PONDERABLES
Why do interviewers persist in using the phrase “one last question” when there can be only one?
Why would the Blue Jays not sign Francisco Lindor
THINGS I FIRMLY BELIEVE
Just because people have the right to protest against something doesn’t mean that they have the right to stop it.
REMEMBERING ALEX TREBEK
I’ve been a loyal Jeopardy fan since it became an evening show back in the mid-80s with Sudbury native Alex Trebek as it’s host. Given the array of network game shows he hosted in the U.S. between moving there in 1973 and landing the Jeopardy job in 1984, and his subsequent unparalleled thirty-six-year success with it, he was arguably the most accomplished game show host in television history. His Ukrainian immigrant father married a French-Canadian woman, accounting for Alex’s fluent bilingualism, which was likely helpful in launching his broadcasting career in Ottawa. While enrolled at the University of Ottawa in the early 60s he attended classes in the mornings and worked at the CBC at night and on weekends, filling in wherever he was needed, doing everything from reading the news to covering curling bonspiels and horse races. He gained national attention in 1963 when he hosted the popular afternoon teen dance show Music Hop, and found his true calling in 1966 when, complete with his trademark hand-held cue cards, he began hosting the equally popular CBC academic teen-age quiz show Reach For The Top.
Alex had an innate feel for what works in broadcasting. For example, when he learned that he was going to be introduced as the “star” of Jeopardy, he argued that the real “stars” of the show were the contestants and insisted that announcer Johnny Gilbert introduce him as the “host” of Jeopardy. He was that rarity among celebrities: a principled, generous, family man whose character was never questioned. He also never forgot his roots, celebrating his Canadian heritage on the show when appropriate, returning here frequently, and donating millions to the University of Ottawa. He was a much-loved television icon who is being mourned by millions of fans all over the world.
It was almost ghostly watching the shows this week, knowing how close to death Alex was when they were recorded. Incredibly, he recorded his final Jeopardy segment just over two weeks ago. (It will be aired on Christmas Day). Alex Trebek can never be replaced, but it certainly looks like Ken Jennings is being groomed to be his successor.
AND HOWIE MEEKER
Another outstanding Canadian, Howie Meeker, also died last Sunday. When it comes to hockey, Meeker did it all. He won the Junior OHA scoring championship in 1942, just before his hockey career was interrupted by serving (and being wounded) in WWII. He joined the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1946, winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s rookie of the year and going on to win four Stanley Cups with them. He assisted on Bill Barilko’s iconic overtime 1951 Stanley Cup winning goal. (Barilko died in a plane crash shortly after.) Meeker went on to coach and manage the Leafs. He was a successful hockey-school pioneer and was elected as a broadcaster to the Hockey Hall of Fame in recognition of his immensely popular, ground-breaking, penetrating, and often controversial analysis on Hockey Night In Canada. He also served as a Conservative federal MP while still playing in the NHL. He received The Order of Canada in 2011.
About forty-five years ago I was on a CBC-TV hockey panel with Meeker and we chatted in the Green Room for twenty minutes or so before going on air. He was probably the most genuinely enthusiastic person I’ve ever met. And how could you not like someone whose strongest expletives were “jumping Jehoshapat” and “golly gee willikers?”
U.S.ELECTION FOLLOW-UP
Although Trump got soundly thumped, many other Republican candidates did quite well, suggesting that the Democratic win was more a referendum about leaders rather than about party policies. It seems clear that three things have to happen in order for the U.S.Congress to become functional again: Democrats will have to become more fiscally conservative, Republicans will have to become more socially compassionate, and Mitch McConnell and Nancy Pelosi have to start putting the country first rather than their personal ideologies. Because Joe Biden is Pelosi’s boss, and he and McConnell are old friends who have worked together in the past, I suppose there’s an outside chance this could happen; But I’m not going to hold my breath.