RBC Taylor Prize Shortlist Press Conference At King Edward Hotel

Drop me a note if you would like to attend. Always starts on time. Never longer than 40 minutes.

RBC Taylor Prize 2016 Shortlist To Be Revealed January 13, 2016
Jury will choose up to five books from its longlist

TORONTO, Dec. 29, 2015 /CNW/ - The trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation request the media to attend a conference to announce the finalists for the 2016 RBC Taylor Prize. The 30-minute press conference will take place Wednesday, January 13, 2016 10 a.m. sharp  in the Consort Bar  (Main Level ) of The Omni King Edward Hotel, 37 King Street East Toronto, ON M5C 1E9
The announcement of the fifteenth RBC Taylor Prize shortlist will be made by Prize Founder Noreen Taylor and members of the Prize Foundation.  The shortlisted authors will be celebrated and the winner announced at a gala awards luncheon on Monday, March 7th. at the Omni King Edward Hotel in downtown Toronto.
There will be up to five authors/books on this year's shortlist.  The 3-member jury will choose from the longlist announced earlier in December.
2016 RBC Taylor Prize Longlist:
Sixty: The Beginning of the End, or the End of the Beginning? By Ian Brown (Toronto), published by Random House Canada
'Membering by Austin Clarke (Toronto), published by Dundurn Press
Two Days in June: John F. Kennedy and the 48 Hours that Made History by Andrew Cohen (Ottawa), published by McClelland & Stewart
Road Trip Rwanda: A Journey Into the New Heart of Africa by Will Ferguson (Calgary), published by Viking Canada
This Is Happy by Camilla Gibb (Toronto), published by Doubleday Canada
Dispatches from the Front: Canada's Voice at War by David Halton (Ottawa), published by McClelland & Stewart
The Reason You Walk by Wab Kinew (Winnipeg), published by Viking Canada
Zoroaster's Children: & Other Travels by Marius Kociejowski (London, England), published by Biblioasis
Genius at Play: The Curious Mind of John Horton Conway by Siobhan Roberts (Toronto), published by Bloomsbury U.S.A.
Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva by Rosemary Sullivan (Toronto), published by HarperCollins Publishers
The Prison Book Club by Ann Walmsley (Toronto), published by Viking Canada
Into the Blizzard: Walking the Fields of the Newfoundland Dead by Michael Winter (Toronto), published by Doubleday Canada

About The RBC Taylor Prize

Established biennially in 1998 by the trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation, 2016 marks the fifteenth awarding of the RBC Taylor Prize, which commemorates Charles Taylor's pursuit of excellence in the field of literary non-fiction. Awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety of thought and perception, the Prize consists of $25,000 for the winner and $2,000 for each of the remaining finalists, as well as promotional support to help all of the nominated books to stand out in the media, bookstores, and libraries.

RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award

Established jointly by RBC and the Taylor Prize to promote emerging talent in non-fiction, the RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award consists of a $10,000 cash prize, as well as the opportunity to be mentored by the RBC Taylor Prize winner.

The trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation are: Michael Bradley, Vijay Parmar, David Staines, Edward Taylor, Nadina Taylor, and Noreen Taylor.
The presenting sponsor of the RBC Taylor Prize is RBC Wealth Management. Its media sponsors are The Globe and Mail (exclusive newspaper sponsor), CNW Group, The Huffington Post Canada, Maclean's magazine, and Quill & Quire magazine; its in-kind sponsors are Ben McNally Books, Event Source, IFOA, The Omni King Edward Hotel, and the Toronto Public Library Board.

