‘Everybody loves puffins,’ Maine humorist John McDonald says, by way of explaining a new book pairing captivating photos with funny captions he’s dreamed up.
Ray Routhier
Staff Writer
Ray Routhier has written about pop culture, movies, TV, music and lifestyle trends for the Portland Press Herald since 1993. He is continually fascinated with stories that show the unique character of Maine’s people and places. He’s written about why so many businesses use the made-up word “Mainely” in their names, how you can trace Portland’s history through its various smells and why Mainers lament the loss of Portland-made B&M baked beans. He’s interviewed a wide variety of filmmakers, actors, musicians and authors, including Patrick Dempsey, Tony Shalhoub, Richard Russo, Tess Gerritsen, Tony Bennett, Anna Kendrick, and Stephen King. His passions, besides writing, include baseball history, old movies and “Jeopardy!” A native of Manchester, New Hampshire, he graduated with a degree in political science from the University of New Hampshire. He lives in South Portland with his wife and two children.
Posted inUncategorized
Open house: Sleek and ye shall find
It’s all about the artistic at this standout waterfront contemporary in Falmouth.
advertisement
Posted inUncategorized
Music and Nightlife: Pearls of Wylde wisdom
Hard-rocking, hard-working Zakk Wylde took to heart lessons learned from 20-plus years with Ozzy Osbourne.
Posted inNews
Journalist learns it takes light touch, mind for math to hang museum show
Maine at Work: Working behind the scenes demands many skills, Ray Routhier finds.
Posted inLife & Culture
Go with the glow
This time of year, mother nature presents us with piles of potential decorating elements – so why not get crafty with all that colorful bounty?
Posted inNews
YIPPEE! Enthusiasm brews for two comic strips stepping in to replace ‘Cathy’
“Cathy” is a very big comic strip. How big is it? So big that The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram is going to use two comic strips to replace it. Today marks the last “Cathy” strip in the newspaper. Creator Cathy Guisewite is ending it after 34 years to spend more time with her daughter, […]
Posted inLife & Culture
Music and Nightlife: Lady Luck
The Maine State Lottery needed a special song for its 35th anniversary and by chance, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Julie Downs just happened to have one.
Posted inNews
Reporter takes shot at helping turn grass-roots TV dreams into reality
Maine at Work: As Ray Routhier learns how to create local programs, he finds out how far public access cable can reach.
Posted inLife & Culture
Jeepers, peepers
For most of us, fall in Maine means we “ooh” and “aah” over all the pretty colored leaves.
But this year, maybe it’s time to do some informed oohing and aahing. Maybe leaf peeping would be a whole new experience if you knew what you were peeping at.
For instance, instead of just driving aimlessly out into the countryside, you can head for a muddy, swampy area to see the bright-red foliage of red maple trees. Red maples love wet areas, don’t you know.
Posted inUncategorized
Topical ‘Daily Show’ creator will mock the media for locals
Lizz Winstead honed a lot of her comedy instincts during the first Gulf War. Before that, she had always used politics as a source of her stand-up routines. But watching the blitz of media coverage for that war convinced her that the media itself had become a character in the political conversation. And a funny […]