Toronto Mike'd: The Official Toronto Mike Podcast - November 2023 Memorial Episode: Toronto Mike'd #1379

Episode Date: December 2, 2023

In this 1379th episode of Toronto Mike'd, Mike pays tribute to those we lost in November 2023. Toronto Mike'd is proudly brought to you by Great Lakes Brewery, Palma Pasta, Ridley Funeral Home, Electronic Products Recycling Association, Raymond James Canada and Moneris. If you would like to support the show, we do have partner opportunities available. Please email Toronto Mike at [e-mail]

are dead or never dead to us until we have forgotten them as always i open this episode with that quote from george elliott because i believe it to be true. By remembering those who have passed, we give them life. Let's remember those we lost in November 2023. This memorial episode of Toronto Mic is brought to you by Ridley Funeral Home. Pillars of the community since 1921. Sadly, we lost an FOTM in November 2023. Norris MacDonald came out to TMLX11 at Palmas Kitchen in December 2022.

He wrote about motor racing. He got behind the wheel. He served as a team owner for many years. He was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame, and he was the longtime editor of the Toronto Star Wheels section. He came with Perry Lefkoe, so when I heard the news that Norris had passed away, I gave FOTM Perry Lefkoe a call. Perry Lefkoe, when I heard the sad news this morning that Norris McDonald had passed away, you were my first thought. My condolences, man. Yeah, thanks very much. He was a really special person in my life. Would you mind sharing with us what he meant to you and your

relationship with Norris McDonald? I always called Norris my friend and mentor. I met him seven years ago. It was quite by accident. I was working for the advanced polling for the 2015 election. And Norris came in there, handed me his driver's license. I go, are you Norris McDonald from the start? He goes, yeah, I'm Perry Lefko'm perry left going i know he are and i said if you ever needed any automotive writing just let me know because norris was the wheels that are the star i knew absolutely nothing about automotive writing month later he calls me up with an assignment i'm thinking okay what did i get myself into here right but norris was one of the coolest guys around i mean this guy was a veteran of the industry been in it for more than six decades.

He was so old school in terms of understanding exactly what a story is. So, you know, what I lacked in the knowledge of automotive industry, he worked with me and we became very, very close. And we spent a lot of time just going on road trips. Him driving his Ford 150. And we'd go here, there, and everywhere. and he'd be talking about journalism and I'd say, Norris, that train's left town already. But he was just such a classy guy. He was like your uncle, right? The guy you could just tell stories to. You could tell him anything you wanted and he wouldn't repeat it.

As I said today in a post a couple weeks ago, he's saying to me, Perry, I got this really crazy idea. Just bear with me. And he goes, okay, what is it? He says, I think you should be a wrestling manager. And I go, Norris, you're right. That was a crazy idea. And he kind of laughed, right? But unfortunately, his health had cut up within the last couple of years. He was in and out of hospital. And about a week or so, he took a turn for the worst. And I'm really sorry he passed away. I'm just glad that he doesn't have to suffer anymore because Norris was a big, robust individual.

And just to see what health had done to him and how it declined his spirit, so it was just really sad to see. I went there for the last few months. I'd be going to his place every Wednesday, just spending quality time with him. I'm glad he got to spending quality time with him. I'm glad he got to spend that time with you Perry

at the end there. Now I got to meet Norris McDonald thanks to you in December 2022. Yeah I took him along and said hey Norris why don't you just come along and you know see the friends of Mike whatever TMLX12. 105 or something

like that I forgot which year alright so set the table here because I'm very interested in this is that it was early December 2022 and it was TMLX 12 the 12th Toronto Mike listener experience and it was at Palma's Kitchen you Perry

love your Palma pasta so nothing was going to keep you away I absolutely love it my wife and I go there regularly we buy it anthony he put on a hell of a product okay i give you enough love or give him enough love well you don't you know i don't even need the love it's just part of the story but you were you were there and you brought as like your plus one you brought norris mcdonald and he came on the mic right we chatted in that episode that was recorded and you can even hear it now. As was your insistence, you like to pick people from the crowd and just bring them up there, you know, whether they're able to handle that type of pressure. Norris and I live very

close to Palma's kitchen there. So I said, hey, Norris, you want to go? And at that point in time, his health was okay. I mean, it got progressively worse later on but I mean he really truly enjoyed the you know that the atmosphere that the camaraderie and just the feeling that that you know the Toronto Mike you bring it and your annual trips to Palmas past the kitchen where you like to present me as a here's a guy of the book he never gave me a book he comes on my show doesn't give me a book so I'm getting a little off topic here but that's that's mike you're a hell of a guy okay norris how are you doing sir how you doing i'm doing fine and listen congratulations great show and uh a pleasure to be here today did he have to twist your arm to get you here

not really you just heard there was free food. Not really. That always does it. He said, come, we'll have sandwiches. Yeah. What did you eat, by the way? What did you get? As a matter of fact, I got a drink.