To download high-resolution images of the longlisted authors and their book covers
www.rbctaylorprize.ca/2016/2016_longlist.zip

To download high-resolution images of the trustees and the jury www.rbctaylorprize.ca/2016/2016_trustees_and_jury.zip

For more information please visit: www.rbctaylorprize.ca.
RBC Taylor Prize on Twitter at www.twitter.com/taylorprize
Facebook At www.facebook.com/RBCTaylorPrize

For further information:
Media contact: Stephen Weir & Associates, Stephen Weir: 416-489-5868, cell: 416-801-3101, stephen@stephenweir.com

Ritchie Yorke's first person story of John and Yoko's bed-in now available as E-Book

Christ You Know It Ain't Easy - Yorke tells all about Lennon and Ono Bed-In

RITCHIE YORKE’S TRUE STORY OF JOHN AND YOKO’s CANADIAN PEACE MOVEMENT

Author and journalist Ritchie Yorke is back in his home in Australia after a successful trip to Toronto to launch his first person account of John and Yoko’s Canadian Peace Campaign of 1969 and 1970.  The Montreal Bed In. The Toronto Varsity Rock Concert.  John and Pierre. Traveling the World For Peace. This is the real story, the real truth.

Yorke, Canada’s first counter-culture journalist, was in Toronto to overseeing the publication of CHRIST YOU KNOW IT AIN’T EASY: JOHN AND YOKO’S BATTLE FOR PEACE.

The eBook was published on October 9, which would have been John Lennon’s 75th birthday. Yorke produced his book with the assistance and co-operation of Yoko Ono who has written the foreword.  As of December 21st, that e-book is now available worldwide on Amazon, Kobo and other popular on-line bookstores.

“ I assisted in bringing the Lennons back to Canada in December 1969 to unveil their historic War Is Over If You Want It peace campaign, and to meet with communications prophet Marshall McLuhan and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.” writes the Australian journalist. “During John and Yoko’s Canadian stay, I was given an ultimatum by my employer.  I was instructed to either quit my Globe and Mail columnist job to join the War Is Over If You Want It peace campaign, or get back to toiling at the Globe.  Some choice! ”

The editor told him that he couldn’t work for John Lennon and the Globe at the same time and that he had to make a choice between them. It took him about a sixth of a second to decide!

In the early 1970s Yorke found himself stuck in the middle of a world in change. He was passionately caught up in the Peace cause. He travelled around the planet selling the gospel of peace on the Lennons’ behalf (he and travel buddy, rockabilly legend Rompin’ Ronnie Hawkins thundered through 15 countries and 52,000 miles in five weeks).  They were all over the front pages of Hong Kong tabloids – seizing headlines when he and the Hawk risked their lives illegally crossing into Red China to present the War Is Over message to the Communist Chinese at Lok-ma-Chau.

Stevie Wonder dropped by before the official launch talk Ritchie and hear about the book

Before leaving Canada Ritchie Yorke sat with me and videographer and talked about his new Lennon book. The resulting video is posted above!

RBC Taylor Prize 2016 Longlist Revealed

Jury Recognizes a Dozen Excellent Works of Literary Non-Fiction, Just in Time for the Holidays

Jurors Susanne Boyce, Steven Galloway, and Stephen J. Toope today announced the longlist for the fifteenth RBC Taylor Prize. They read 120 books written by Canadian authors and submitted by 39 Canadian and international publishers.

“These twelve titles stand united in their outstanding literary quality. They represent the best in literary non-fiction published this year,” the jury notes.

The trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation are pleased to announce the longlist for the 2016 RBC Taylor Prize as follows:

1.            Sixty: The Beginning of the End, or the End of the Beginning? By Ian Brown (Toronto), published by Random House Canada

2.            ‘Membering by Austin Clarke (Toronto), published by Dundurn Press

3.            Two Days in June: John F. Kennedy and the 48 Hours that Made History by Andrew Cohen (Ottawa), published by McClelland & Stewart/Signal Editions

4.            Road Trip Rwanda: A Journey Into the New Heart of Africa by Will Ferguson (Calgary), published by Viking Canada

5.            This Is Happy by Camilla Gibb (Toronto), published by Doubleday Canada

6.            Dispatches from the Front: The Life of Matthew Halton, Canada’s Voice at War by David Halton(Toronto), published by Penguin Random House Canada

7.            The Reason You Walk by Wab Kinew (Winnipeg), published by Viking Canada

8.            Zoroaster’s Children: & Other Travels by Marius Kociejowski (London, England), published by Biblioasis

9.            Genius at Play: The Curious Mind of John Horton Conway by Siobhan Roberts (Toronto), published by Bloomsbury U.S.A.

