea, perfect and it is the break, It is the break.
Speaker 1 (13:30):
This is Dakota Morning Zimer host Michael Bell kfy R
five fifty AM not a nine point seven FM. We
are and iHeart media production. We are joined on the
phone by Magic sam My producer and my friend and
I and we're talking about some of the contributions that
North Dakota's have made to the world. Welcome back to
Dakota Morning Zimer host Michael Bell. We are joined on
(13:52):
the phone by Magic sam My, producer of Dakota Mornings,
and we're talking about famous people who have made incredible
contributions to the worldwide economy by producing and those those
those characteristics are are bred on the farm, on the
(14:13):
farms and ranches of North Dakota. Going back one hundred
and some odd years to North Dakota's inception into the
United States, and we have more people to highlight.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
We sure do. I've got a couple of little, small
ones that are I'm not sure are very well known.
But before we get to that real quick, I know
I only have a couple of minutes, I'm gonna let
you highlight your favorite Roger Marris.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
Yes, Roger Marris, New York Yankees, one of my favorite
baseball players of all time. He and Tykob which are
They could not be more diametrically opposed human beings and ballplayers.
But Roger Marris had a grit and a stick touitiveness
that I deeply appreciate. I don't wanna, I don't wanna.
(15:00):
I'm sure that the people in North Dakota know far
more about Roger Morris than I would ever hope to know.
But so I don't want to be labor the point.
But yes, Roger Morris one of my favorite baseball players
of all time, going back to when I was in
my late teens.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Very nice to see the reason you moved here.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
I didn't even know that he was from here until
I moved here.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
So, oh, there you go. So there is there's a
some brothers in Minnesota and a man from Gwinner, North
Dakota who created the Bobcat skid steer loader.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Oh okay, Bobcat sponsor of KFYR.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
Oh well perfect, we're talking about him now. So the
skid steer loader was created in North Dakota or by
somebody from North Dakota and a couple people in Minnesota.
And how it started was do you know how.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
You came to be?
Speaker 2 (16:03):
Yeah, there was a turkey farmer who needed a machine
strong enough to clean his two story turkey barns, and
thus was born the Bobcats skid steer loader.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Okay, which is fascinating because I did. I always knew
it as a Bobcat and and uh, but there is
an actual name for it, which I learned when I
moved to North Dakota and I was talking to my
father in law and he mentioned something about a skid steer.
I looked at him like he had six heads, and
he was like, it's a Bobcat. And I was like, oh, okay, yeah,
(16:36):
we're going to call it a skid steer from now on.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Nice. And that's that's where the brand is almost it
like overshines the product you know you got like Coca Cola,
Xerox actually what it's called, yep, exactly. So that's Taylor Swift,
the Greatness.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
I slipped all music. So yeah, bobcat there.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
It is second one. So there is a vanished coal
town named Sims, North Dakota. Have you ever heard of it?
Speaker 1 (17:06):
I have not.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
So it is north of Almont and a little southwest
of New Salem. And so there was a kid, a kid,
a person, a man named doctor Leon Jacobson. She was
born sim in Sims, North Dakota. In nineteen eleven, he
became the director of health for the Manhattan Project's met
(17:29):
Lab in Chicago and was charged with protecting the scientists
building the atomic bomb from radiation that nobody fully understood yet.
He was from a small now ghost town in North Dakota.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
That's fascinating. So he was in charge of the health
and welfare of those developing or working on the Manhattan Project. Yes, yes,
North Dakota's man. I'm telling you did just produce, seriously,
just solving problems and have been solving problems, solving the
world's problems for hundreds and hundreds of years.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
It's so true.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And this I'm gonna say last one because I'm sure
we'll get to the break. But I heard this actually
on another show recently.
Speaker 3 (18:17):
But we have some.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
NASA astron yes from North Dakota.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
We had we've had Jim Buckley. He commanded I think
three space shuttles. He is in the Astronaut Hall of Fame.
We've had him on.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
Do you sure, by the way, yes he is.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Did you know I have two more?