Well, you're missing out, buddy. There's some nourishment down there. However, I'm delighted because I'm Dave Epple. I've been listening and watching him for years. Oh, Mike Epple? Mike Epple, sorry. It's great because Dave Schultz and Mike Epple merge and they become like a transformer, Dave Epple.

And I worked with Dave Schultz. Okay, at the Globe. At the Globe and Mail. He was there forever. When they Globe and Mail, you know. He was there forever. When they said, okay, guys, we're going to have involuntary buyouts, he leapt six feet in the air. He had never had such energy.

He was very excited. Since you were the editor of Wheels, is that what it was? Yeah. Wow. What's your favorite car? What's your... My personal favorite? Yes, if you could have any car right now Chevrolet Corvette what year oh they but there's a new one just out and uh so consequently we're

looking at 2022 oh really with 2023 yeah gotcha everybody everybody says Lamborghini and Ferrari and all the rest but give me good North American iron, you know. And color. Do you have a favorite color? Red. Yeah, it's got to be red, right? By the way, Toronto star writer Ben Rayner just walked in right now. And for a minute, I thought Ed Vedder was here. Just for a minute.

Norris, thank you for being here, buddy. You're now an FOTM. You're a friend of Toronto Mike. Well, thank you very much. And I hate to say it, I've been dominating this. No, no, no. We've never heard from you before, and I've heard way too much Lefkoe. Lefkoe.

I'm always happy to put over Norris. As they say in wrestling, great guy. Thank you, Perry Lefkoe, man. You're a good FOTM. Love it. And thank you for bringing Norris. Great Toronto star writer. Ifkoe, man. You're a good FOTM. Love it. And thank you for bringing Norris, great Toronto star writer. I love your sweater, buddy.

I was going to say, I always take the opportunity to plug the product. Love it. Thank you guys so much. Norris, that's amazing to hear from you. And Perry, stick around afterwards. We'll chat. Remember, you're a sweetheart. Ciao.

All right. Thanks, man. Ciao, you're a sweetheart. Ciao. All right. Thanks, man. Ciao, Bella. We lost a good one in Norris McDonald. How did he feel about, you know, making his Toronto Mike debut when I forced him? Like you said, I forced him on the microphone to say hi to everybody. He was gripping my hand tightly. I said, Norris, just take it easy.

You'll be able to get it. You've done far more pressure things than this. So just go up there. You'll be able to get, you've done far more pressure things than this. So just go up there, be yourself. And I think when it was over, he said, I made it through Toronto, Mike. I mean, that guy asked really, really tricky questions, but I made it through and I want to go back again. It was a very proud individual. He, he had done so much in his lifetime. I mean, been in the business for more than six decades. When he was in college or something like that, he once wrote a thesis about prostitutes. I mean, this guy was about as multi-dimensional as you could possibly be. He was a race car driver at one point. He had done so many things in his life. So I'm doing a, you know, I don't want to call it a

bitch word, but just remembering Norris McDonald. I'm reaching out to people in the automotive industry. I'm reaching out to people in the car racing industry. When Norris walked into a room, people knew him right away. And if I wanted to go into a room and just automatically be welcomed, I'd go out. Yeah, I'm a friend of Norris McDonald. That was the calling card. So you were in. As soon as you said Norris McDonald, because that because that's how much as they say cred he had

not only in journalism but in the automotive industry one thing i noticed at tmlx 12 when norris mcdonald was there was that when ben rayner showed up so ben rayner was a long time music journalist i know you know this and your brother particularly knows this but ben was covering music for the toronto star for many many, many years. And just, I was reminded about this by Carlo, who was at the event, and he noted how in awe Ben Rayner was when he was in the presence of Norris McDonald. It was like you talked about him being a mentor to you. I think Ben felt similarly. This was a massive loss.

See, that's because anyone who has been in journalism, worked in a newspaper, can appreciate what Norris was, a veteran of the industry, but someone who was always willing to help. I mean, I run into a lot of people in the industry, and they're not going to give you the time of day. When you meet someone like Norris, totally old school, a guy who wore suspenders, bow tie, you know, he had his own kind of look. And he was willing to give. He was willing to share. And he did so many things in the newspaper industry. I think he worked in the entertainment section. I think he did actually edit it. So we would talk. We'd go in his truck. We'd be listening to music, old time music. He knew so much about everything.

I found the title of that thesis you alluded to. It was called Prostitutes Are Human Beings, an Organized Counter-Institution. So the man was very progressive ahead of his time. That was 1971 when that was published. At some point I'm going to read it. I never have actually read it, but that's just so typical. First of all, congratulations on you being able to reach out and get that information while I'm talking.

You're multitasking over there. So that's you, Mike. You're a hell of a guy. But Norris was so in touch with people, in touch with prostitutes. I'm just saying he recognized them for what they were. They were doing a job, and he wanted to really get it into their minds and understand what their job was, what they did. Absolutely. Like I said, very progressive, and that's amazing.

