In 1982, I was invited to a private dinner with Norman Jewison. Memories of that encounter flooded back on the news this week that the dean of Canadian film directors had passed away Saturday at 97. Forty-two years ago, he had accepted an invitation to be a guest lecturer at the University of Toronto. The
Sure, if you are plugged in at all to the world of TV, you’ve heard of George Schlatter. He was the big guy with the beard who, back in the late ’60s, early ’70s, produced Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, right? That’s true, but boy, what a life beyond that one show. His new book, “Still
When Alan Arkin did not return for Season Three of The Kominski Method, you felt his absence. Today’s news is much harder to take. Arkin, who had a history of heart problems, passed away June 29 at his home in Carlsbad, Calif. He was 89. The Oscar, Tony and Golden Globe award winner was born
You could not cover television in Canada for the past 40 years without encountering the great Gordon Pinsent. Thank God. Pinsent, who died in his sleep Feb. 25 at 92, was a towering figure in film and television. In his native Newfoundland, he was much more than that. I was out in St. John’s, Nfld.,
I’ve always found it a great privilege to attend an annual Canadian Film Centre homecoming event during the Toronto International Film Festival. Once a simple Barbecue for film industry insiders, it has grown into an annual fundraiser celebrating a new generation of Canadian storytellers, many of them graduates of the CFC film and television programs.
Some of the best podcast conversations I’ve had in 2021 were with authors. The six listed below seized this pandemic predicament by hunkering down and writing great books either about their own life experiences or, in one case, a biography about one of Canada’s best storytellers. I thank them all for helping me to read
I first met Gino Matteo in 1976 on the day I checked in for orientation at St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto. On that busy day, the campus centre known as the “Coop” was jammed with other disoriented rookies. I found my way to the “B”’s. This hip dude behind the table who
Norman Jewison turns 95 in July. His 24 feature films — 15 more than Quentin Tarantino — garnered 48 Academy Award nominations, winning two Best Picture Oscars (for “In the Heat of the Night” in 1967 and “Moonstruck” in 1987). The Thalberg Award winner helped create the Canadian Film Centre, nurturing and developing the next