10.            Stalin’s Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva by Rosemary Sullivan (Toronto), published by HarperCollins Publishers

11.            The Prison Book Club by Ann Walmsley (Toronto), published by Viking Canada

12.            Into the Blizzard: Walking the Fields of the Newfoundland Dead by Michael Winter (Toronto), published by Doubleday Canada

Noreen Taylor, Chair of the Charles Taylor Foundation and Founder of the Prize, commented: “In our fifteenth awarding, I am delighted to find that the jury has selected such a distinguished group of writers. These twelve titles, one by a former RBC Taylor Prize winner, another by a former juror, and so many by well-regarded fiction writers, reveal a cross-over of literary genres—and that has to be a good thing for all Canadian readers and every holiday shopping list.”

As the jury continues their deliberations, Steven Galloway has announced that he will step down for personal reasons. In his place, the trustees have selected award-winning author, educator, and previous juror Joseph Kertes, who joins former broadcast program chief Susanne Boyce and Dr. Stephen J. Toope, director of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.

The shortlist will be announced at a press conference on Wednesday, January 13th. The shortlisted authors will be celebrated and the winner announced at a gala awards luncheon on Monday, March 7th. Both events will be held at the Omni King Edward Hotel in Downtown Toronto. 

About The RBC Taylor Prize

Established biennially in 1998 by the trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation, 2016 marks the fifteenth awarding of the RBC Taylor Prize, which commemorates Charles Taylor’s pursuit of excellence in the field of literary non-fiction. Awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety of thought and perception, the Prize consists of $25,000 for the winner and $2,000 for each of the remaining finalists, as well as promotional support to help all of the nominated books to stand out in the media, bookstores, and libraries.

RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award

Established jointly by RBC and the Taylor Prize to promote emerging talent in non-fiction, the RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award consists of a $10,000 cash prize, as well as the opportunity to be mentored by the RBC Taylor Prize winner.

The trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation are: Michael Bradley, Vijay Parmar, David Staines, Edward Taylor, Nadina Taylor, and Noreen Taylor.

The presenting sponsor of the RBC Taylor Prize is RBC Wealth Management. Its media sponsors are The Globe and Mail (exclusive newspaper sponsor), CNW Group, The Huffington Post Canada, Maclean’s magazine, andQuill & Quire magazine; its in-kind sponsors are Ben McNally Books, Event Source, IFOA, The Omni King Edward Hotel, and the Toronto Public Library Board.

To download high-resolution images of the longlisted authors and their book covers please go to:www.rbctaylorprize.ca/2016/2016_longlist.zip

To download high-resolution images of the trustees and the jury please go to:www.rbctaylorprize.ca/2016/2016_trustees_and_jury.zip

For more information please visit: www.rbctaylorprize.ca.

Rare Opportunity to meet Hadley and Maxwell at the Art Gallery of Hamilton Friday

Social Media Influencers Night

Friday, November 20
6:00 p.m.

 

 are you experienced? exhibition artists Hadley+Maxwell

You and your guests are invited to attend a special social media influencers event on Friday, November 20 from 6:00 to 7:00pmbefore our public artist talk begins. Wander 8000 square feet of immersive and spectacular contemporary art installations, with the freedom to snap away and share your pics with your followers.  Meet the are you experienced? exhibition artists Hadley+Maxwell, curator Melissa Bennett and catalogue contributors Jennifer Fisher and Jim Drobnick! Cash bar.

6:00 to 7:00 p.m. | Social Media Influencers event, by invitation only
7:00 p.m. | Artist’s talk, open to the public
8:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. | Exhibition tour with the speakers

See a short video interview with Hadley + Maxwell filmed earlier this year at the Hamilton Art Gallery. George Socka. https://youtu.be/ODPAZsKDt2g


A RARE OPPORTUNITY TO MEET HADLEY + MAXWELL. ALWAY IN DEMAND, THE CANADIAN ARTISTS ARE NOW BASE IN BERLIN

Hadley+Maxwell’s installations, performances and writings, employ diverse media to rework iconic images and traditional forms as they are expressed in pop-cultural, artistic and political movements. They cut into reified narratives via direct touch, transposition and refiguration, putting into play the absences cast in relief.