But one last thing on his career I want to touch on before I leave you with my hopes, like my hopes for how we can pay proper tribute to Norris McDonald. But I understand he had a racing program on the Fan 590 in the early 2000s. It was called Motorsport Radio. There's something I actually didn't know. This man had a radio program. Yeah, because, again, he was a stock car driver way back when.

And he still liked to frequent races because I spoke to Ron Fellows. And Ron Fellows, an acclaimed Canadian race car driver, has a ton of respect for Norris. So Norris was able to use his expertise to talk about car racing, but he could also talk about anything to do with cars. You want to understand the physical machinations of a car? He could tell you that. You want him to talk about it? I mean, when he put on his reviews of cars,

those manufacturers read them because they respected him. He just wasn't writing it without any knowledge. He knew exactly what everything was about. So he was an all-encompassing guy to do with cars, and he lended that to radio. Do we know how old a man Norris was when he passed? 82. He had his birthday a few days ago, unfortunately. You know, he wasn't able to celebrate it because he wasn't in very good health.

But two years ago, he had his 80th birthday party, and his partner, Susan Green, had a special celebration for him. And anybody who was anybody in the automotive industry, racing industry, journalism, they were there. And Norris was in his element. And it's just sad to think that, to think that a few weeks after that, his health started to take a decline. It wasn't pretty the last couple of years, but like I said, at least I was able to spend some quality time with him. Without getting too emotional, I'll remember him forever.

Again, sorry for your loss, Perry. I know what he meant to you. And you were my first thought when I heard this terrible news this morning. Here's what I'm hoping. I'm hoping on December 9th, between noon and 3 p.m., you could make another appearance at Palmer's Kitchen. And I would like to, during the live recording, I would like to raise a glass so all FOTMs can pay respect to this good

guy we lost. One of the good ones, Norris McDonald, gone at 82. I hope you'll be there to kind of toast with me on the mic. I'd love to do it. And hopefully I won't bawl because every time you get me on your show I start crying. I don't know what it is. Well, I know what it is. I play The Promise.

Yeah, that's the first notes of that just all of a sudden make me just blubber. Now you're talking about Norris, so I'm going to be there, and you're going to hit me with the promise and a question about Norris, and all of a sudden I'll be crying in front of these people, and these people are going, what's the matter with that guy? In the isle of Cape Breton my father did stay From his father's father before Fishing the banks and digging the coals

From the mines that don't give no more ore And I'm going down the road, boys Seeking what I'm owed, boys And I know it must get better If far enough I know Hello, FOTM Hall of Famer Peter Gross. How are you? I'm great. You? Good. You didn't wear your FOTM Hall of Fame pin Peter Gross. How are you? I'm great. You? Good.

You didn't wear your FOTM Hall of Fame pin. Did I forget to give you one? You may not have given me one, or my memory may have eluded me that I actually had one. Well, we should rectify that immediately. Now, Peter, this is, I'm going to timestamp it because, of course, this is a exclusive original content for the ridley funeral home memorial episode of toronto mic'd where we discuss uh people who passed away in november 2023 luckily you're not on that list actually and appropriately uh promoted by ridley funeral

home isn't it yeah not only are you not on the list we're talking about a couple of people that you you know but you're what you're doing like a million push-ups a morning what is the what is going on with your push-ups i don't know about three years ago i just decided to see how many push-ups i could do consecutively and i've always been able to do 40 or 50 in a row and i did 50 and then after a while i tried 60 then 70 so for most of the last three years almost every morning 100 push-ups in a row that's amazing like that is incredible you did come on toronto mike there is footage of this video footage but you did your age was that the goal you wanted when i or 100? Somewhere along the line, I did my age. I think I did 70 for 70.

And I did 91 a couple years ago. But I'm up to 100, so I can do 100. Unless we forget, your mother is still with us. How is your mom doing? My mother is sensational, 100 years old. Still cooks for a dozen people at a time. Is completely mobile. Hasn't got a serious health problem at all. It's fantastic. A hundred years old. So congrats to your mom. That's quite the milestone. And those good genes and how well you're doing now suggest I won't be talking about

you in a memorial episode of Toronto Mic'd for many, many decades. My plan is to never expire. Well, that's your plan. But sadly, we did lose a number of people in November 2023, including somebody who, it's kind of interesting when I talk about it, because I can make the case that Donald Shabib was on Toronto Mic'd, but he only came on Toronto Mic'd

because you recorded a phone conversation with Donald Shabib. So before we talk about Donald Shabib, which will give us another chance to talk about Ripoff, which will give me another chance to tell people there's an episode 765, which is the deepest dive into Ripoff you can imagine, which includes the aforementioned chats with Donald Shabib and Peter Gross.

