Toronto — A newspaper reporter covering the Ontario legislature half-a-century ago became somewhat inebriated, as others described it, and unable to write his story.
So reporters who had covered the same event for other papers and were trying to be helpful sent their stories to his under his byline and it wound up with two versions of the same story.
The reporter kept his job, because he was well-liked and often obtained inside information from drinking with cabinet ministers.
The story was told when former reporters who covered the legislature as long ago as the 1950s gathered here for their first reunion dinner.
It suggests reporters drank a lot those days and there is some truth to this and it almost went with the job. But those worried about the accuracy of papers today should know, notwithstanding many exciting movies, reporters drink a lot less and this writer can attest those covering the legislature drink less than the average citizen.
It was a time for reminiscing and another reporter recalled Bob Welch, provincial secretary in the early 1970s, announced he was running for the Progressive Conservative leadership being vacated by premier John Robarts and he raced to phone his paper on deadline.
He was relieved to make it and a couple of hours later picked up his paper and his story was on the front page under his byline, but read “Tom Wells to run for leader and premier.” (Wells was health minister).
Another reporter told of calling Robarts in the 1960s late at night in his room at the Westbury Hotel and it is interesting a premier was so accessible, because phoning one now is harder than getting through to President George W. Bush personally at The White House.
The reporter identified himself, but Robarts, in his deep, rumbling voice, cut him off with “I know who it is - whaddya want?” The reporter mumbled his paper had asked him to call and he was sorry to bother him and Robarts snarled, “you always say you’re sorry to bother me, but you always do.”
The reporter explained a prominent Israeli politician had died and his paper wanted some comment and Robarts demanded “what’s that got to do with me? I don’t know the man.”
The reporter explained the politician visited Ontario three months earlier and the premier replied, “well, I never met him,” and the reporter said he had and the premier replied, “I don’t remember him,” but eventually volunteered “well, Eric, you know what to say.”
The paper next day carried a report of the politician’s death and partway through it read “Premier John Robarts said last night ‘I met him here only three months ago and I remember him well’.”
It was a deception, but should not be taken as an indication reporters and politicians colluded on important matters, because Robarts soon after attended a federal-provincial conference in Ottawa and held two press conferences to which this reporter, who had written something that offended him, was the only reporter not invited.
There were many such stories. Ex-reporters flew from as far away as Vancouver and Alabama to renew friendships readily made sitting at desks listening to interminable debates or whiling away a cold winter’s night after a political meeting in Thunder Bay.
One came in a wheelchair and another on crutches. It perhaps was much like gatherings of those who worked together in offices or factories many years ago or high school reunions.
But there was one difference in the backdrop of politics. William Davis, Conservative premier from 1971-85, when most of these ex-reporters covered the legislature, was the guest speaker and a far right wing columnist introducing him spent all his 15 minutes accusing Davis of not being a real Conservative and being unwilling to stand up for Conservative principles.
Davis listened patiently and then gently revealed the columnist twice privately asked for his support to win nomination and run for his Conservatives - there is life in some of these old dogs yet.
Eric Dowd is a veteran member of the Queen’s Park press gallery.