Speaker 1 (18:38):
I did not.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
There's there are three total astronauts that NASA astronauts from
our state. So you got Jim Buckley, James Abrimson from Williston.
He was a he became an astronaut and a top
NASA administrator. And then there is Anthony England, who was
I'm not sure he was born here, but he was
(19:00):
raised in West Fargo. He flew on the Challenger.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
Okay, oh well, yeah, I'm sorry to hear that.
Speaker 2 (19:08):
Well, yeah, that's that's too bad. But anyway, great crazy people.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
Yeah, that's and and you know one of the things
that I love the most about when I had when
I had Lieutenant Colonel Jim Buckley on. He was a
rough Rider Award recipient and he was talking about when
you know when you're flying something that's traveling at seventeen thousand,
five hundred miles an hour and I think I had it.
Took me a couple of minutes to pick my job
off the floor at that speed. We need to go
(19:36):
to a commercial break. This is to go to mornings.
I'm your host, Michael Bell k f y R five
fifty AM nine to nine point seven FM.
Welcome back to Dacota Mornings. I'm your host, Michael Bell
kf y R five A ninety nine point seven FM.
We're an iHeartMedia production and we are joined on the
phone by Magic Sam, who's called in. We we have
a couple of things. She reminded me. We have a
couple of things that we were going to talk about
the other day that we we didn't get to and
(00:20):
I really want to and I'm Magic Sam. Thank you
for taking the time out of your busy day.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Here's is so welcome. Always happy to be here. I
forget what it feels like to talk on the phone.
It's it's weird.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Well, there is a delay, and I do have a
dump button, so if you swear inadvertently then I can
always take care of that.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Here. Wonderful. That's good to know. Love to hear it.
I wanted to tie up John Oderman's little lost segment there,
just to clear beer a little bit. I think. So
with this, with all these iHeart layoffs, to be clear,
this was not a local decision. Correct, This wasn't a
(01:02):
k f y R decision.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Correct?
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Is that the iHeart decisions? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (01:07):
And and uh, the I Heart sent out an email
to all of us employees, laying out in a in
a very comprehensive fashion, the the what was going on
and what was happening and why I I just don't
I don't think that as far as North Dakota is concerned,
they communicated, uh, very well what was going on and
(01:32):
why it was happening. And that's why I wanted to
clear it up. I mean, the first the first thing
to note is that Dakota Mornings is safe. Is We're fine.
We're more of the model that they're moving toward than
than you know, some of the other programs on the
show and some of the other programs on other stations,
(01:54):
Dakota Mornings. You know, I I made it clear when
when I started that I wanted to be revenue positive
and that the that I hoped that there was an
appetite for the programming that that we bring every single day,
and that appetite has turned out to be massive. You know,
number one, the number one show across every demographic, across
(02:17):
every metric you know, and and the top show from
a listener perspective, from a revenue perspective, you know that
from a a forward thinking perspective, you know, these were
the fundamentals of what I wanted to bring to the
to the airwaves through kfy R and iHeart and so
Dakota Mornings is more of the model, and that is
(02:39):
that you need to be revenue you know, iHeart k
f y R. Whether you like it or not, they
are for profit businesses. They are in the business of
generating revenue, of making money. And this is an alignment
from a country wide perspective to align the goals of
of iHeart off we are specifically, but to align those
(03:04):
those revenue goals to specific performances.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I see. So it's kind of just I mean, like,
if you think about it, radio wasn't the same now
as it was thirty years ago. So it's just, you know,
kind of a switch and what people want to hear
and what people are listening to. And I think that's good.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
Yeah, well, I mean the rules of gravity still apply
to radio. And by rules of gravity, I mean capitalism works.
It's the greatest economic system in the history of the world.