We're going to talk about all this, but I actually am going to play you a clip of somebody who literally just left this very basement we're in. So we're talking on November 25th. It's almost 1 PM. Literally a half an hour ago, Mike Stafford was in this basement and he left. Do you know Mike Stafford? I don't know him personally, no. But do you know of him? Yes. You've heard this

name. Okay. Now I'm going to just play a little bit so you can relax for a couple of minutes while we listen to Mike Stafford and I talk about Peter Gross. I was chatting with you about FOTM Hall of Famer Peter Gross, and he's going to come on in. That's why I'm here, man. That's why you're here. I've never met Peter. Is that right?

Yeah. No. I mean, worked in the business. I think he's a little longer in the tooth than I am. I put him at 73, maybe. Yeah, but I've never had a chance to meet Peter. But I heard Peter was coming in. I won't be able to see him, I'm sure.

But I have five favorite movies of all time. Now, today it could be Local Hero, which is a fantastic film with Burt Lancaster. I haven't even seen that movie. Yeah, it's terrific. Mark Knopfler did the soundtrack. Goodfellas would be on a Sunday going down the road. It would be up there um it's a documentary it's it's about as real a film as you'll ever see pauline kale loved it uh roger ebert loved it uh 1969 i think filmed in toronto 1970 1970 okay uh pete and uh and buddy there and

of course the great great uh satire spoof they did on sctv wasn't that amazing i'm a big doctor and jobs and they use the stomp and tom song and it just it's so perfect with the stomp and tom oh uh there's a the young street song when they're right let's go up young street uh donald shabib passed recently, the director of Going Down the Road. And I think I'm probably one of the few people in a non-YouTube way on a Saturday night back in the 70s when the CBC would just blow on some Canadian film,

a film called Ripoff. Okay, I'm glad you're bringing up Ripoff. What did you think of Ripoff? The follow-up, by the way, the Donald Shabib follow-up to Going Down the the road uh unfortunately i think it was a film of its time a lot of groovies uh far outs and stuff like that and of course just post uh post um what was the motorcycle easy ride easy rider and we got to make a kid's film you know right it's not very good but peter's in it so

that's richie so that's why peter's dropping by because we lost donald shabib and uh peter's going to come in and talk about his relationship with donald because peter was in ripoff when i think a couple of summer a couple of winters ago maybe summers ago i don't know a couple years ago peter came over and we had donald shab on Toronto Mic'd because Peter recorded phone conversations with Donald about rip-off. There's literally like, if you are bored one day, Michael Stafford, there is the definitive deep dive into rip-off

featuring Donald Shabib and Peter Groves in the Toronto Mic'd feed. So that's some homework for you. It's getting to listen. Absolutely it is. Yeah, he played Richie. Don Scardino, who I think plays Mike, he is now like a top television director. Wow.

Did 30 Rocks. He's won a couple of Emmys and stuff. Didn't have much of an acting career. Later married Pamela Blair, who was an actress in the original cast of Chorus Line. Wow. She played Val, who sings Tits and Ass. So just very cool

that Peter Gross is coming in and please give my regards. Well, you're going to miss him by this much. Yeah. Because he'll be here at one o'clock. That's not too much.

That's not too bad. But that photo would break the internet if I could get a photo of Mike Stafford with Peter Gross. Two of our greatest. So there you go.

That just happened on Toronto Mic'd. A nice segue. Yeah. I said, well, okay, I'm going to pull this clip and play it for Peter. So, you know, rip off. Where do we begin? Can you please share with us, Peter, your memories, your experiences with the late great Donald Shabib,

who passed away on November 5th at the age of 85 so vintage fall 1969 i was friends with a fellow named stephen whitkin and a very talented guy who's written all kinds of musicals and has worked in hollywood in new york and he said we got to go get agents so we went down young street and we sort of went from agency to agency and nobody wanted anything sounds like the plot for going down the road and um acting jobs laurie there was an agent there was an agency called characters that had just opened so they were accepting everybody i think the guy's name was laurie rotenberg so it's So as a laugh, I filled out a form. And so Shabib was making a movie.

And he needed a lot of young people in it. And so there was this casting call, cattle call. And I auditioned because I wanted, when the movie came out, I was going to tell everybody, I met the director of the movie. So I go into audition and there's this portly guy in a blue jean jumpsuit with a red beard and long red hair. And I was profoundly disappointed because, well, this couldn't possibly be the director. So I was a complete moron. I was an absolute asshole.

And that was Shabib. And he took a shine to what he saw in me, I guess. And he cast you in Ripoff. That is what happened. Okay so we obviously don't have, we won't do as deep a dive as we did in episode 765. Again

this is the deep dive you didn't know you needed. The Ripoff deep dive. But share with us when Ripoff comes out and it's not as commercially or critically successful as his first movie, Going Down the Road, I know you spoke to him for episode 765. What does Donald Shabib, what did he think of Ripoff?

Well, Shabib, according to his count, made 31 films. And he ranks Ripoff as number 31. Oh, no. 31 films and he ranks he ranks ripoff as number 31 oh no yeah he he says that he he felt he was somewhat how pressured into getting the film out as quickly as possible and he just wasn't happy with the result ripoff is a is a pleasant little film with a few good laughs in it a real sappy ending um and just you know in in it's not a terrible film it's well executed uh but it doesn't A real sappy ending. It's not a terrible film. It's well executed, but it doesn't have a lot to say about anything. But what did you, Peter Gross, think about Going Down the Road?

