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Headline, Industry News
Canada’s Walk of Fame 2007
Monday June 11th 2007TORONTO (CP) _ The stars came out on Saturday _ Catherine O’Hara, Gordon Pinsent and Jill Hennessy among them _ to have their names immortalized on Canada’s Walk of Fame in a glamorous annual event celebrating the country’s biggest cultural success stories.
"I’m a proud Canadian, and more than a little embarrassed about all this attention turned my way," said an emotional O’Hara, who burst into tears when her sister, Mary Margaret, sang her a song to introduce the SCTV alum to the audience at the downtown Hummingbird Centre.
"And as a proud Canadian I’ll say: ‘Sorry, eh? Sorry for taking up so much of your time."’
O’Hara was joined by six others inducted into the Walk of Fame this year: Hennessy, Pinsent, rock band Nickelback, Maple Leaf goal-tending legend Johnny Bower, "Man in Motion" Rick Hansen and CTV news anchor Lloyd Robertson, the first journalist to join the ranks. Hollywood film mogul Ivan Reitman, who was inducted in 2001, was also there to be honoured in person.
All were on hand on a brilliantly sunny afternoon in downtown Toronto to walk the red carpet and then, a couple of hours later, to be honoured at a televised gala hosted by one of O’Hara’s longtime pals, SCTV castmate Eugene Levy. The show airs on CTV on Sunday night.
Family ties took centre stage throughout the day’s festivities, with most of the inductees accompanied by family members on the red carpet and introduced by them to the audience at the gala.
"There goes my Chanel makeup," O’Hara said after her sister sang a sweet lullabye written by their late mother to comfort one of their infant siblings years ago.
A teary Leah Pinsent described her father as her "truest inspiration and one of my best friends" as a beaming Pinsent looked on. He later told the crowd that "this whole day has been beautiful."
Lloyd Robertson’s wife, Nancy, became emotional as her husband of more than 40 years recalled falling in love with her at first sight when he saw her walk into a classroom in Grade 12.
Rick Hansen was weepy as he ordered his wife, whom he described as the love of his life, to stand up and wave to the crowd.
And Reitman’s wife, Genevieve, wept and mouthed the words "wow" to hear her husband pay loving tribute to her. Their son, Jason, meanwhile, had introduced his father as "my personal hero."
It wasn’t all tears, however _ host Eugene Levy managed to infuse the show with a bit of comedy, as did some of the inductees.
Levy and Joe Flaherty re-enacted their famous SCTV characters, Earl Camembert and Floyd Robertson, with Camembert accusing Floyd of stealing the name of CTV’s trusted news anchor and brand-new Walk of Fame inductee.
Pinsent, who turns 77 next month, got some of the biggest laughs of the night with his speech.
"Nickelback! What can you say? I’ve got all their LPs and their 45s," he said to roars of laughter from the crowd.
The Hennessy sisters, Jill and Jacqueline, were the life of the party, cracking wise on the red carpet, on the Hummingbird stage and in CTV’s eTalk lounge after their appearance.
"I don’t know who this presenter is here this evening but I find her remarkably attractive," Hennessy joked about her identical twin after she introduced her to the crowd. "It’s unsettling."
Earlier in the day, however, Hennessy _ the star of "Law and Order" and "Crossing Jordan" _ said she was truly touched to be honoured with a star on the Walk of Fame.
"I promised myself I wouldn’t start crying," Hennessy, dressed in a gold-coloured gown, said on the red carpet as fans shouted for her autograph.
"This is so meaningful because this country’s given me so much. I am lucky to have been born here … I love the generosity and the humility and the talent of everybody here and I wouldn’t be where I am today without this country."
Jason Reitman was equally thrilled for his father.
"It’s out of this world _ his name’s going to be permanently engraved in two cities," he said, referring to his father’s star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
When the director of last year’s critically acclaimed "Thank You For Smoking," was told he might one day join his father on Canada’s Walk of Fame, Jason Reitman replied: "Doubtful. But you know, my last name’s down there and that’s enough for generations."
The celebrities themselves were just as star-struck in the presence of their fellow inductees as the fans who were cheering them from the sidelines of the red carpet.
