| Identifier | 5409898 |
| Created At | Tue May 23 2023 23:54:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) |
| Reference Number | Tape 4 |
| Media Type | VHS |
| Media Count | 1 |
| Sound Rating | A+ |
| Note | He was a commanding presence, a man of many styles, many masks ? newspaper editor, journalist, scholar, actor, playwright, best-selling novelist and Canada?s eminent "man of letters."
International famous for his best-selling novels such as Fifth Business, The Manticore, What?s Bred in the Bone and A Mixture of Frailties, Robertson Davies was raised in Renfrew, Ontario. At the age of 14 he was sent to boarding school, a traumatic event in his life. Later, Davies went to Queen?s University in Kingston and then on to Oxford University in England. In his youth, Davies was interested in the creation of illusion. He loved music and was fascinated by magic, demons, angels, guardian spirits and above all, theatre. Through his fiction, Davies integrated his many interests, all the contradictions of his rough small town background and the need for something higher, more spiritual and refined. ?This is a man who used his multiple talents and his multiple identities to explore his rural and city roots, his roots in the land, in the urbanity of the city and the cultures of the world,? said producer John McGreevy. In 1940, Davies left England and returned to Canada with his new wife Brenda Mathews. He became editor of Saturday Night magazine and then editor of the Peterborough Examiner from 1941-61. Davies also wrote plays and was active in the creation and development of the Stratford Shakespearean Festival. In 1961, he began teaching at Massey College at the University of Toronto. Interviews include: Davies? wife Brenda; his secretary of 45 years, Moira Whalen; freelance editor Ramsey Derry; and Douglas Gibson, Davies? editor at McClelland & Stewart. |
| Trades Allowed |
Performance
| . 1996-??-?? Life & Times, N/A, N/A | |
|---|---|
| Set 1 | |
| Set 2 | |
| Set 3 | |
| Comment | He was a commanding presence, a man of many styles, many masks ? newspaper editor, journalist, scholar, actor, playwright, best-selling novelist and Canada?s eminent "man of letters."
International famous for his best-selling novels such as Fifth Business, The Manticore, What?s Bred in the Bone and A Mixture of Frailties, Robertson Davies was raised in Renfrew, Ontario. At the age of 14 he was sent to boarding school, a traumatic event in his life. Later, Davies went to Queen?s University in Kingston and then on to Oxford University in England. In his youth, Davies was interested in the creation of illusion. He loved music and was fascinated by magic, demons, angels, guardian spirits and above all, theatre. Through his fiction, Davies integrated his many interests, all the contradictions of his rough small town background and the need for something higher, more spiritual and refined. ?This is a man who used his multiple talents and his multiple identities to explore his rural and city roots, his roots in the land, in the urbanity of the city and the cultures of the world,? said producer John McGreevy. In 1940, Davies left England and returned to Canada with his new wife Brenda Mathews. He became editor of Saturday Night magazine and then editor of the Peterborough Examiner from 1941-61. Davies also wrote plays and was active in the creation and development of the Stratford Shakespearean Festival. In 1961, he began teaching at Massey College at the University of Toronto. Interviews include: Davies? wife Brenda; his secretary of 45 years, Moira Whalen; freelance editor Ramsey Derry; and Douglas Gibson, Davies? editor at McClelland & Stewart. |