Going Down the Road is a magnificent film. It's gritty. It's gutsy. It's grainy. Shabib had to sell he had a morgan roadster that he sold to you and because the cost of the film was something like 67 000 and it was shot on 16 millimeters so that when it was blown up to 35 millimeter it had this grainy seedy feel to it and it's just it's uh very it has a cinema verite feel to it it's interesting Stafford used the word documentary because you feel you're watching a documentary.

Right. But it really is an actual film. Sure, a scripted film. I will say, if listeners want more about Going Down the Road, which I absolutely adore myself, I love that movie. I could watch it over and over again. But there is an episode of Toronto Mic'd with Jane Eastwood.

Jane Eastwood played Betty in Going Down the Road. And we talked quite a bit about donald and going down the road after ripoff comes out what was your relationship like with donald shabib did you bump into him now and then i know he took your call a couple of years ago it's interesting and no i didn't see him for years and years and years and then i i called him uh I spoke with him a couple of times within the last couple of years and he was very chatty on the phone, you know, willing to discuss anything. And it just reminded me, he was just such a sweetheart of a director.

He was really, really kind and thoughtful to us. Like he wasn't like an overlord or insulting. And he had to put up with a lot of grief because one one of the guy who ended up becoming my best friend mike kukulowicz was not an actor per se he was cast for the movie because the writer bill fruit had seen him doing pranks in school and and just the look and the behavior of this fellow prompted fruit i think what happened what i'm told happened is that fruit said i want kukula which in the movie and shabib said i want gross in the movie and that's how we both got in the movie it was a quid pro quo kind of thing it was a big gross booster i'll tell you there's a bit of an aside i don't know if i told you the story before

but kakula which was very big into betting the ponies and he had a horse in the first race at uh green old greenwood racetrack one day and we were way up young street uh thorn hill uh and and shabib shot wide shot medium shot close up extreme close up cut away he was very technical and um mike was getting very very antsy that he was going to miss the first race. And he just started misbehaving and complaining. So Shabib said, here's what I'll do. We'll shoot Gross and Cooley's shots first. And they did all of our takes first so that we could take off and we go flying down the Don Valley Parkway.

And we're not going to make the first race. We can tell by our watches we're not going to make the first race we can tell by our watches we're not going to make the first race and we pull up at greenwood raceway and we can see that there's a recall the horses didn't get off properly and there's a recall and mike runs in and pounds this horse and wins 500 wow wow that's quite the story yeah quite right do you remember uh a couple years back when you recorded those chats with Donald Shabib for Toronto Mic'd and that deep dive into Rip Off? Do you remember we had discussions that it was kind of a weird time because of the pandemic, but we were talking about how Donald Shabib, he had a movie coming out.

He was working on a film. He's in his 80s at this point, obviously. He's going to make his in-person Toronto Mic'd debut. And I think we talked about you bringing donald over do you remember this yeah and i had a discussion with him and he didn't want to come until his film was completed that's right so he wanted to finish his i was that because he wanted to promote the film or because he was too busy to think about uh this you know this guy from column he didn't live far from me. That was a thing.

He was like very close by. And it just never happened. It just never, and once in a while, you know, I would kind of ping you and I'd be like, let's get Donald Shabib on Toronto Mike. But it just never came to be. Yeah. Kind of a shame, isn't it?

Yeah. I paused for the. Because he's very talkative. He loves to talk about making the movies. And he was a real sweet guy. Well, this is a lesson for us. We need to strike while the iron is hot because you never know when somebody is going to pass.

And again, Donald died at 85. When you learn the news on November 5th, and it might have been me who broke it to you. I can't remember. You tell me. But when you learned the news that Donald Shabib had passed away, what were your first thoughts? Yeah, I was in my car and I saw a text from you.

I was just, I'm cold-hearted. People die and I go, oh, that's too bad. But working with Donald Shabib was a seminal moment in my life. And like I say, he was a real likable, thoughtful, generous human being. So I was sad about that. And then the very next day, I texted you again, and I probably didn't break this news with you, but because I listened to Down the Stretch, Down the Stretch is the definitive Ontario horse racing podcast, and you produce and host Down the

Stretch. And I urge everyone listening, even if you have only a mild interest in horse racing, everyone listening, even if you have only a mild interest in horse racing. Heck, even if you just like horses, okay, you should subscribe and listen to Down the Stretch. Peter does an amazing job with it. But because I listened to Down the Stretch, I was well aware of this gentleman, a young, young man named Cody Dorman and the horse Cody's Wish the day after Donald Shabib passed away. Cody, at the age of 17, he passed away. Please tell us everything you can about Cody Dorman and of course, Cody's Wish and this wonderful story you brought to us in down the stretch well you know i've been involved in the horse racing since the 60s and uh this is the most wonderful amazing incredible sports story i've ever seen um what was that movie brian's song the tearjerker about the football player cancer this one tops

in terms of just actual emotion and mind-boggling events okay cody dorman was born with a terrible uh the genetic disease called wolf herschhorn syndrome that compromises body growth and uh mental acuity and uh and he he got the worst of it. He lived until he was 17. He had to be fed with a tube constantly. He had hundreds and thousands of seizures. He had open-heart surgery. He was strapped to a wheelchair.

