No Sailing Waits and Other Ferry Tales: 30 Years of BC Ferries Cartoons by Adrian Raeside (Harbour Publishing, 2012). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: No Sailing Waits and Other Ferry Tales

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Adrian Raeside joins me now. He’s a veteran editorial cartoonist, and we’ll talk about his new book, No Sailing Waits and Other Ferry Tales: 30 Years of BC Ferries Cartoons. These cartoons have appeared in numerous publications, chiefly the Victoria Times Colonist. The book is already a bestseller, and it’s humorous and a great piece of social history about British Columbia, our ferries, and the distance bridged between Vancouver Island and the Mainland. Harbour Publishing publishes the book. The website for more is at www.raesidecartoon.com. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Adrian Raeside; Mr. Raeside, good morning.

Here’s Mike: And Junkyard Granny, Whistling Bernie Smith, the Robertson Screwdriver, Pancakes & Eternal Truth by Mike McCardell. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Here’s Mike

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

For the fifth year now, around this time of year, just before Christmas, I get to talk to the great Mike McCardell. It might be an overstatement to call him ‘great,’ but it’s not. He happens to have a book out around this time, but he’s always welcome on this program. He’s the marvellous storyteller seen at the end of Global’s News Hour. He’s out now with his seventh book, again a wonderful collection of stories we’ve seen on television, as well as anecdotes he’s collected over his many years of reporting, meeting the colourful, interesting, fascinating people throughout the city and its environs. The book is called Here’s Mike: And Junkyard Granny, Whistling Bernie Smith, the Robertson Screwdriver, Pancakes & Eternal Truth. It’s from Harbour Publishing, and if you buy the book before 29 February 2012, partial proceeds will go to Variety—The Children’s Charity. These books of Mike, all bestsellers, have raised over $75,000 for Variety. www.globaltvbc.com is the website for Mike’s pieces. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Mike McCardell; Good morning, Mr. McCardell.

A Hard Man to Beat: The Story of Bill White by Howard White. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: A Hard Man to Beat

The Sunshine Coast: From Gibsons to Powell River by Howard White, with photography by Dean van’t Schip. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Sunshine Coast

The Chuck Davis History of Metropolitan Vancouver by Chuck Davis. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Chuck Davis History of Metropolitan Vancouver

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Howard White joins me again. We’re going to talk books with Howard, which is hardly a big surprise, as he’s an accomplished and prize winning author in his own right, as well as, with Mary White, he operates Harbour Publishing. We’ll talk about at least three books now, two that Mr. White has written and that have been re-released with new editions, and a third which he’s published, one we’ve already talked about on the program this past week with Allen Garr, and one that Howard and I spoke about a year ago on the death of the historian Chuck Davis. That book, The Chuck Davis History of Metropolitan Vancouver has just been released, and it’s a very fine achievement. There’s a book launch this Tuesday, 06 December 2011 at the Vancouver Public Library. A book that Howard White wrote in 1983 has recently been reissued as part of the Vancouver 125 Legacy Books series. Brad Cran was on the program a couple of months ago to talk about the series, and Howard’s A Hard Man to Beat is one of those books. It’s an oral history that Howard put together with Bill White, a labour leader, historian, shipyard worker, and from this book, in his own voice, a hell of a raconteur. Bill White was a labour leader in the 1940s and ‘50s when shipbuilding was a booming industry on this coast. The book is a history of those times. The other book we’ll discuss is Howard’s second edition of The Sunshine Coast. It’s a very handsome book that’ll make any coffee table look smart what with its wonderful photographs of the scenic 100-mile stretch of BC’s waterfront from Howe Sound to Desolation Sound, with Gibsons in the south and Powell River in the north. Dean van’t Schip does the photography for this revised edition. A Hard Man to Beat: The Story of Bill White, and The Sunshine Coast: From Gibsons to Powell River are from Harbour Publishing, who also publish The Chuck Davis History of Metropolitan Vancouver. www.harbourpublishing.com is the website for more. In Madeira Park, on BC’s Sunshine Coast, this day, please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Howard White; Good morning, Mr. White.