Hadley+Maxwell have been collaborating since they met in Vancouver, Canada, in 1997. Public presentations of their work have included solo exhibitions at Artspeak (Vancouver), Contemporary Art Gallery (Vancouver), Künstlerhaus Bethanien (Berlin), Kunstverein Göttingen (Germany), Smart Project Space (Amsterdam), and Project Art Centre, Dublin, and group exhibitions at galleries and festivals including the Vancouver Art Gallery, Kunstraum München, the Power Plant (Toronto), the National Gallery of Canada, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, the Seattle Art Museum, La Kunsthalle Mulhouse (France), Witte de With (Rotterdam), the 4th Marrakech Biennale and the 19th Biennale of Sydney. They are currently working on a major public art commission for Waterfront, Toronto. Hadley+Maxwell live and work in Berlin, Germany.

123 King Street West | Hamilton ON | L8P 4S8 Visitor Info T: 905.527.6610 | F: 905.577.6940 E: info@artgalleryofhamilton.com

Christmas Season Comedy Music Edition of the popular Sunday Jam

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 15, 2015

Jay Martin

Sunday Jam: The Comedy and Music Edition

A great holiday package of Laughter and Music.

Sunday, December 27, 2015 Show Time :4:30 pm

Seven 44 Restaurant and Lounge TORONTO, ON

Its two Jays and an Arthur and many others in between for the holiday Sunday Jam which will be held late afternoon and evening, Sunday, December 27 at the Seven 44 Restaurant and Lounge in midtown Toronto (Mt. Pleasant and Eglinton Avenue).  The Sunday Jam features two of the hottest Caribbean and African Canadian comics in the business along with Toronto’s king of reggae and a talented guest artiste!

Comedians Jay Martin and Arthur Simeon will perform on stage as will Canadian reggae pioneer Jay Douglas and his All Star Band.  It’s laughs. It’s reggae, ska, soul and R and B. It’s for everyone (over the age of 19). 

Jay Martin has the ability to engage and entertain audiences with his clean yet hilarious comedy routines, Martin has carved a niche that no other comedian can fill quite like him. His skill and range in a number of areas has coined him the nickname of Canada’s Renaissance Man, and he wears it well.

Martin has had the opportunity to host & open for a number of top acts such as Russell Peters, Kirk Franklin, Jamie Foxx, and Cedric The Entertainer. He has also produced a number of successful shows over his 10-year career like the Jay Martin Uptown Comedy Series, the Trinidad vs. Jamaica Mother’s Day Show, and Three The Hard Way.

 

Arthur Simeon

Arthur Simeon is a stand-up comedian based in Toronto. The 32-year was born and educated in Uganda. He moved to Canada as a teenager where he turned to stand-up comedy to make a living. In June 2007, he headlined the Nubian Disciples of Pryor comedy showcase at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto. Two years later he made his debut appearance at Just for Laughs as part of the Homegrown Comedy Competition. In 2010, he was featured as the cover story of NOW in Toronto. He has appeared at the Halifax Comedy Festival for CBC Television, as well as the Winnipeg and Cottage Country Comedy festivals.

He is a fan favorite on the CBC Radio hit show The Debaters. 

Jay Douglas and his All-Stars on stage at Seven 44

Toronto audiences know Jamaican born Jay Douglas as a founding member of The Cougars and as the man with the golden voice.   A dynamic singer and animated performer, Jay Douglas commands the stage with a wide-ranging arsenal of R&B, Soul, Top 40, Motown, popular hits from the past four decades, contemporary big band classics, blues and Caribbean traditional favourites.
 Douglas has shared the stage with a veritable Who's Who of major stars, including R&B legends Fats Domino, Joe Tex, Percy Sledge, Freda Payne, Dorothy Moore, Cissy Houston, bluesman Roscoe Gordon, The Manhattans, Peaches and Herb, reggae legends Freddie McGregor, Burning Spear, Toots and the Maytals, Sly and Robbie, Ziggy Marley, Ernest Ranglin, The Blues Busters, calypso king The Mighty Sparrow to name but a few/

Also singing on the bill is Toni Anderson.  A gifted gospel singer she has sung with Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Patty La Belle, Sting, Paul Anka, Tom Cochrane, Gregory Isaacs and Barrington Levy. She is also known for her roles in Da Kink in my Hair (UK), and Disney’s The Lion King in Toronto.  Toni also released her soulful, jazzy, reggae, album “You are the One” that was nominated at the Canadian Reggae Music Awards for best album of the year.

