Dusty and Lefty: The Lives of Cowboys » (Original radio broadcast; 1.25 hours on)

First with his performances on Minnesota Public Radio's Prairie Home Companion and later in his books, Garrison Keillor has become a symbol of the small-town Midwest -- its absurdities, its stoutness, and its warmth. His popular, funny stories set in Lake Wobegon manage to evoke nostalgia for a town that never existed.

Lefty: Haven’t you read about the dangers of drinking?

Dusty: I have. And it led me to give up reading.

Like the News from Lake Wobegon and Guy Noir, Private Eye, The Lives of the Cowboys sketch has become a signature part of A Prairie Home Companion. Each week, radio listeners can’t wait to hear Lefty’s latest poem and Dusty’s latest rant.

In six complete sketches drawn from the radio show, the two pardners cope with hangovers and citrusy aftershave, try to get in the Christmas mood (not much luck there), meet a vampire, drive a herd of 10,000 free range chickens, tangle with a territorial poet named Big Messer, pay a visit to the New York Public Library, and wind up in the San Luis Obispo County Jail for mistaking a cocker spaniel for a coyote. Each is a glimpse into daily life in and mostly out of the saddle. Includes four songs.

Garrison Keillor stars as Lefty; Tim Russell as Dusty; with Sue Scott, Tom Keith, and Danielle De Vecchio, and Julie Boyd.