What we're seeing here with these layoffs is is the
negative effect of capitalism. But you know, everybody will be fine,
Everybody will be okay. And this is iHeart saying you know,
(03:47):
we are in the business of making money.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Sounds good. We love capitalism, yeah, to make sure that, Yeah,
capitalism is great.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
I feel like you.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Kind of like capitalism. Every time I'm.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
On gotden Capitalism is my two shine bright northern lights.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
I love it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Hey, real quick, I have to just bring up a
World Cup. I'm not a big World Cup watcher, but
I just have to shout out the Ghana black Stars.
I know.
Speaker 1 (04:21):
Oh yeah I did.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
And actually I moved back into I moved back to
North Dakota in twenty ten from Ghana and that was
the last time. It was June twenty ten. We were
watching at Res's pitch. Shout out to Resa's pitch. That
was a great place in Denmark, but we were watching
there and that was when Ghana kicked the US out
(04:45):
of the World Cup to go on to I think
the quarterfinals, Nicing. So that was the knockout thing to
see for us as we had just moved back from
that country. You know. But anyway, Ghana plays Saturday again.
They tied with England, I want to say, the other
day and they are tied for first in their group.
(05:07):
So go them, Yeah, go Ghana.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
I mean if you're gonna root for. If you're going
to root for anybody outside the United States, Ghana is
as good as any I agree, although although I am,
I did through personal connections. I'm a big Norway fan,
so and I've become a big Norway fan. Scotland, Norway.
You know, the people that came to the United States
(05:32):
with and are demonstrating such enthusiasm for all things US
just it just warms my heart.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
M hmm, yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
It's also it's it's crazy to see all of these
videos of people who have never been to the United
States and they are just in awe and so it's
they it's just people.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
That don't realize how wonderful we have it here, and
so it's it's it's just funny to watch. If you
haven't seen any of those videos, highly recommend that ranch
is a big, big thing.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Yeah, the Scots drank Boston out of beer, and I
think that the Norwegians are going to drain the United
States dry of ranch and I love every second of that.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
That's wonderful. They're going to have to expand their markets.
It sounds like, you know, and I.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Was fascinated when I first started coming to North Dakota.
This was back two thousand and four or five six time.
Ranch is the primary condiment of North Dakota's It is
used on everything. The ubiquity of ranch in North Dakota
blew my mind, and I have since come to deeply
(06:47):
appreciate ranch with everything.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
We love our ranch, even popcorn. Popcorn and ranch is
almost probably the best combination. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
The first time I went to Space Aliens was a
long time ago, and uh, and they brought out they
didn't bring out ketchup. They brought out ranch for for
the French fries. And they did it without even asking,
and it was just sort of accepted, and I was
blown away. I absolutely love that.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
I love it too, speaking of ranch, not really so
speaking of North Dakota.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
I'm going to continue our.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Segment from the other day since I only got to
name one person who don't have his name on the
top of my head, but he was one of the
co founders of chat Cheep or open Ai, which created
chat cheept. We are going to talk about some more
quote unquote famous people from North Dakota, but we're not
going to go in the direction of, you know, the
(07:43):
Josh Jumels of the world because we all know, you know, those.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Need to keep Josh Tammel away from my wife and
so that's that's just the way that's going to have
to go.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yep, I'll fight her for him anyway. We are going
to talk about kind of the the lesser known people
who have made huge waves in the world that are
from North Dakota or reap ties to North Dakota. Starting
first with which you had told me a little fact
before the show, Gary Tharldson. He essentially he is a
(08:19):
hospitality genius and he bought he essentially was kind of
part of the start of Super eight Motel.
Speaker 1 (08:28):
Correct, Yes, yep, yeah, he's just if you've not if
you've not had an opportunity to to uh to to
examine Gary Tharoldson's contributions to not only North Dakota, but
more importantly the world, please do so. He is a
titan among among people who produce and does it quietly,
(08:50):
does it with a ton of humility. But he uh,
he's a producer.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Mm hmm, he really is. He thought his first super
hotel in nineteen eighty two and built more than four
hundred hotels nationwide, which is huge and he I mean,
he grew up from what I've found, he grew up
in Daisy, North Dakota, which I went to church camp there.
