Catching up betwixt this newsletter break
If nothing else, Annamie Paul leading the Greens meant an interview with Nardwuar, who also scored Jagmeet Singh but got no face time this time with Erin O’Toole or Justin Trudeau. The PM has a newly unearthed photo of past blackface circulating on Election Day, and a Toronto candidate not allowed to sit as a Liberal if he wins.
Met Gala aftermath goes on
A link to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez meant Canadian designer Aurora James had more associations scrutinized, but she left an “Lol” on Kevin O’Leary sporting a “Tax the Rich” sweatshirt. And another slogan from the Met Gala, the “Peg the Patriarchy” sported by Cara Delevingne, has Toronto’s Luna Matatas claiming her phrase was appropriated.
Simu Liu’s alleged trail of Reddit posts seemed to be addressed by something he later put on Twitter. TMZ’s detective work surrounds how the Shang-Chi star evidently stated pedophilia is “no different than being gay” via an account attached to his name. (Last week, past comments on conditions in China drew attention that Liu didn’t seek.)
Silver Dollar vs. Neon Palms
The El Mocambo’s first open-to-the-public concerts in seven years are about to happen. But due to owner Michael Wekerle’s inability to get the Rolling Stones at this time, the Toronto club will feature Montreal band the Box. Meanwhile, on the neighbouring Spadina Avenue block, a new development’s promised restoration has manifested:
Allan Slaight dead at 90. A child musician turned teenage broadcaster in Moose Jaw, he moved to Toronto to become 1050 CHUM’s program director soon after it started playing rock ’n’ roll. Slaight’s own radio empire expanded upon the 1977 launch of Q107 Toronto—then, from 1985 to 2017, Standard Broadcasting was his business.
Finally, after the notes to self
Norm Macdonald tributes included Bob Saget detailing how they met in 1978 in Ottawa only to reunite two decades later in Toronto, where Saget directed Dirty Work. That film’s co-star, Artie Lange, also resurfaced with memories of his own. And the years Macdonald spent on Weekend Update were discussed by Lorne Michaels:
