Episodes

Heritage Auction’s Consignment Director Jason Simonds shares the incredible story behind the discovery of the Holy Grail/White Whale/Loch Ness Monster/Bigfoot of hockey cards...a full case of 16 unopened/sealed boxes of 1979/1980 O Pee Chee NHL hockey cards, which may [or may not] contain an estimated 27 Wayne Gretzky rookie cards. The expected value when the auction process is completed is somewhere around $3 MILLION US dollars!!! And that doesn’t even take into account all those sticks of chew...

Ownr CEO Shane Murphy talks about helping entrepreneurs simplify starting their own businesses, why he came to Toronto as a victim of financial circumstances, his path of starting a tech platform that has been acquired by RBCx, the apparent hypocrisy of moving from starting HIS own business to now working for ‘The Man’ [only Canada’s largest bank!], Canadian entrepreneurship trends [micro-preneurs/solo-preneurs that are truly bootstrapping] and why we should STOP using the term ‘side-hustle,’ wh...

Director Simon Head talks about his documentary ‘Subversives–The History of Lowest Of The Low,’ the vital importance of having both ‘Low Karma’ and ‘Errors & Omissions insurance,’ the bravery needed to take on this project with NO prior film-making experience nor qualifications, the thick-skin needed during the editing process, his Mom’s stellar contributions to transcribing 35 hours of interviews, the surprising difficulties in procuring archival footage from CTV/Bell/MuchMusic/CBC, his interes...

Journalist/Broadcaster/Author Damien Cox talks about starting out from The Toronto Star’s Scarborough bureau [the Toronto Zoo beat], co-hosting Prime Time Sports with the Bobcat Bob McCown [otherwise known as The Cutting Edge...with listeners!], his afternoon show on The FAN and subsequent books with Gord Stellick, his stint on Hockey Night in Canada during the Strombo Years, his thoughts on the major players [Darryl/Lanny/Borje/Inge/Captain Video/Palmy/Tiger/Harold] involved in his new book on ...

Frameworth Sports Marketing President Brian Ehrenworth talks about his transformational business pivot experienced on The Madison’s patio as a result of beer + hockey sticks + ’The Killer’ Doug Gilmour, signing Mike Weir two weeks before he won the 2003 Masters, his industry-changing autograph exclusivity deal signed with a 15 year old Sidney Crosby [originally only done to save his Mike Weir deal!], his development of the Wayne Gretzky fantasy camps [and hitching a ride on The Great One’s priva...

Broadcaster Rod Black talks about his [former] moustache, his baseball-playing boys + the fabulous Butler bros [Rob & Rich], running away from home to meet Bobby Hull, DJ’ing at his Winnipeg roller rink, covering multiple Olympic Games, and his interactions with all of [but not limited to] Bill Cosby, O.J. Simpson, Bruce/Caitlin Jenner, Leo Rautins, Sir Charles Barkley, The Golden Boy Donny Lalonde, The Golden Jet Bobby Hull, Iron Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, John Shannon, Marv Albert, Morris ...

1000+ game NHL centreman Laurie Boschman talks about his 30 years working with Hockey Ministries International, getting the call [on a rotary phone!] from Harold Ballard that the Maple Leafs had drafted him 9th overall in 1979, checking into his hotel behind Andre the Giant and worrying that HE was attending the same training camp, the surreal experience of his first Maple Leafs’ training camp with Sittler/Salming/McDonald/Palmateer/Tiger Williams, as a rookie learning from ‘that old fossil’ Lea...

Glass Tiger’s Alan Frew returns to talk about his upcoming 80s/90s REWIND live concert, why Glass Tiger is the world’s most industrious most lazy band, his fear that a fan will tell him that their Granny finds him ‘hot,’ how an unsigned bar band from Newmarket opened for Boy George & Culture Club at Maple Leaf Gardens [and how he had to high-tail it back right afterwards to do his midnight shift as an orderly at Newmarket Hospital], how his ‘funny accent’ led him directly to both fights & romanc...

