DNTO's top 10 Manitoba memories

Did you know thatDNTO, the national CBC Radio program that airs for the last time this Saturday, May 14, at 3 p.m., was created and produced in Winnipeg?

Our most recent host,Sook-YinLee, is based in Toronto. But most of the production team, including all of its leaders, worked out ofthe CBC Manitoba headquarters on Portage Avenue.

For that reason,DNTOhas always been a bit Manitoba-centric. We're proud that werecorded more live shows in Winnipeg than any other city in Canada and featured more storytellers, comedians and musicians from Manitoba than any other province except maybe Ontario.

DNTO'sManitoba team is already developing a new, national, 100 per cent made-in-Manitobaprogram that will debut in the months to come.

But in the meantime, we want to share our top 10 Manitoba memories from theSook-YinLee era (2002-2016).

10. WillSook-YinLee Show?WhenSook-Yingot hired to be the new host ofDNTO,she hibernated in Winnipeg for a long winter of learning how to make radio. One day, posters started popping up all over town for a show at the venerable Royal Albert Armshotel called WillSook-YinLee Show?The night of the event,TeamDNTOtrundled down to the Albert withSook-Yinand watched her rock the house with a miniature keyboard.

9. All our shows at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival.Werecorded a ton of live shows in theatres across Canada from Vancouver,B.C., to St. John's,Nfld. but our most memorable ones were right here in Winnipeg, at the Gas Station Theatre, during the Winnipeg Comedy Festival. Many of the folks we featured on that stage are familiar to Manitobans.Among them: Rosanna Deerchild, Niigaan Sinclair, Mike Green, Dean Jenkinson, Rodrigo Beilfuss, Alix Sobler, Bill Richardson and Marc Kuly.

8. Bowling with DavidSuzukiand BruceCockburn.Sook-Yintook two of Canada's living legends to Academy Lanes and discovered that a)Suzukiis squeamish about wearing bowling shoes ("You mean I have to put someone else's shoes on?!") and b)Cockburnis a surprisingly good bowler.

7. So manyManitoba musicians.When we asked Rosie Fernandez, a DNTO producer basedin Toronto, for her favourite memory of the show, she cited her meeting with Mexican-Manitoban bandMariachiGhost. She said she loved seeing them blend1970sprogressive rock with traditional Mexican music and instruments. Other Manitoba musicians who have chatted and performed onDNTOover the years are John K. Samson and his former band theWeakerthans, Christine Fellows, JP Hoe, Vikings, Nathan,Royal Canoe, Yes We Mystic and Flo.

6. Visiting Shoal Lake in the lead-up to Alcatraz Week. CBC Manitoba's Ismaila Alfa crossed the channel to Shoal Lakejust as the lake was freezing overand rightbefore the community's big funding announcement. As guest host, Ismailaplayed bingo like a local and even spiked a few volleyballs at the community's weekly recreation night.

5. Live show at Academy Bar and Eatery.We like to say we discovered RandyBachman'sgift for radio storytelling when we booked him for this raucous show at the dearly departed Academy. Unfortunately, much of Canada missed this one, since the Pope died that afternoon and we gotpre-emptedin western time zones!

4. Funny people. Lots and lots of funny people.DNTOhas been ahome for some of Winnipeg's brightest comedic talents. AsLaraRae posted last weekonFacebookafter she found out that DNTO was ending, "CBC can be a dog-eat-dog place butDNTOwas always an oasis." Some other local funny folks who have appeared on the show (and even written for us) areTrishCooper, J.D.Renaud, DeanJenkinson, Big DaddyTazz, Stephen Sim and the late, great Mike O'Brien.

3. All aboard the #DNTOExpress!We've recorded shows in some pretty unusual locations but the weirdest (and let's face it, most fun) has to be the show we produced just last month on a moving Winnipeg Transit bus. Local CBC traffic reporterTrevorDineenheld court with storytellers likeshawarmakingObbyKhan and a twin brother-sister musical duo, Roger Roger.

2.YahyaSamatarand other newcomer voices.We're pretty proud of the work we've done to highlight the diverse voices of Winnipeg's newcomer community.RockstarrefugeeYahyaSamatar,who swam across the Red River last summer to come to Canada, is the most recent standout, but others include Ali Saeed, Gibril Bangura, Musa Hazara, Yuly Martinez, Gertrude Hambira and Doaa Abukhousa.

1. #DNTONorth to Pukatawagan.Last year,DNTOheadedin a tiny plane toMathiasColombCree Nation.Sook-Yinsang "Pukatawaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagan!!" with sturdy locals, hunkered down at the band office with ChiefArlenDumas and dropped in on her northern radiodoppelgangerDJLalou.