He couldn't walk. He couldn't talk, but he was extraordinarily bright it's um perhaps the whole gist of this story is that he had the capacity to communicate he wore a an instrument on his head with with a dot that could be lasered onto a screen so and he could pick out words on a screen and we're going to hear quotes from cody so i i have clips here so this is again do you remember the episode number uh to lead people to down the stretch 199 was the the story on oh after i guess you know before we get to the clips we should tell you about the horse yeah so that's it not everybody knows cody's wish uh tell us about the horse how

the horse is related to the the young man we're speaking of cody dorman and then what you can call set up these clips so four or five years ago uh make a wish foundation arranged for cody and his family to visit the gainsborough farm owned by godolphin um thinking that maybe if he sees a beautiful racehorse, it'll brighten up his day. And they brought out a yearling, a one-year-old horse that had no name. And they specifically chose this horse because it was quick,

because they didn't want the horse, you know, trampling the poor boy in the wheelchair. This horse goes up to Cody in his wheelchair and lays his head in Cody's lap. They'd never seen anything like this. And I think he came back the next year to visit the horse, and the horse did the same thing. So the people who ran Gainesboro Farms asked Cody's father, Kelly,

can we name the horse after him? And they named it Cody's Wish. So Cody's Wish was a very good racehorse. His sire is Curlin, one of the great uh stallions the horses whose father are curling do great so the horse ran three times in maiden special weights which are very expensive races for horses that have never won and he came third each time so okay won a little bit of money cody using this mechanism on his head to communicate with his parents said he won't win unless i'm at the track to watch him so the family goes to churchill downs this would be uh

cody's wishes fourth race and the race goes off and cody's wish is last then he's not last and then he's third and then he's second and then he just swoops by and he wins by six lengths wow cody was right and from that point on the horse was a superstar so um we'll carry on with that but i think you should run this clip because because these clips are really uh to me very emotional because i feel i'm hearing c. So the first clip you're running is just, we asked him to tell us a bit about himself. Hi, my name is Cody. I'm 16 years old. I am a junior at Madison Central High School. I love ag class and math classes. I am also a member of the fishing team there. I love fishing, motorcycles, and horses. I also love fundraising for Make-A-Wish.

I have Wolf Hirshhorn Syndrome, but I don't let it define who I am. Okay, so that's you talking to Cody, and that's how Cody replies with his speech. You can identify the background music. I was going to ask you, Thunderstruck,

why that song in the background? I know this is cut from an episode of Down the Stretch, which had it, but why that song? His dad told me that that was Cody's favorite piece of music. And I've repeatedly said it's so appropriate because it's irresistible. The music never gives up and neither did Cody Dorman. Wow. Okay. So that was you chatting with Cody and he tells you a little bit about himself.

Yeah. Wild. Okay. Set up a clip number two um i'm not even sure i think i think it's so so the horse does so well that the trainer bill mott enters cody's wish in the breeders cup dirt mile for those of you who aren't into horse racing every year there's two days of races where every race is at least a million, some are two, some are four, some are six million dollars, and the best horses converge, and it's a wonderful day for horse racing, and Cody's wish was in as deep as a horse can be in this mile race, and Breeders' Cup very wisely, mile race and breeders cop very wisely. That's my daughter's calling me.

Breeders cop very wisely. Flew. Well, I don't know if they flew. I think it was at Churchill down. So somehow they invited Cody and his family and they put Cody in his wheelchair in the winner's circle. So I think this next clip is him talking about that. When did you find out that you were going to the Breeders' Cup?

When I got the letter from Judy Fleming, the president and CEO of the Breeders' Cup, inviting me to the races on Friday and Saturday. Did you make a prediction for Cody's wish in the dirt mile? If so, what was your prediction? Yes, that he would win for me. Wow. Okay, so it's wild how he can communicate by staring at a screen

and you're right, you hear that whatever, that computer voice but that's Cody talking to you. You're talking with Cody and he's predicting that the horse named after him, Cody's wish is going to win. Amazing. You have to appreciate, by the way,

imagine if you had a little laser light on your head and you had to pick out letter by letter on a screen, what it would take for those, even that 15 second clip. This young man was persistent and determined and there was no give up in him. So yeah, soody's wish wins the breeders cup mile and then we so then we got cody to talk about what that was like we were at the winner's circle the people at keen on took me there so i could see better from the rail i was so