Oliver’s Twist: The Life and Times of An Unapologetic Newshound by Craig Oliver. (Viking, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Oliver’s Twist

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

This has been a heavy season for political books, what with the major biographies on Macdonald, King, John Turner, Thomas D’Arcy McGee, among four major releases this fall. There are also popular political books, like Peter Newman’s on the Liberal Party, as well as memoirs; the one from Allan Fotheringham was a notable read. The one that I found a great read, not just because it had analysis of politics and media over the last couple of decades, but also because it has gossip is Craig Oliver’s book. In Oliver’s Twist: The Life and Times of An Unapologetic Newshound you get funny, candid, and fascinating stories, but you also get the deeply personal story of the famed television journalist. You read the heartrending story of Mr. Oliver’s childhood in Prince Rupert, BC, about his bootlegger father and his alcoholic mother. You read about being abandoned as a child, his beginnings in broadcasting, right up to today where he’s one of the most recognised, respected, and beloved journalists in Canada. He lived this remarkable life having to deal with failing eyesight. In those passages about finding out about losing his eyesight, you glean courage, but also lessons in not feeling self pity. It’s a great book, and published by Viking. Craig Oliver is the chief parliamentary correspondent for CTV News, and the co-host of Question Period. He’s won a multitude of awards. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program in Ottawa this day, Craig Oliver; Good morning, Mr. Oliver.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

The most frequent guest in the life of this program in the nearly seven and a half years and nearly seven hundred interviews has been Rafe Mair. He’s been on nine times since 2004. I grew up listening to Rafe. I came of age politically listening to his radio program from the mid-to-late 1990s on, learning about the constitution, provincial and federal politics, and of course the environment. As a broadcaster, one can’t do any harm trying to emulate Rafe whenever behind a microphone interviewing a politician. I know this every time one of these pols come on, because I know I’m not as good as Rafe Mair. Since leaving daily broadcasting, Rafe has co-founded The Common Sense Canadian. It’s a website that he’s talked about on this program, whereupon is presented environmental news and views. It’s a great website and its co-founder Damien Gillis joins me now to talk about it and a benefit for The Common Sense Canadian, Thursday, 24 November 2011. The Rafe Mair Roast: 80 and Still Kicking Ass will celebrate Rafe Mair as he turns 80 this year. There’s a great list of speakers who’ll come out to the Wise Hall here in Vancouver to rib and pay tribute to the legendary broadcaster, former politician, a stalwart defender of free speech and the environment. Among those scheduled to speak, Rick Cluff, Red Robinson, Grand Chief Stewart Philip, Michael Smyth, Moe Sihota, and Shiral Tobin, among many others. Ms. Tobin of the CBC’s Early Edition will serve as MC. Tickets can be had at www.TheCanadian.org. Damien Gillis is a documentary filmmaker whose work focuses on the environment and social justice. He joins me from here in Vancouver today. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Damien Gillis; Good morning, Mr. Gillis.

Boy From Nowhere: A Life in Ninety-One Countries by Allan Fotheringham. (Dundurn, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Boy From Nowhere

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

It was Dalton Camp who said that because of my guest now, people read their issues of Maclean’s magazine from back to front. For 27 years from 1976 to 2003, Allan Fotheringham was the back page columnist, skewering as he did and shining a light on the politics and culture of this country in his winning and witty way. Before that he was a long time columnist in the Vancouver Sun and in a number of Southam newspapers, and he’s also appeared regularly in the Toronto Sun, the Globe and Mail, and the National Post. He’s the author of eight previous books, and he’s just come out with his memoirs: Boy From Nowhere: A Life in Ninety-One Countries. He was born in Hearne, Saskatchewan nearly 80 years ago, a town so small, he writes, that they didn’t have a village idiot, everyone took turns. He’s lived in Toronto now for 30 years or more, where he joins me from this morning, but he’s identified as from these parts, being from Vancouver, from British Columbia. I grew up reading Fotheringham in high school in the mid-to-late 1990s, idolising his style on the page and off. I don’t dress as well, and I don’t write anymore, because he does both seemingly so well and so effortlessly, it’s mind-boggling. This new book is a wonderful reminder of what a terrific writer Allan Fotheringham has been for well over fifty years, and how much he’s missed from the regular pages of our press. We’ll discuss this charming book, and this charmed life and career, the recent medical disaster in his life, and how he views the country today. I’ll also get him to remember some giants in this country, namely Jack Webster and Marjorie Nichols. The book is published by Dundurn. I’m very pleased to welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Allan Fotheringham; Good morning, Mr. Fotheringham.

The Cannibal Spirit by Harry Whitehead. (Hamish Hamilton, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Cannibal Spirit

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

There’s a new novel out this week called The Cannibal Spirit. Its author Harry Whitehead joins me now. He worked for many years in the film business, and has degrees in creative writing and medical anthropology, and a PhD from Lancaster University. He teaches at the University of Leicester. He’s in town this week speaking at the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival. There’s an event, Wednesday the 19th at 8.00pm. Check out their website at www.writersfest.bc.ca for more information and tickets. George Hunt, who was an assistant to the famed anthropologist Franz Boas, is the central figure in this fictionalised account which looks at Native traditions, anthropology, spirituality, and the chasm between two civilisations in these parts at the turn of the last century. We’ll get Harry Whitehead to tell us about this book, how he came to write it, and more. The book is published by Hamish Hamilton, which is an imprint of Penguin. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Harry Whitehead; Good morning, Dr. Whitehead.