Jay is bandleader of the All Star band, which is backing the show. The M.C for show is Danae Peart, station manager of Toronto’s ---Vibe FM and DJ Henry of Henry’s Records will provide music for the after-party.

The Sunday Jam: The Comedy Edition Show is produced By SWA Associates in partnership with JN Money Transfer. Tickets are $35.00 in advance and $45.00 at the door.

For info & tickets: Call 416 573- 1375 or email sandra.whiting@ bell.net

Ticket Outlets:

Seven 44 Restaurant //744 Mount Pleasant Road, Toronto,  (416) 489-7931

A Different Booklist//746 Bathurst Street 416-538-0889

Henry’s Records//130 Shorting Rd, Scar 416-297-5585

JN Money Services/1633 Eglinton Ave. W 416-784-2075

Online:

http://www.eventbrite.com/e/sunday-jam-the-comedy-music-edition-tickets-19341186008

MEDIA CONTACTS

Sandra Whiting 416 573-1375

Release issued by Stephen Weir, 416-489-5868 Stephen@stephenweir.com

Tings Go Better With Sponsorship. Off-the-Wall ideas for the Caribbean Carnival

SPONSORSHIP AND THE CARIBBEAN FESTIVAL

I am not involved in the search for a new sponsor of the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival. If I were I would probably be promoting the philosophy of thinking outside the box. Recognizing that there aren't many companies that can committed to investing BIG money in the annual festival this year, I would push the idea of finding two companies willing to join together and invest a SMALLER serving of money to feed to the Caribbean festival rather than coming up with the whole roti!

Might not be that hard to partner two competing companies to support and market a festival that attracts over a million, young hip urban people to downtown Toronto. There are also millions who watch it all on TV, online and of course through social media. This is the perfect place to launch a new slogan for the festival and its two NEW non-alcoholic drink partners.

I am suggesting that Jamaican bottlers Desnoes and Geddes Lrd work with Atlanta based Coca-Cola to be the presenting sponsor of the parade under the banner TINGS GO BETTER WITH COCA-COLA. (of course truth be told D&G produces one of Jamaica's best-known exports, Red Stripe beer, but sold off the rights to Ting to the UK's PepsiCo in 1999. Oops, but hey, I am just the ideas man!).

Tings Go Better With Coke!

OTHER SPONSORSHIP BIG IDEAS AND BIG PARTNERS

Friday Night's Pan Aleve!

I believe the Festival should work to get a drug company to sponsor the annual Friday night Steel Drum competition at Lamport Stadium. Now loud music can cause headaches, so, with this sponsor target we will have to change the name of the event to Pan Aleve!

Party Downy

Big name Soca Stars make big money in Toronto  in terms of royalties and appearances when their music is used on the road.  Machel Montano and singer Angela Hunte  can give back to the parade and enhance their brand by working with fabric softener maker Proctor and Gamble to sponsor the festival's final event of the year - the Island Family Picnic. 

The pair could donate a new tag line to the island family gathering.  This event is often called "THE LAST LAP". With their star power and P and G dollars, the new line could be Party Downy!

Highway 407 is now billing drivers with American licence plates who travel on the privately owned freeway. The highway could sponsor a carnival event and put their brand in front of over 250,000 US visitors who drive to Toronto every summer for the big party.  To cut costs they can team with Pizza 

967- Oh- 4 -OH - 7 Hey Hey

Pizza to sponsor the Malvern based Kiddies Parade.  

Of course it will mean having to move the Junior Carnival Parade a bit north to 407. 2,000 kids will love dancing along the slow lane of 407 one Saturday in early July. The young revellers  will have no trouble remembering the catchy slogan they should adopt. 967- Oh- 4 -OH - 7 Hey Hey.