12 Factoids | Volume 8
FROM
NOTES
TO
REELS
The Winnipeg Folk Festival was established in 1974.
Originally planned to be a one-time event to celebrate
Winnipeg's centennial, this annual event is one of the
oldest and largest folk festivals in the world. *
The city is home to some of the most prestigious
arts organizations in Canada. Rainbow Stage, a
musical theatre production company in Kildonan
Park, is Canada's oldest outdoor theatre still
producing shows. The Winnipeg Jewish Theatre
is the only professional theatre company in the
country performing strictly Jewish themes.
The Exchange District is favoured by
Hollywood as a location setting for period
movies, including The Assassination of Jesse
James by the Coward Robert Ford, starring
Brad Pitt. Other parts of the city have been
locations for major motion pictures like Capote,
starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Shall We
Dance with Jennifer Lopez, Susan Sarandon
and Richard Gere.
In 1970, "American Woman" topped international
music charts and was the No. 1- selling single in the
world. Winnipeg rock 'n' rollers The Guess Who, who
penned the tune, went on to become one of Canada's
largest cultural exports. That year, they sold more albums
than any other band in the world, including The Beatles
and The Doors.
*
Photo
courtesy
Travis
Ross
Photo
courtesy
Western
Canada
Pictorial
Index
Inc.
