Georgette Pfannkuch of St. Paul, a native Parisian, became a reluctant Minnesotan, but gave the Twin Cities a taste of her native France in her radio broadcasts and her theater productions.
Pfannkuch, who aired "Bonjour Minnesota" on KFAI Radio for nearly 25 years, died Saturday in St. Paul.
Pfannkuch, who had had cancer many years ago and a heart attack four years ago, was 78.
She always missed living in France, said her daughter, Karin VanZyl of St. Paul.
"She was so French," said her daughter, adding that she never entirely adapted to the United States.
"She would rather convert the English speakers to French speakers, always pushing the food and music," said her daughter.
"She was the best cook on Earth," added her daughter.
In many ways, "she did not ever leave France," said her daughter.
In 1949, she attended theater school in Paris and in the 1950s, she appeared in several films, such as "Les Misérables" by Jean-Paul Le Chanois and "Les Amants" by Louis Malle. She acted on the Paris stage, too.
Pfannkuch and her family moved to the United States in 1965 after her husband, Olaf Pfannkuch, a geology professor, joined the faculty of the University of Illinois in Urbana.
They moved to St. Paul in 1968 when he joined the University of Minnesota.
At KFAI, from 1984 until a few months ago, she broadcast in French, while her on-air partner of many years, Caryl Minnetti of Bloomington, provided the English.
"She planned the program, using her huge collection of French pop music from Maurice Chevalier to current rap musicians," said Minnetti.
Minnetti said that her voice was so distinctive that strangers on the street would recognize her.
The mime, Marcel Marceau, singer Nana Mouskouri and François Girard, director of the movie "Red Violin," appeared on the duo's program.
For 10 years in the 1970s and 1980s, her productions of French plays were staged at area colleges, such as Hamline University, Macalester College and the University of Minnesota.
"She inspired dedication to the cast and crew to put on authentic French plays," said Minnetti.
Pfannkuch entertained friends and international students regularly.
"Some of them considered her a second mother, because she knew what it felt like to be away from home," said her husband.
In 2002, she was awarded the Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques, or Knight in the Order of Academic Palms, by the French government for advancing French language and culture in the United States.
In addition to her husband and daughter, she is survived by her other daughter, Barbara Pfannkuch Brown of Duluth; sons, Johannes Pfannkuch of New York City and Georges Lobbé of Paris; sister, Pauline of Antheit, Belgium, and four grandchildren.
A memorial service will be at 4 p.m. today, with visitation at 3 p.m. in the Memorial Chapel of the Cremation Society of Minnesota, 4343 Nicollet Av. S., Minneapolis.