"Catherine O’Hara is someone who I’ve always admired, I actually went to study at Second City in Toronto partially because of her," said Hennessy. "And Gordon Pinsent is, I think, one of the best working actors today, and he should be much more acknowledged on an international scale. I think he will be and I think he’s going to be nominated this year for ‘Away from Her’ _ I have had a premonition."
Pinsent, who was handed a white rose by a fan, returned the compliment to Hennessy, saying he "loved" the actress.
"I always thought that Jill was another kind of ambition of mine, but she’s got her man with her," he quipped.
But all of the male inductees, including Pinsent, said they were most excited to hob-nob with Bower, who helped lead the Maple Leafs to three Stanley Cup victories in the 1960s.
"Johnny Bower _ he played when we had Leafs, real Leafs," Pinsent said wistfully. "Johnny was a crucial part of it all."
Hansen agreed that meeting Bower, 82, was a kick.
"On an emotional level as a kid growing up, you can’t help but feel close to Johnny Bower. The Leafs and the (Boston) Bruins were my team and Johnny _ he was there through all those Stanley Cup years when all of us looked at Canadian hockey in a really special way. He’s a class guy, he really is."
Bower, for his part, was tickled by all the attention, though his family said Sunday he was extremely nervous about taking the stage to make a speech.
"It makes me feel wonderful, when you hear that," Bower said upon being told on the red carpet that he was the inductee most of the other honourees were the most delighted to meet. "The people, the fans, were the greatest fans in the world when I played hockey here."
Headline, Industry News
Canada’s Walk of Fame 2007
Monday June 11th 2007TORONTO (CP) _ The stars came out on Saturday _ Catherine O’Hara, Gordon Pinsent and Jill Hennessy among them _ to have their names immortalized on Canada’s Walk of Fame in a glamorous annual event celebrating the country’s biggest cultural success stories.
"I’m a proud Canadian, and more than a little embarrassed about all this attention turned my way," said an emotional O’Hara, who burst into tears when her sister, Mary Margaret, sang her a song to introduce the SCTV alum to the audience at the downtown Hummingbird Centre.
"And as a proud Canadian I’ll say: ‘Sorry, eh? Sorry for taking up so much of your time."’
O’Hara was joined by six others inducted into the Walk of Fame this year: Hennessy, Pinsent, rock band Nickelback, Maple Leaf goal-tending legend Johnny Bower, "Man in Motion" Rick Hansen and CTV news anchor Lloyd Robertson, the first journalist to join the ranks. Hollywood film mogul Ivan Reitman, who was inducted in 2001, was also there to be honoured in person.
All were on hand on a brilliantly sunny afternoon in downtown Toronto to walk the red carpet and then, a couple of hours later, to be honoured at a televised gala hosted by one of O’Hara’s longtime pals, SCTV castmate Eugene Levy. The show airs on CTV on Sunday night.
Family ties took centre stage throughout the day’s festivities, with most of the inductees accompanied by family members on the red carpet and introduced by them to the audience at the gala.
"There goes my Chanel makeup," O’Hara said after her sister sang a sweet lullabye written by their late mother to comfort one of their infant siblings years ago.
A teary Leah Pinsent described her father as her "truest inspiration and one of my best friends" as a beaming Pinsent looked on. He later told the crowd that "this whole day has been beautiful."
Lloyd Robertson’s wife, Nancy, became emotional as her husband of more than 40 years recalled falling in love with her at first sight when he saw her walk into a classroom in Grade 12.
Rick Hansen was weepy as he ordered his wife, whom he described as the love of his life, to stand up and wave to the crowd.
And Reitman’s wife, Genevieve, wept and mouthed the words "wow" to hear her husband pay loving tribute to her. Their son, Jason, meanwhile, had introduced his father as "my personal hero."
It wasn’t all tears, however _ host Eugene Levy managed to infuse the show with a bit of comedy, as did some of the inductees.
Levy and Joe Flaherty re-enacted their famous SCTV characters, Earl Camembert and Floyd Robertson, with Camembert accusing Floyd of stealing the name of CTV’s trusted news anchor and brand-new Walk of Fame inductee.
Pinsent, who turns 77 next month, got some of the biggest laughs of the night with his speech.
"Nickelback! What can you say? I’ve got all their LPs and their 45s," he said to roars of laughter from the crowd.
