Garrison Keillor, creator and longtime host of A Prairie Home Companion says he's only planning to tell the tales of Lake Wobegon for another two years. Keillor announced he plans to retire in 2013 -- he'll be 70 years old.
The retirement announcement came as part of an exclusive interview with AARP Bulletin, just released today. Keillor, who created APHC in 1974, explained he doesn't "want to make a fool of myself and be singing romantic duets with 25-year-old women when I'm 75."
A Prairie Home Companion is carried by nearly 600 public radio stations nationwide, garnering an audience of more than four million people each week. The show even inspired a 2006 movie which carried the same title, starring Keillor himself as the host for the final broadcast of a fictitious radio show.
Of course, there's a chance Keillor could stick around a little longer: he tells AARP Bulletin he wants to find a replacement before he leaves, and there's no telling how long that could take. The NPR Blog also notes Keillor already left the show once before -- in 1987 -- only to return two years later. But fans may also recall Keillor was forced to take some time off for R&R in 2009, after suffering a minor stroke.
A Prairie Home Companion can be heard locally on the following stations: