John Robertson, the Uncle I am named after, passed away in 2014… 6 weeks before his 80th birthday. Friend to Don Cherry, Don refused to follow Uncle John…when speaking at events & dinners. He did it once and never again. Uncle John was that good! After much thought in putting a web site together…and it was some time …I had decided that if my name WAS available, I would also have Uncle John with me….side by side! Why would I not? He was with me my entire LIFE! And these past three years he has surely been with me in spirit but this site will now allow me to share Unc…with every visitor that tags this link! I will tell some fantastic stories about him, may have to clean them up a bit! LOL ..And also share some of his award winning style of writing (columns!). If you never read him, you are in for a real treat! He can make you cry! Mad! Sad! Happy! And especially laugh! He spared no one of his cutting verbage!
A founding father of our Manitoba Marathon and also theee founder of the RIDER PRIDE movement in 1979 in Saskatchewan, Uncle John’s fav team ever since he covered the Riders as the sports reporter that covered them back in the 60’s! From his pulpit on the back page of McLEANS Magazine… he shared his years of covering his beloved riders football team and he challenged all in Saskatchewan to show their RIDER PRIDE! Uncle John was then called upon to return to Regina and help keep the Riders from going under. Uncle John leased a small Cessna and pilot and he and Ronny Lancaster flew thru out the province drumming up support and even telling the farmers to get off their tractors an into the stands! Uncle John not all paid for all that he did out of his own pocket, he also turned down a speakers fee at the corporate fundraising dinner where by he had those in attendance both laughing and also in tears! He was that good! Uncle John promised a sell out for the next and he got his wish! And they even won the game! And they were then able to meet the pay roll and survive the season!
What many don’t know is that though he also covered the Expos while living in Montreal in the 70’s and the Blue Jays while in Toronto in the 80’s, he was a major league prospect and was given a try out at age 17 by the Washington Senators back in 1951! When I asked him about chasing HIS dream, he said that once he knew he would not be able to play pro ball he decided to do the next best thing…cover it! And he once told me when on one of those shoreline walks at Winnipeg Beach when visiting with him… “Johnny, the best advice I can give you is to find something that you are passionate about… that when you wake up ..you can’t wait to begin the day…then try to get paid for it!” That’s vintage Uncle John!
I will have much more to share about him but I will quickly touch upon two events! Back in august of 1972, Uncle John took heat with his prediction that the Russians would win 2 of the 4 games in Canada (they did!) and also win the series! And with the Soviets ahead with a 3-1-1 record it seemed like Uncle knew something all other sportswriters & hockey experts did NOT! And the Soviets could well have won the epic hockey Summit Series! And it certainly looked like he could be right if it wasn’t for Paul Henderson’s last minute heroics and the Canucks winning the final 3 games ..each by 1 goal! Unc knew his sports! He had traveled in the 60’s to Russia with the amateurs that made up Team Canada and witnessed first hand just how dedicated & skilled the Russians were and predicted they would be amongst the elite for decades! Uncle John had promised to eat his words if the Soviets lost, and so he did !
While being the anchor on the evening CBC evening news in Winnipeg, he was moved by an incident in Portage La Prairie where several mentally challenged residents died in a house fire. As he looked into it he was further instilled to do something about it! Did not want to have to cover another story like that one! And after visiting Boston for their Marathon he decided to get some key friends together here in Winnipeg and start our own annual Marathon! Why not? And when he was pitching the idea at city hall before a full chamber and back then there were over 40+ councilors, a rookie councilor after hearing his pitch stood up and threw a question at him. Paraphrasing but accurately! “Mr Robertson! Are you expecting us to close down Portage Avenue for half a day on a Sunday morning every June?” He said more but Uncle John never suffered fools lightly! His answer? ” Oh! Forgot to mention! It’s not just any Sunday in June! It will always be on Fathers Day…and at 7am sharp the starters gun will go off and thousands will leave the stadium running! Handle it!” And the rest as they say…was History! I ran the very first marathon…with my Dad, Uncle John’s oldest brother! And that is a special memory that my Dad took to his grave…as I will!
I end on another vintage note on Uncle john! And please know that this has an adult nature to it! The back drop on the following event was Uncle John being ‘peeved’ at the sports editor at the Toronto Telegram and a few others at the daily paper! Nuff said! He had a few drinks, ok!!..a bottle of rum or two and sat down at the pub table and wrote a 16 paragraph column that he did NOT intend to go to print! And he was also drinking with the guy in charge of the printing department! But it did go to print and the buzz around town the next day was calls into the radio stations informing all listeners to string the first BOLD letter in every paragraph TOGETHER! Uncle John was fired! And hired the same day by The Star!!
JOHN ELLIS
March 1, 2014
Toronto — As one who was born and bred in Saskatchewan, where the Roughriders are like royalty, I was certainly aware of John Robertson and his keen formation & promotion of “Rider Pride.” His recent obituary noted his “puckish, sometimes R-rated sense of humour,” and I recall an outstanding example. In Winnipeg and Regina, he had been a chief sportswriter, but at the Toronto Telegram he covered junior-league games, which irritated him considerably, leading to an acrimonious parting in 1968. In Mr. Robertson’s last article for the Telegram, the writing seems slightly odd until one notes the first letter of each paragraph. The first paragraph begins “For a while …” – first letter “F.” The second begins “Until the second period …” – first letter “U“. And so it continued, with the first letters of the remaining paragraphs being C, K, Y, O, U, E, V, E, R, Y, B, O, D,Y! I don’t think his secret message interfered much with the article, and I’m sure he felt a lot better. That’s John Robertson!
Much much more to share about Uncle John…but enough of an intro for now! Love that guy! Miss that guy! But promise to keep his spirit alive & well… herein~