The Hennessy sisters, Jill and Jacqueline, were the life of the party, cracking wise on the red carpet, on the Hummingbird stage and in CTV’s eTalk lounge after their appearance.
"I don’t know who this presenter is here this evening but I find her remarkably attractive," Hennessy joked about her identical twin after she introduced her to the crowd. "It’s unsettling."
Earlier in the day, however, Hennessy _ the star of "Law and Order" and "Crossing Jordan" _ said she was truly touched to be honoured with a star on the Walk of Fame.
"I promised myself I wouldn’t start crying," Hennessy, dressed in a gold-coloured gown, said on the red carpet as fans shouted for her autograph.
"This is so meaningful because this country’s given me so much. I am lucky to have been born here … I love the generosity and the humility and the talent of everybody here and I wouldn’t be where I am today without this country."
Jason Reitman was equally thrilled for his father.
"It’s out of this world _ his name’s going to be permanently engraved in two cities," he said, referring to his father’s star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
When the director of last year’s critically acclaimed "Thank You For Smoking," was told he might one day join his father on Canada’s Walk of Fame, Jason Reitman replied: "Doubtful. But you know, my last name’s down there and that’s enough for generations."
The celebrities themselves were just as star-struck in the presence of their fellow inductees as the fans who were cheering them from the sidelines of the red carpet.
"Catherine O’Hara is someone who I’ve always admired, I actually went to study at Second City in Toronto partially because of her," said Hennessy. "And Gordon Pinsent is, I think, one of the best working actors today, and he should be much more acknowledged on an international scale. I think he will be and I think he’s going to be nominated this year for ‘Away from Her’ _ I have had a premonition."
Pinsent, who was handed a white rose by a fan, returned the compliment to Hennessy, saying he "loved" the actress.
"I always thought that Jill was another kind of ambition of mine, but she’s got her man with her," he quipped.
But all of the male inductees, including Pinsent, said they were most excited to hob-nob with Bower, who helped lead the Maple Leafs to three Stanley Cup victories in the 1960s.
"Johnny Bower _ he played when we had Leafs, real Leafs," Pinsent said wistfully. "Johnny was a crucial part of it all."
Hansen agreed that meeting Bower, 82, was a kick.
"On an emotional level as a kid growing up, you can’t help but feel close to Johnny Bower. The Leafs and the (Boston) Bruins were my team and Johnny _ he was there through all those Stanley Cup years when all of us looked at Canadian hockey in a really special way. He’s a class guy, he really is."
Bower, for his part, was tickled by all the attention, though his family said Sunday he was extremely nervous about taking the stage to make a speech.
"It makes me feel wonderful, when you hear that," Bower said upon being told on the red carpet that he was the inductee most of the other honourees were the most delighted to meet. "The people, the fans, were the greatest fans in the world when I played hockey here."
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Headline, Industry News
Canada’s Walk of Fame 2007
Monday June 11th 2007TORONTO (CP) _ The stars came out on Saturday _ Catherine O’Hara, Gordon Pinsent and Jill Hennessy among them _ to have their names immortalized on Canada’s Walk of Fame in a glamorous annual event celebrating the country’s biggest cultural success stories.
"I’m a proud Canadian, and more than a little embarrassed about all this attention turned my way," said an emotional O’Hara, who burst into tears when her sister, Mary Margaret, sang her a song to introduce the SCTV alum to the audience at the downtown Hummingbird Centre.
"And as a proud Canadian I’ll say: ‘Sorry, eh? Sorry for taking up so much of your time."’
O’Hara was joined by six others inducted into the Walk of Fame this year: Hennessy, Pinsent, rock band Nickelback, Maple Leaf goal-tending legend Johnny Bower, "Man in Motion" Rick Hansen and CTV news anchor Lloyd Robertson, the first journalist to join the ranks. Hollywood film mogul Ivan Reitman, who was inducted in 2001, was also there to be honoured in person.
All were on hand on a brilliantly sunny afternoon in downtown Toronto to walk the red carpet and then, a couple of hours later, to be honoured at a televised gala hosted by one of O’Hara’s longtime pals, SCTV castmate Eugene Levy. The show airs on CTV on Sunday night.