glad that they helped me see the race better. It was very loud, but exciting. Everyone was smiling, but there was also so many people crying because they were happy. Okay, and lest we forget how young a boy, basically, Cody is at this point. So, Cody passed away in November at the age of 17. So, at this point, what, he's very young, right? How old is Cody at this point, approximately? Well, this was a year before, so he's 15 or 16's very young right how old is cody at this point approximately well this was a year before so he's 15 or 16 15 or 16 years old so now it's 2023 cody's wish is a four-year-old and he has he's having if if his work as a three-year-old was great his work as

a four-year-old was even greater i think the only discouraging loss was in the whitney stakes which was a mile and an eighth and then uh they they said well a mile and an eighth is not his comfort zone let's put him back in the breeders cup mile he's the defending champion in the breeders cup mile and this one is at um is in los angeles at santa Santa Anita racetrack. So Cody and his family fly, which I'm sure was a very difficult ordeal. Well, I don't know what kind of arrangements you make for a child in a very special wheelchair. And you have to see this race

to appreciate how sensational it was. Cody's wish, it was one of these horses that would trail early and kind of gauge what's going on in front of him and then when the jockey and the jockey is junior alvarado when the jockey says time to go he would go so around the far turn he starts picking it up starts passing horse after horse after horse comes into the stretch neck and neck with another horse they come down to the wire and it was excruciatingly close but cody's wish won by maybe two inches wow and then you spoke to cody following that uh dramatic victory no okay because i have one more clip here i'm setting it up incorrectly oh no yeah don't worry yeah don't worry about that okay okay so that's like what do they say like a like a um photo finish essentially yeah well it was

interesting because there were there were uh two two uh race callers larry colmas calling the race um for for the television production said i think cody's wish won right and he actually says thank you cody and thank you cody's wish frank miramadi who was calling it at the track um said it's just close he didn't call the winner he told me subsequently well i knew cody's wish won but they were uh they weren't close at the wire they were they were several feet apart uh horizontally whatever so sometimes you can get burned by oh yeah by the parallax view um so but another big win for cody's wishy cody's there and now here's here's the emotional impact of this this was cody wish's last race it was, whatever happened here.

And then he would come on a stallion and they actually, they, they interview Kelly Dorman, the father afterwards. And he says, I, you know, I,

I don't know if I can, I can't laugh and cry at the same time. I can't, I can't digest all of this. Yeah. He couldn't process it. And I think that one point they said, but now Cody's got to look forward to all of the. Process this. Yeah, he couldn't process it. And I think at one point they said, but now Cody's got to look forward

to all of the little Cody's wishes and sons and daughters of Cody's wish. So Sunday, that was Saturday. Sunday, they fly back to Kentucky and he had a medical event on the plane and he died. Oh my goodness gracious. Okay, and at the young age of 17 cody dorman passes away and that i didn't realize it was uh after that race that's that's why there's a movie to be made here oh

well i understand that they've already negotiated of course there's a movie it's it's uh it's what it's what it's one of those movies say only hollywood could write this but it was written before hollywood well i was gonna say you know before i Hollywood could write this, but it was written before Hollywood. Well, I was going to say, before you set up this clip and I play it, friend of the show, Jennifer Morrison, wrote that book on Mighty Heart. Yeah. Yeah?

You and Jennifer should be already writing the book on Cody and Cody's way. Oh, I'm sure someone else has jumped in. Although I'd love to, because I'm the only one with clips from Cody uh because i i'm the only one with with clips from cody i believe i'm the only one who's got clips and what what you've got here and i thought it'd be appropriate to save it for the end yeah um a year or so i asked cody just to talk about the relationship between you and this wonderful horse. I have a special bond with Cody's wish that I think no one can understand.

I'm always happy when I get to see him. And when I think about it, it makes me smile when people talk about us. And when I see that, it makes them happy too. Very interesting that you, you dropped by and we talked about Donald Shabib, who passed away at 85 and Cody Dorman, who passed away at 17.

Two ends of the spectrum, but both affect you personally, Peter. Yeah, yeah. So I am sorry for your loss on both fronts, and I really do appreciate you dropping by and sharing some of your memories of Donald Shabib and this story, because the Cody Dorman story will be less known than the Donald Shabib story. And I think a lot of people will now be seeking out that special episode of Down the Stretch where we hear your chat with Cody

Dorman and we get to learn more about Cody's wish and good on you for being on that story. Well, thank you. I mean, it's just in the podcast, I want to do more than just run race results. You know, the best stories are about people. And this, the Cody Dorman story, is the best story. Dans trente et un ans, Faites quarante mille sur des chemins en garnote, Sur le bandon d'arrière, les frères d'Albotte dormaient comme des marmottes, Pendant qu'on cherchait chacun mononctecteur. Une vieille baraque avec le toit défoncé, Pourrit de hulot, d'insectes, puis de poils d'araignées, Avec le toit défoncé Pour réduire l'eau

