Audio Archive
Rob Ford riffs on running again
Rob Ford riffs on running for Mayor again during an interview with me this morning on 680 news in Toronto just a few minutes after becoming the first to register at City Hall.[gallery link="file"]
Rob Ford riffs on running again
Rob Ford riffs on running for Mayor again during an interview with me this morning on 680 news in Toronto just a few minutes after becoming the first to register at City Hall.[gallery link="file"]
Rob Ford riffs on running again
Rob Ford riffs on running for Mayor again during an interview with me this morning on 680 news in Toronto just a few minutes after becoming the first to register at City Hall.[gallery link="file"]
Why Mayor For is not sueing the Toronto Star
Here is my latest interview with Kevin Donovan, the investigative reporter who broke the Ford Video story. This is his latest thinking as of Thursday May 24 2013.
Man in Motion - Rick Hansen
Art Carney on Jackie Gleason - How sweet it was.
Here is another favorite interview that I'm glad I've kept in the vault from the CFRB days. We got a hold of Art Carney on the news that Jackie Gleason had died. Carney was co-star and side - kick with Gleason as proud sewer worker Ed Norton on the classic 50's T.V comedy series " The Honeymooners". If you are under 45 yrs. old, you are probably not aware of the show or its' Stars so I've included a You Tube Link if you are at all interested in visiting an episode of the classic. Gleason was a television comedy pioneer in the 50's
For those who remember the show, Gleason and Carney, you will likely enjoy this conversation a few hours after Jackie Gleason died in 1987 . Art Carney - " Norton "
Here is a You Tube link to one of the classic episodes: watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=GrF1UHHu_zo
No Russians in My building - A classic Harold Ballard interview.
Well, you sure have to hand it to old Harold, the cantankerous late owner of the Toronto Maple leafs and Maple Leaf Gardens. He sure as hell didn't give a damn what anybody thought of him or what he had to say. This is one of the most classic archived interviews with the crotchety old coot you will ever hear - No Russians in My building It's not quite as classic or famous as the Interview in which he told the CBC's Barbara Frum that a woman's place was on her back, but it's a close second!
Harold never did move past the Cold War days even though he lived long enough to witness the Glasnost. He made no secret of the fact that he hated and mistrusted all things Russian including it's National Hockey Team. He was so anti- Russian that he wouldn't make the Gardens available to the Canada Cup series in 1987. Team Canada had to play out of the Copps' Coliseum.
It was a fantastic series, as thrilling as the 72 victory over the Soviet Union with Mario Lemieux taking a perfect pass from Gretzky to score the winning goal with just minutes to go in the final game.
The Country was in such a tizzy of celebration and elation the next morning that I called Ballard to ask if he regreted not having that kind of excitement and National pride fill the air his beloved Maple Leaf Gardens.
Canadian born Impersonator Rich Little
I can't tell you how much fun it was to meet and chat with Ottawa born impersonator Rich Little during a studio visit to CFRB in about 1988. He's a very funny guy who's political impersonations are killer.
Little became a regular guest on the American Late Night talk show circuit in the 70's after he perfected his famous " I am not a crook" impression of former U.S. President Nixon. He'd been up to perform ( like fellow Ottawa born Paul Anka) at the Liberal leadership convention that said Goodbye to Pierre Trudeau and Hello to John Turner. What's amazing to us now is that we were then living in a pre-internet world in which he had very little access to the sound of Canadian Politicians he was expected to impersonate when he performed in this country Rich Little doing Mulroney, Dief & Turner
The Simplest but best question I ever asked a Prime Minister. 1993
KIM CAMPBELL - MILK PRICE QUESTION 1Contrary to Ms. Campbell's characterization of this exchange in her subsequent auto biography as an example of the media practicing " Gotcha" Journalism, I was actually giving her an opportunity to validate what she was trying to convey.
This exchange took place during a live coast to coast radio show during the 1993 election campaign. For those who need a reminder, Ms. Campbell became Prime Minister as a result of a Conservative leadership contest that was necessary following the decision by then Prime Minister Brian Mulroney to step down. The Conservative government was at an all time low by the end of Mulroney's term. This was the first and only election that Campbell faced as Prime Minister and by the end of election day, the party had been reduced to about 2 seats after two consecutive majority terms.
During this live radio show, Ms. Campbell l( who served as Justice Minister in the Mulroney cabinet ) tried to distance herself from the public perception that the Mulroney gang was a bunch of cigar smoking, whisky swilling elitists who possessed an over inflated sense of entitlement. She chose during an answer to a question to convey how different and average she was and how much closer to main street she was than her predecessor by confidently stating that even as Prime Minister, she arranged for her own mortgage, car insurance and did her own grocery shopping.
The most important quality that an interviewer can posses, is not to compose a series of great questions in advance, but to listen carefully to answers and then riff , probe or drill down, which is what I did in this exchange that was heard across the Country and in Toronto over CFRB.
McDermott House
I got call from my friend John McDermott recently to help spread the word about the Palliative care facility for Canadian War Vets' that he has committed to help fund and build. It's appropriately called McDermott House and will serve along side the Vet's wing at Sunnybrook as a place where they and their families can comfortable spend their last days together.
I've been moved to tears on many occasions by John's rendition of " Danny Boy " or " Bringing Buddy Home" so to be able to help spread the word about McDermott House and how we can all help is an absolute pleasure. I spoke with John about the project recently during an interview for the 680news website which you can hear now to learn how you can help as well.
Classic Mayor Mel Missing the Message Moment - April 2003
This is what happens when you let your emotions drive the message.
Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman missed the opportunity to calm world reaction to and perception of Toronto during the Sars crisis in the Spring of 2003 when he appeared with Arron Brown on ABC.
Instead of taking advantage of an opportunity to mitigate the economic impact of the World Health Organizations' travel advisory, he gave Brown an angry emotional response that the Nightly News couldn't resist using as an audio clip in it's headline package. Rather than calmly conveying that Toronto's medical team had the facts, the facilities to confine those affected and the fix, Lastman's emotionally packed clip left lot of people shaking their heads.
The City of Toronto spent a lot of advertising dollars abroad after the fact trying to convince conventioneers and tourists that Toronto was safe enough to visit. Mayor Mel could have achieved the same thing with more credibility by way of a more thoughtful and measured performance on ABC.
Rob Ford Fumbles on Flowers during debate - October 2010
Rob Ford spent months in his Mayoral race pointing out that some city workers were paid up to $80,000 thousand dollars just to water the flowers in City Hall so, as a panelist at one of the last debates, I couldn't resist asking this follow up question after he described what he would do to Beautify the city if he became Mayor.
- older
- Page 1 of 2