Family ties took centre stage throughout the day’s festivities, with most of the inductees accompanied by family members on the red carpet and introduced by them to the audience at the gala.
"There goes my Chanel makeup," O’Hara said after her sister sang a sweet lullabye written by their late mother to comfort one of their infant siblings years ago.
A teary Leah Pinsent described her father as her "truest inspiration and one of my best friends" as a beaming Pinsent looked on. He later told the crowd that "this whole day has been beautiful."
Lloyd Robertson’s wife, Nancy, became emotional as her husband of more than 40 years recalled falling in love with her at first sight when he saw her walk into a classroom in Grade 12.
Rick Hansen was weepy as he ordered his wife, whom he described as the love of his life, to stand up and wave to the crowd.
And Reitman’s wife, Genevieve, wept and mouthed the words "wow" to hear her husband pay loving tribute to her. Their son, Jason, meanwhile, had introduced his father as "my personal hero."
It wasn’t all tears, however _ host Eugene Levy managed to infuse the show with a bit of comedy, as did some of the inductees.
Levy and Joe Flaherty re-enacted their famous SCTV characters, Earl Camembert and Floyd Robertson, with Camembert accusing Floyd of stealing the name of CTV’s trusted news anchor and brand-new Walk of Fame inductee.
Pinsent, who turns 77 next month, got some of the biggest laughs of the night with his speech.
"Nickelback! What can you say? I’ve got all their LPs and their 45s," he said to roars of laughter from the crowd.
The Hennessy sisters, Jill and Jacqueline, were the life of the party, cracking wise on the red carpet, on the Hummingbird stage and in CTV’s eTalk lounge after their appearance.
"I don’t know who this presenter is here this evening but I find her remarkably attractive," Hennessy joked about her identical twin after she introduced her to the crowd. "It’s unsettling."
Earlier in the day, however, Hennessy _ the star of "Law and Order" and "Crossing Jordan" _ said she was truly touched to be honoured with a star on the Walk of Fame.
"I promised myself I wouldn’t start crying," Hennessy, dressed in a gold-coloured gown, said on the red carpet as fans shouted for her autograph.
"This is so meaningful because this country’s given me so much. I am lucky to have been born here … I love the generosity and the humility and the talent of everybody here and I wouldn’t be where I am today without this country."
Jason Reitman was equally thrilled for his father.
"It’s out of this world _ his name’s going to be permanently engraved in two cities," he said, referring to his father’s star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
When the director of last year’s critically acclaimed "Thank You For Smoking," was told he might one day join his father on Canada’s Walk of Fame, Jason Reitman replied: "Doubtful. But you know, my last name’s down there and that’s enough for generations."
The celebrities themselves were just as star-struck in the presence of their fellow inductees as the fans who were cheering them from the sidelines of the red carpet.
"Catherine O’Hara is someone who I’ve always admired, I actually went to study at Second City in Toronto partially because of her," said Hennessy. "And Gordon Pinsent is, I think, one of the best working actors today, and he should be much more acknowledged on an international scale. I think he will be and I think he’s going to be nominated this year for ‘Away from Her’ _ I have had a premonition."
Pinsent, who was handed a white rose by a fan, returned the compliment to Hennessy, saying he "loved" the actress.
"I always thought that Jill was another kind of ambition of mine, but she’s got her man with her," he quipped.
But all of the male inductees, including Pinsent, said they were most excited to hob-nob with Bower, who helped lead the Maple Leafs to three Stanley Cup victories in the 1960s.
"Johnny Bower _ he played when we had Leafs, real Leafs," Pinsent said wistfully. "Johnny was a crucial part of it all."
Hansen agreed that meeting Bower, 82, was a kick.
"On an emotional level as a kid growing up, you can’t help but feel close to Johnny Bower. The Leafs and the (Boston) Bruins were my team and Johnny _ he was there through all those Stanley Cup years when all of us looked at Canadian hockey in a really special way. He’s a class guy, he really is."
Bower, for his part, was tickled by all the attention, though his family said Sunday he was extremely nervous about taking the stage to make a speech.
"It makes me feel wonderful, when you hear that," Bower said upon being told on the red carpet that he was the inductee most of the other honourees were the most delighted to meet. "The people, the fans, were the greatest fans in the world when I played hockey here."
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