I forgot anyway, grew up in Daisy, North Dakota with
(09:17):
no running water or heat, and he worked at a
farm for fifty dollars a month in high school. And
he has gone on to very humbly. Like I said, hospitality, yes,
create an empire. And he's quoted in some interviews saying
he drives a pickup and he still does. He still
(09:40):
works because he likes it. And that is that is
true North Dakota grit right there if you ask me, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Amen, And that that embodies everything I love about North Dakota.
When you have guys like Jerry Thrreldson who are made
by their time on their farm and ranch. That's in
their DNA and that is a that is a DNA
structure that is immutable, but it's contagious.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Mm hmm, it sure is. And that's what I love
about the people of North Dakota and just the humility
of it all. You know, you never know, you probably
have seen him walking around someday some day and you
never would know. You know, you'd never know he has
built this entire app atmosphere. I don't know this entire
empire world worldwide, So I think that's pretty neat. Second one,
(10:32):
which we I think most of us know this Steve D.
Shield was the Shield what a great guy. Oh, great guy,
great Gret, Gret, great guy.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Steve D.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
Sheel was had started the.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
Original Shields, had turned it into a chain of thirty
four stores sixteen states. They employ about thirteen thousand people,
uh throughout the United States, which is wonderful and.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
I yeah, just super great.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
His son, Steve M. Shield now runs He is now
the current CEO. But from Fargo, North Dakota. There you
go Shields, Shield Sports, Yes, and Steve.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
Has Steve A senior and junior are are just some
of the most likable humans. They are so involved in
their communities. But again they need to be given props
for building an empire that started in North Dakota and
focused on customer service. I don't know that there's any
(11:35):
other state that can have that laser like focus on
customer service and pull it off to where it's not bothersome.
I mean, you walk through a Shields and anytime you
walk through one of one of the employees is always
asking is there anything I can help you with? Do
you need need direction or anything like that. And it's
not offensive and it's not bothersome. I just I really
(11:56):
like the mentality of the business and it clearly has
had a tremendous impact and been manifestly successful. And it's
it's employee owned, right.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Yes, it isn't one hundred percent employee owned. And every year,
all every single full time associate gets five hundred dollars
from the company to give away to anyone they think
that needs it, which I think is really it's given back,
which is really cool.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Yeah, when you think about all those employees that you
know that five hundred dollars goes a long way toward
a new baseball fence or a new baseball dugout, you know,
a new football goalposts, a theater, a theater, arts performance,
you know a theater arts a theater just struggling to
(12:44):
find that word there. You know, choir band, you know,
equipment instruments. That money goes a long way when it's
multiplied over so many people.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
M hmm, it sure does. And it's the shows, how
you know again, North Dakota and Ice. We are great
people that are from here.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
And so humble. That's why, that's why I feel like
it's my job to brag about all these these incredible
humans and I'm proud to do so.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
And if we don't finish this time around with all
of the famous people, we're going to start this again
next week and we're going to keep thanking them for
all that they do.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
You know, that's a great.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
Idea, perfect and it is the break, It is the break.
Speaker 1 (13:30):
This is Dakota Morning Zimer host Michael Bell kfy R
five fifty AM not a nine point seven FM. We
are and iHeart media production. We are joined on the
phone by Magic sam My producer and my friend and
I and we're talking about some of the contributions that
North Dakota's have made to the world. Welcome back to
Dakota Morning Zimer host Michael Bell. We are joined on
(13:52):
the phone by Magic sam My, producer of Dakota Mornings,
and we're talking about famous people who have made incredible
contributions to the worldwide economy by producing and those those
those characteristics are are bred on the farm, on the
(14:13):
farms and ranches of North Dakota. Going back one hundred
and some odd years to North Dakota's inception into the
United States, and we have more people to highlight.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
We sure do. I've got a couple of little, small
ones that are I'm not sure are very well known.
But before we get to that real quick, I know
I only have a couple of minutes, I'm gonna let
you highlight your favorite Roger Marris.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
Yes, Roger Marris, New York Yankees, one of my favorite
baseball players of all time. He and Tykob which are
They could not be more diametrically opposed human beings and ballplayers.