Broadcaster turned Author Lisa Bowes talks about starting out as a 'fliegen' at TSN, putting in the extra hours at Maple Leaf Gardens, taking over for Rod Black at CTV Winnipeg, working on CBC’s weekly documentary program Sports Journal, all the creativity & innovations that came out of The Score Television Network, calling Women's Ice Hockey [and Canada's Gold Medal] at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, convincing Gary Bettman to do his best ‘duck call’ live on TV, covering the ‘Finnish Flash’ Teemu...

Exhibition Place CEO Don Boyle talks about the logistics behind holding 1600+ annual events attracting 5.5MM visitors, the grandeur of the Princes’ [not Princess!] Gates, how many Torontonians' first job was working at the CNE, turning the area under the Gardiner into a cattle yard during the Royal Winter Fair, increasing access via Liberty Village/the existing GO station/the NEW Ontario Line station, the expansion plans for BMO Field ahead of the 2026 Fifa World Cup, the Exhibition Stadium base...

Former NHLer & two-time Stanley Cup champion Chris Dingman talks about the WHL bus rides during his 4 years playing Junior in Brandon MB, getting drafted 19th overall by the Calgary Flames, his first NHL game lining up against Stevie Y and the Red Wings, winning his first Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2001, winning his second Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004, his interactions with Tortorella/Belak/Bourque/Bowman/St Louis/Forsberg/Patrick Roy/Andreychuk/Sakic/Lecavalier, his overseas...

Nelson President & CEO Steve Brown talks about leading the digital transformation at a 110 year old business known as ‘that textbook company,’ moving from paper output into an immersive digital learning platform called EDWIN, why he insisted that NO users manual be required & that information be ONLY one click away, leveraging AI/generative AI/large language models, why his educational industry peers don’t like it when he uses the terms ‘customers’ or ‘consumers,’ the need to build a ‘safe sandb...

Legendary NFL/CFL Kicker Mike Vanderjagt talks about whether he or Donovan Bailey ‘owns’ the Town of Oakville, his WVU college kicking debut [9yd punt in front of 76,000 fans televised on ESPN], his Arena Football League experience with the Minnesota Fighting Pike [actually a Walleye in the logo!], his back-2-back Grey Cup championships with the Flutie/Clemons Argonauts [and how he lost & recovered the actual Grey Cup!], his 9 NFL seasons finishing as the most accurate kicker in history, why you...

Adyen’s Canadian Country Manager Sander Meijers talks about the innovations in fintech leading the push towards ‘unified commerce,’ why it’s not a question of ‘if’ but rather ‘when’ his global firm applies for a Canadian banking license, why consumers should expect the SAME shopping experience whether shopping on-line or in a bricks-and-mortar store, taking on this great adventure with his family’s move from Amsterdam to Toronto, why he brought his ELECTRIC bike with him from bicycle-friendly Am...

Canada’s Artist Charles Pachter talks moose, hockey murals and why the Queen WAS amused!


Charles shares the stories behind meeting his husband Keith Lem [Orillia aristocracy!], the inspiration from his lifelong friendship with ‘Peggy Nature’ [Margaret Atwood at Camp White Pine], his mother’s reaction to his Leafs/Habs murals going up in the TTC College Street subway station [“it’s the basement, but at least it’s permanent!’], opening the ‘other Shaw Festival’ and then building his ‘palace’ in...

Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist Stephen Stanley talks about his new album with The Stephen Stanley Band, his 23 years with The Lowest of the Low [with a few breaks & a few break-ups mixed in], why ‘Shakespeare My Butt’ was [at the time] both an albatross and a gold medal, his memories of enjoying 4am nachos at Sneaky Dee’s with Dave Bookman, presenting a bouquet of roses better suited for Secretariat to Luciano Pavarotti at Massey Hall [and later playing there himself], turning DOWN opening tour slo...

