Robert Skoglund

Robert Skoglund (January 18, 1936 – November 30, 2024), known professionally as The humble Farmer, was an American humorist, columnist, and radio personality.

Early life Skoglund was born on January 8, 1936 in St. George, Maine, to a Swedish immigrant father. The event became an annual occurrence each August, growing from a few guests the first year, to hundreds of musicians, entertainers, politicians and celebrities. At its height, the bake was held "under an enormous tent with a full-sized stage for the entertainers and a crew of 50 volunteers as cooks, servers and parking attendants", said Skoglund in a 2015 interview. Writer Mike Crowe likened the show to A Prairie Home Companion saying: "What Garrison Keillor is to the Midwest and the nation, Robert Skoglund is to Maine and New England." Three years later, he read passages from Encyclopædia Britannica about Fascism under Mussolini. Executives at MPBN radio regarded these comments to be subtle comparisons to then-President George W. Bush and reprimanded Skoglund. Asking him to refrain from all political commentary, on November 3, 2006, Skoglund submitted a pre-recorded program where he read a letter from a listener in Maryland who described state tax cuts. The radio management saw this as supporting a position on Maine's upcoming Taxpayer Bill of Rights referendum question and chose not to air the program. Skoglund received a certified letter at his home from MPBN vice president for Programming, Charles Beck, warning him that further comments perceived as political would result in the show's cancellation. Skoglund saw this as a set-up for him to fail In an article addressed to the Sun Journal titled: "Clean house at MPBN", Arthur Harvey took issue with the letter sent to Skoglund's home which read: "You will not introduce your own or others' political thoughts, ideas, expressions, writings or thinking which clearly or can be perceived as endorsing, dismissing or taking a stand on controversial issues." He further went on to state that "MPBN would not dare to require the Capitol Steps or Prairie Home Companion to sign such an agreement, although both entertainers make politically controversial remarks." After his departure from the radio station, 60 state legislators signed a petition to reinstate Skoglund.

Starting in 2013, Skoglund began broadcasting his show as a weekly podcast under the title: "Maine Private Radio and No Things Considered". He also wrote a regular humor column for the Portland Press Herald. and produced a television show called "humble Farmer" which broadcast on BCTV2 in Belfast, Rockland and online. Together they ran a seasonal bed and breakfast in St. George, Maine. An avid farmer, Skoglund sold home grown vegetables from his front yard, called the "Center of the Universe", which dons a 16-foot monolith topped with a trumpeting monkey. He died on November 30, 2024, at the age of 88.

Published works