Rest in peace, Earl McRae

[Shwa]

I rarely agreed with Earl McRae, but he was fun to read and, at the very least, he got you thinking about things. He took on the causes of the little guy, he was a bit of a goof, he had insightful sports commentary. He was an excellent story teller of Canadiana.

The logosphere lost a good one yesterday.

Rest in peace, Earl McRae

Canada’s media family lost a giant Saturday night with the death of Ottawa Sun writer Earl McRae.

The colourful columnist collapsed in the Sun newsroom and was rushed to hospital, but doctors were unable to revive him.

McRae was 69 years old.

Earl was a brilliant story teller whose writing awards could fill a wall. Opinionated and mischievous, the self-proclaimed “Lippy Little Shin Kicker” could make you laugh or cry, sometimes in a single sentence.

"Earl was a fixture in the Ottawa media scene. His words will be missed by his many followers and friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family," said Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

“He was old school as a journalist and a great mentor for younger newsroom staff,” said Ottawa Sun publisher Rick Gibbons. “Most of all, he was an incredibly courageous writer whose opinions often got him, and occasionally his bosses, in hot water.

“Earl identified with the man on the street, the war vet, the down-on-his-luck resident of a local mission. He gave voice to all of them. His death comes as a terrible shock to everyone. On behalf of all staff of the Ottawa Sun and Sun Media I want to express our deepest condolences to Earl’s family. I want them to know that we join them in grief over this terrible loss.”

[Rick]

I rarely agreed with Earl McRae, but he was fun to read and, at the very least, he got you thinking about things. He took on the causes of the little guy, he was a bit of a goof, he had insightful sports commentary. He was an excellent story teller of Canadiana.

The logosphere lost a good one yesterday.

Rest in peace, Earl McRae

"Earl is not dead! He is living in Tweed with Elvis."

^^^^

[capricorn]

Few journalists today can match McRae's knack for telling it how it is.

Today’s sports pages, highlight shows and twitter feeds overflow with reports on head shots, concussions and the debate on fighting’s place in the game. Earl was ahead of his time. He was writing about conflicted fighters decades ago. His piece “Requiem for Reggie” on former NHL tough guy Reggie Fleming, should be required reading for everyone from new NHL discipline chief Brendan Shanahan to every player and fan.

“Sometimes,” Fleming says, softly and haltingly, “Sometimes I wish ... I wish I could control myself just once. It’s ... it’s the kids. I go home and they see the cuts and bruises and--” He doesn’t finish the sentence. He lifts his hands to his face. For a long time he’s quiet and then, from behind the red swollen hands, a long, shuddering sigh. In the morning, the children will see him. He knows what they will ask. And he knows, as always, he won’t have an answer.

He’s 39 now, Fleming, but looks older; his hair, once a thick and golden brushcut, running thin and wispy, his stomach fat and soft. It’s hard to believe he was once, and not so long ago, one of hockey’s most brutal, meanest players; short on talent but long on the stick, a bully who carved his notoriety in the flesh of opposing players. He was a fighter and a good one and as long as he was that, the czars of hockey embraced him. When he wasn’t, when he couldn’t fight anymore, when he wouldn’t fight anymore, the czars of hockey kissed him off and forgot about him. It was as if he had never existed.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/Wayne+Scanlan+Country+lost+great+voice+Earl+McRae/5557299/story.html?cid=megadrop_story

RIP Earl.