But Roger Marris had a grit and a stick touitiveness
that I deeply appreciate. I don't wanna, I don't wanna.
(15:00):
I'm sure that the people in North Dakota know far
more about Roger Morris than I would ever hope to know.
But so I don't want to be labor the point.
But yes, Roger Morris one of my favorite baseball players
of all time, going back to when I was in
my late teens.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Very nice to see the reason you moved here.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
I didn't even know that he was from here until
I moved here.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
So, oh, there you go. So there is there's a
some brothers in Minnesota and a man from Gwinner, North
Dakota who created the Bobcat skid steer loader.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Oh okay, Bobcat sponsor of KFYR.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
Oh well perfect, we're talking about him now. So the
skid steer loader was created in North Dakota or by
somebody from North Dakota and a couple people in Minnesota.
And how it started was do you know how.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
You came to be?
Speaker 2 (16:03):
Yeah, there was a turkey farmer who needed a machine
strong enough to clean his two story turkey barns, and
thus was born the Bobcats skid steer loader.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Okay, which is fascinating because I did. I always knew
it as a Bobcat and and uh, but there is
an actual name for it, which I learned when I
moved to North Dakota and I was talking to my
father in law and he mentioned something about a skid steer.
I looked at him like he had six heads, and
he was like, it's a Bobcat. And I was like, oh, okay, yeah,
(16:36):
we're going to call it a skid steer from now on.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Nice. And that's that's where the brand is almost it
like overshines the product you know you got like Coca Cola,
Xerox actually what it's called, yep, exactly. So that's Taylor Swift,
the Greatness.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
I slipped all music. So yeah, bobcat there.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
It is second one. So there is a vanished coal
town named Sims, North Dakota. Have you ever heard of it?
Speaker 1 (17:06):
I have not.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
So it is north of Almont and a little southwest
of New Salem. And so there was a kid, a kid,
a person, a man named doctor Leon Jacobson. She was
born sim in Sims, North Dakota. In nineteen eleven, he
became the director of health for the Manhattan Project's met
(17:29):
Lab in Chicago and was charged with protecting the scientists
building the atomic bomb from radiation that nobody fully understood yet.
He was from a small now ghost town in North Dakota.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
That's fascinating. So he was in charge of the health
and welfare of those developing or working on the Manhattan Project. Yes, yes,
North Dakota's man. I'm telling you did just produce, seriously,
just solving problems and have been solving problems, solving the
world's problems for hundreds and hundreds of years.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
It's so true.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And this I'm gonna say last one because I'm sure
we'll get to the break. But I heard this actually
on another show recently.
Speaker 3 (18:17):
But we have some.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
NASA astron yes from North Dakota.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
We had we've had Jim Buckley. He commanded I think
three space shuttles. He is in the Astronaut Hall of Fame.
We've had him on.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
Do you sure, by the way, yes he is.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Did you know I have two more?
Speaker 1 (18:38):
I did not.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
There's there are three total astronauts that NASA astronauts from
our state. So you got Jim Buckley, James Abrimson from Williston.
He was a he became an astronaut and a top
NASA administrator. And then there is Anthony England, who was
I'm not sure he was born here, but he was
(19:00):
raised in West Fargo. He flew on the Challenger.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
Okay, oh well, yeah, I'm sorry to hear that.
Speaker 2 (19:08):
Well, yeah, that's that's too bad. But anyway, great crazy people.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
Yeah, that's and and you know one of the things
that I love the most about when I had when
I had Lieutenant Colonel Jim Buckley on. He was a
rough Rider Award recipient and he was talking about when
you know when you're flying something that's traveling at seventeen thousand,
five hundred miles an hour and I think I had it.
Took me a couple of minutes to pick my job
off the floor at that speed. We need to go
(19:36):
to a commercial break. This is to go to mornings.
I'm your host, Michael Bell k f y R five
fifty AM nine to nine point seven FM.
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