According to the National Day Calendar and a lot of sites that reference that calendar, today is National Minnesota Day. It's kind of arbitrary--the state was admitted to the Union on a day in May--but, hey, let's roll with it.
When you think TV and Minnesota, you probably think The Mary Tyler Moore Show, but there is more to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. For example, remember that the Rocky and Bullwinkle reruns we watched growing up "were shot" in Frostbite Falls.
One I always forget is Little House on the Prairie. I don't often think of Minnesota as a big domain for disasters (insert Vikings playoffs jokes here), but the oft-beleaguered Walnut Grove was indeed in the state. Coach is set at fictional Minnesota State University.
On the more obscure side, the title character in Lucan roamed through the wilds of Minnesota (which has a town called Lucan) before being brought to civilization. And thanks to this article for pointing out two more examples. Newton's Apple, a science-based educational show that aired on PBS in the Eighties and Nineties, was produced by a member station in Minnesota.
Additionally, the very, very short-lived ABC drama The New Land featured Swedish emigrants making a go at a new life in rural Minnesota. That last one is an interesting case. The acclaimed show didn't catch on and is largely forgotten today despite Kurt Russell and Bonnie Bedelia in the cast and a John Denver theme song!
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