Maurice Minnifield
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Maurice Minnifield is a fictional character in the television series Northern Exposure. He was played by Barry Corbin.
[edit] History
Maurice Minnifield was a Marine Corps fighter pilot in the Korean War ("fifteen confirmed kills over Pusan"), spent time in a North Korean prison camp, and later was an astronaut in the Mercury program. He retired from the military and the space program as a colonel. [1] He inherited $68 million from his father in Tulsa, Oklahoma, over his brother Malcolm, and purchased 15,000 acres (61 km²) near the town of Cicely in Arrowhead County, Alaska. Minnifield established a radio station, KBHR (pronounced kay-BEAR), hosted by Chris Stevens, and a town newspaper, the Cicely News & World Telegram. His goal was to pioneer the "New Alaskan Riviera," with resorts, gated communities, and casinos. A proud Cicely resident, Maurice ultimately wanted to boost the local economy by bringing new business to the community.
In 1988, Maurice brought Shelly Tambo to Cicely, having been smitten with her at the "Miss Northwest Passage" beauty contest in Dawson City, Yukon in Canada. Shelly left Maurice for Holling Vincoeur, his best friend of many years. Maurice refused to speak to Holling for two years, but they gradually patched up their old friendship.
In 1990, Maurice purchased Joel Fleischman's contract from the state of Alaska and brought him to Cicely.
[edit] Tastes and opinions
Maurice has a problem with homosexuals, communists, and hippies.
He enjoys show tunes, especially from The King and I, Porgy and Bess, Brigadoon, and Kiss Me, Kate. Because of this, and because he is a bachelor and a gourmet chef, Ron and Eric – a gay couple who purchase a house from Maurice to open a bed and breakfast – assume that he too is gay. Though Maurice detests their homosexuality and this assumption, over time he develops a genuine respect for their integrity, business savvy and shared military backgrounds.
Maurice loves to sing and rarely misses an opportunity to do so, though he was at first very reluctant to sing at Shelly's wedding to Holling.
Maurice is decended from the MacAlisters of Scotland and has an appreciation for Scottish militaria, kilts and whisky. [2]
[edit] Love Life
As of the close of the series, Maurice still held a sentimental attachment for Shelly. However he also developed an infatuation with Barbara Semanski, a police sergeant who was sent to Cicely to investigate the theft of his radio. He also received yearly visits from an astronaut groupie, Ingrid Klochner.
Maurice was unmarried but had a son he did not know of until many years later from a casual liaison during his deployment in the Korean War, revealed in the Emmy Award-winning episode "Seoul Mates". He is not anxious to be a father to the child, remarking that "all of my life of dreamed of a son, a tow headed tyke to bounce on my knee, but instead I get a middle aged Chinaman". He bonds with the son however when he remembers the son's mother, realizes the son does not care about Maurice's fortune, and the son is a healthy, highly educated and skilled engineer. They remained in touch, despite the language barrier, Maurice's teenaged Korean-American grandson serving as interpreter. In the episode "A Kodiak Moment", he tries to adopt Chris Stevens.
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