British Columbia’s Magnificent Parks: The First 100 Years by James D. Anderson. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: British Columbia’s Magnificent Parks

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

This past summer a new book was published called British Columbia’s Magnificent Parks: The First 100 Years. Its author, James D. Anderson joins me now. The book is a handsome coffee table book, generous in its number of photographs and authoritative in its documenting of the BC park system, its champions, goals and the wilderness that’s protected therein. James Anderson was a park planner with the BC Parks Branch for over thirty years, and saw firsthand some of the most dramatic growth in the system. The book is from Harbour Publishing. Stephen Hume contributes the foreword. In Victoria this day, please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, James Anderson; Good morning, Mr. Anderson.

Raincoast Chronicles 21: West Coast Wrecks and Other Maritime Tales by Rick James. (Harbour Publishing, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Raincoast Chronicles 21: West Coast Wrecks and Other Maritime Tales

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

A new issue of Raincoast Chronicles is out, the 21st: West Coast Wrecks and Other Maritime Tales. Its author Rick James joins me now. He is a writer, maritime historian, photographer and field archaeologist. In this book you’ll have many stories collected over the years about some of the fascinating and interesting wrecks found along our coast. There are many maritime stories and shipwreck lore in this book. We’ll get Mr. James to share some now, and tell us about some of the colourful people found in this book. Over the years, Rick James’s writing has appeared in The Beaver, The Sea Chest: Journal of the Puget Sound Maritime Historical Society, and the Western Mariner. He is the author of the Under Water Archaeological Society of BC’s Ghost Ships of Royston, and co-author of Historic Shipwrecks of BC’s Central Coast, Historic Shipwrecks of the Sunshine Coast, and The Comox Valley. Raincoast Chronicles 21: West Coast Wrecks and Other Maritime Tales is from Harbour Publishing. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Rick James; Good morning, Mr. James.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Gary Bannerman died on Monday, 11 July 2011. The broadcaster, journalist and author is being remembered as an iconic radio host. That he was. From 1972 to 1988, he was the premiere talk show host on radio station CKNW, going head to head with the legendary Jack Webster. He bested Webster in the ratings, and raised the bar for talk shows in this town and this province. He held politicians to account, reported on big stories in British Columbia and around the world, and not to mention was an advocate for the consumer. He negotiated a hostage taking, and covered the 1973 Middle East War. He left CKNW in 1988 amidst some acrimonious contract negotiations and some personal health issues. He sat on the BC Ferries board for a time, and with his wife Patricia, established Bannerline Corporate Communications, a consulting firm that kept him busy. His Wikipedia entry states that his consulting and writing work kept him so busy, his media appearances were restricted to rare guest appearances. He appeared on this program twice. He was a welcome guest, and a gracious, generous friend to the program. We exchanged emails from time to time, and up to this past April, we were planning another interview. Alas, we never got to it. I regret very much never following up and having him on again, and I feel bad that I never got to tell him, how much I appreciated his support early in the life of this program, for the kind words he had for my work, and for the lessons he imparted both conspicuously and simply in the way he comported himself. I never met Gary Bannerman, and I never really heard Gary’s shows, because I was only four when he left CKNW in 1988. But if one availed themselves of history, picked up a book say, it wasn’t difficult to see how much of giant he was in broadcasting, and how prodigiously talented he was. And later, in the conversations on the telephone, the emails, and the sort, I got to know him best as a person who was generous and kind.

On the program now, I’ve called on some of Gary Bannerman’s friends and colleagues, who join me to remember him, acknowledge what we’ve lost, and what his impact was on his business and our province. First is Gary’s long time producer and friend, the legendary radio producer Shirley Stocker. I’ll also talk to an old friend of Bannerman’s former premier Bill Vander Zalm; a former colleague and competitor, Rafe Mair; and the political commentator Alex Tsakumis, who has on his website a very fine tribute to Gary. And throughout this program today, I’ll play a couple of cuts from Gary Bannerman’s appearances on this show.

When I sketched out a list of the people I wanted to talk to about Gary Bannerman, one name was at the top of the list. I’m delighted she’s on the line now. Shirley Stocker was Gary Bannerman’s producer at CKNW. She was the executive producer for many of the great talk shows on the station. She is currently the Executive Director of the CKNW Orphan’s Fund, and will retire from that position shortly. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Shirley Stocker; Good morning, Ms. Stocker.