Hi this is Fred Wallace with Off the Wire…brought to you by Auto Logic.
What I know about figure skating, I could write on a toe pick.
Still, in the 1970’s everybody had an understanding that Toller Cranston was Canada’s best figure skater, a men’s champion from 1971-76, a bronze medallist at the Worlds & at the 76 Winter Olympics in Austria.
Cranston passed away on January 24th in his mid 60’s and as always when I need direction or clarification on such matters, I called Carol Hopper.
Hopper, a semi-retired skating judge for the Canadian Figure Skating Association and the International Skating Union, was more than happy to oblige and told me a marvellous story about a massive Owen Sound event in 1985.
The relatively new Bayshore Community Centre was the site for the Toller Cranston Showcase, an event that combined his artistry with the local Owen Sound Skating Club and the Georgian Bay Symphony who provided the music live, plus served as a link to a month long exhibit of his art being displayed at the Tom Thomson Art Gallery in the city.
I may not understand figure skating, but Carol Hopper’s crystal-clear memories of the Toller Cranston Showcase gave me a very vivid account of a major star performer orchestrating a very big and complex event in the city 30 years ago.
I’m Fred Wallace