Bill Walker (broadcaster)
Bill Walker (1922 - 1995) was a Canadian broadcaster and actor.[1]
Originally from Rouleau, Saskatchewan, he began his broadcasting career on Regina radio station CJRM before enlisting in the Canadian Forces during World War II.[2] Following the war he returned to the station as morning host and program director; at this time he also began acting in community theatre productions, winning the award for Best Actor at the Saskatchewan Regional Drama Festival five times and at the Dominion Drama Festival twice.[3] He moved to Winnipeg in 1950, becoming host of the program Walker's Wigwam on CKRC.[2]
He moved to Toronto in 1954, securing work as an advertising spokesman in Ford Motor Company commercials[1] and appearing as an actor in CBC Television anthology series such as General Motors Theatre, Encounter, Folio, First Performance and On Camera, and a panelist on Live a Borrowed Life.[3] He was also the host of music programs such as Cross-Canada Hit Parade, Music '60, and Parade, and game shows such as Flashback, Communicate and Party Game.[2]
He was twice host of the Canadian Film Awards ceremonies, cohosting with Louise Marleau at the 20th Canadian Film Awards in 1968 and hosting on his own for the 22nd Canadian Film Awards in 1970.[4] He also had selected stage acting roles, most notably playing Henry Higgins in the Rainbow Stage production of My Fair Lady in 1966.[5]
Toward the end of his career he returned to radio, recording news commentaries for Toronto's CFRB.[3]
In 1994, he was in a car accident which gave him a hairline fracture of the neck, and underwent a rapid decline in his health afterward. He died approximately a year later, at age 72.[3] He was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' Hall of Fame.[3]
References
- ^ a b "Bill Walker was host of CHCH's Party Game". Hamilton Spectator, June 27, 1995.
- ^ a b c "Nice guy Bill Walker, 72 was TV announcer, host". Toronto Star, June 26, 1995.
- ^ a b c d e "Bill Walker (1922-1995)". Canadian Communications Foundation, July 2003.
- ^ Maria Topalovich, And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. ISBN 0-7737-3238-1.
- ^ "BILL WALKER RAISES HOMEGROWN HIGGINS". The Globe and Mail, June 20, 1966.
External links
- Bill Walker at IMDb