The Man/the Myth/the Legend Brian McFarlane talks about his 25 years on Hockey Night in Canada, his time down south with NBC and CBS, being in the Maple Leaf Gardens’ gondola for the LAST Maple Leafs Stanley Cup win in 1967 [and crashing the team party afterwards with his wife!], getting banned from MLG by owner Harold Ballard [but nonetheless doing his job from outside the arena on the Carlton St sidewalk!], the imminent comeback of Peter [and Penny!] Puck, playing hockey with Jean Beliveau/Gor...

Author Dr Norm O’Reilly talks about why the NHL makes a fantastic business case study, transferring lessons learned from the ice to the boardroom, why love him or loathe him Gary Bettman is a strong 'in control' leader, the future of NHL expansion both domestically & globally, why the Arizona franchise experiment is unlikely to die, how the NHL successfully led all major sports leagues into the Las Vegas market, the star power achieved with the book’s foreward written by Gary Bettman and its aft...

1 Minute Morning’s Tom Hayes talks about career stops at Scarborough Cable/CKVR-Barrie/CTV News/CityNews/Global News, his broadcasting brothers from another mother Bill Hayes/Bryan Hayes/John [Hayes] Derringer, the surprise of Tik Tok providing 50% of his current viewing audience, his memorable interactions with Lady Di/Mick Jagger/Robert De Niro/Paul Stanley, and the crazy details behind his investigative reporting that led to the creation of ‘The Hayes Amendment’ in our provincial liquor legis...

Entrepreneur, publisher, art collector, fundraiser, philanthropist and now author Salah Bachir shares stories from his life and his new memoir ‘First to Leave the Party: My Life With Ordinary People…Who Happen to be Famous’ involving Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, Marlon Brando, Joan Rivers, Doris Day, Cesar Chavez, Diahann Carroll, Andy Warhol and many more!


‘First to Leave the Party: My Life With Ordinary People…Who Happen to be Famous’ is published by Penguin Random House Canada and is ava...

Christmas Singer/Songwriter Kristian Noel Pedersen confirms his middle name is legit and not a marketing tool, talks about the release of his 15th annual original Xmas album ‘A Christmas Around Town,’ shares his love for 'Bandcamp-Heads' & Mariah Carey, and extols the virtues of apparently silly projects being able to bring people together!


For the full Kristian Noel Pedersen Experience, please visit https://akristiankindachristmas.bandcamp.com/
TORONTO LEGENDS is hosted by Andrew Applebaum a...

Author Randi Druzin talks about her new book Behind the Mask: A Revealing Look at Twelve of the Greatest Goalies in Hockey History, sharing interesting stories about Mike 'The Popcorn Kid' Palmateer, Henrik Lundqvist, Carey Price, Grant Fuhr, Vladislav Tretiak, Marc-André Fleury, Roberto Luongo, Tony Esposito, Gerry Cheevers, Rogie Vachon, Ed Giacomin and Roger Crozier. She also concurs that the greatest piece of goaltender artwork is Ken Danby’s ‘At The Crease’!


For more on Randi, please vis...

College of Sports Media/TSN’s Tony Ambrogio talks about his interactions with Dan Marino/Darryl Sittler/Wayne Gretzky/Ernie Harwell/Jean Beliveau/Tom Cheek/Dick Enberg/Dino Ciccarelli, the industry innovations that came from The Score Television Network [the ticker! live post-game news conferences! Steve Kouleas!], why he is a BIG HIT in New Zealand, the importance of providing Descriptive Video, his PA work for the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads, the best practical advice he gives his students at...

University of Toronto Press President/Publisher/CEO Jessica Mosher talks about their ‘diversity of voices & ideas’ mandate both in the U of T community and globally, the ongoing disruption related to the growth of AI [and why it needs to retain a ‘human loop’], the rapidly changing mix of printed vs electronic books, why she doesn’t mind if you purchase your Varsity Blues hoodie from a bookstore OR order it online, informs us of the shocking existence of COUNTERFEIT textbooks [!!], and shares th...