D'insectes, puis de poils d'araignées Pas mêlant, y'avait même Un nid d'oiseaux dans l'avabo Puis planchés, c'était par Une semiture de moineaux À pas être bon, à se faire Dans chaque quart d'heure Ouvre la balise, puis s'en'en ouvrez bouteille de porc

Et si jamais ton poids décide d'être malade Arrange-toi donc pour pas faire ça dans le plat de salade Quand je suis allé dans la chambre à coucher J'ai trouvé un gars poilu, ben évaché. Il nous a dit qu'il s'était évadé de la prison de Port-Cartier, qu'il se cachait ici, pis qu' moi j'ai rejeté. Fait qu'ton Yotty vient donc rinquer dans l'cuisine. Ouais, il est d'accord. Pas mieux qu'une grosse bière pis une bonne platte d'espices. Non, mais c'est pas... On nous mangeait en silence dans l'galandrier d'femmes connues.

Miss January qui nous montrait son cul. Elle s'excuse. Elle va être bonne, elle se voit dans chaque gang-core. Très bonne, très bonne. I remember reading Two Solitudes in university. It was a novel by Hugh MacLennan. The Two Solitudes were English and French-speaking Canadians. It's ironic that Courage by the Tragically Hip is for Hugh MacLennan. Because when the Tragically Hip is for Hugh McLennan. Because when the Tragically Hip had their farewell tour in that final concert in Kingston on August 20, 2016,

it felt like the entire country was tuned in. But that wasn't necessarily the case. English Canada was more or less tuned in. I've only just learned about Les Cowboys Fringant. This band is massive in Quebec. As an English Canadian, I never heard of them. Their lead singer was Carl Tremblay. And in Quebec, Carl Tremblay was revered.

He was, to Quebec and French-speaking Canada, what Gord Downie was to English-speaking Canada. And much like Gordownie, Tremblay passed away young from prostate cancer. He was only 47 when he died. It's kind of mind-blowing that you could spend five decades living in a country

as a music fan, a consumer of pop culture, a curious cat, and not know about a band so very, very popular in one of our ten provinces. Two solitudes indeed. Thank you. I'm 80s I'm living in the 80s 80s I have to push I have to struggle

80s Get out my way I'm not for sale no more Hey taste, let's carry cards in till we get there And we say You do it this way This way I'm Eighties

By day we ride By night we dance we dance Eighties I'm in love with the Coming race Oh! Eighties I've got the face, I'll take all

I can get 80s I'm living for the 80s 80s 80s 80s 80s I'm wishing

You'd do it this way Yes, that does sound like Come As You Are by Nirvana, but that's 80s by Killing Joke. Geordie Walker was the guitarist for Killing Joke from 1979 until his death on November 26th. Besides the 15 studio albums with Killing Joke, Geordie Walker took part in a number of side projects, such as Murder, Inc. and The Damage Manual. such as Murder, Inc. and the Damage Manual. Jordy passed away at the young age of 64, a mere two days after suffering a stroke. Brett Jasper's now chasing Bobby Knight back to his chair.

He's got it right there. There's the the T technical against the bench and against Bob Knight Steve Reed an excellent free-throw shooter will have the honor shooting the technicals looking here looking here Bobby Knight just threw his chair clear across the free-throw lane Bobby Knight just threw his chair clear across the free throw lane and I think Fred Jasper, unbelievable he picked up another tee now Fred Jasper's has called for athletic director Ralph Floyd Fred Jasper's talking to Mr. Floyd down on the corner now we got Ralph Floyd out on the floor it's 11 to 6 with just five minutes into

the contest and this has erupted there's a good chance Bobby Knight's been ejected from this basketball game. Brett Jasper is explaining it to the scorer's table. Now Gene Kated, the Purdue coach, comes over just to stay in contact with what decisions have been made. Uh-oh, now we've got three. Now we've got three. He's gone. to stay in contact with what decisions have been made. Now we got three.

Now we got three. He's gone. And Bob Knight is gone. Well, he came dressed to play golf, maybe he'll do it. Yeah. We talked earlier about the fact that he has golfing attire on. I understand that they have a very nice golf course here in Bloomington, a university course. I'll tell you, that just kind of demonstrates the kind of year it's been over here. Total frustration, but there's really no excuse for losing your boys to the point of throwing a chair across the basketball court.

Officials took care of it in a series of technicals. And we've had three called so there's going to be some free throw shooting practice here there's Steve Reed now oh we figure he's got six shots coming Bobby Knight nicknamed the general was the head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team from 1971 to 2000. His teams won three NCAA championships, one NIT championship, and 11 Big Ten conference championships. He was outspoken and volatile with a lengthy list of controversies,

including that chair-throwing incident. controversies, including that chair-throwing incident. Bob Knight died on November 1, 2023, in Bloomington, Indiana. of this administration is designed not on a partisan basis, but on a national basis. While we're talking controversial figures, Henry Kissinger was a diplomat, political scientist, geopolitical consultant, and politician who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presidential administrations of Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Many argue convincingly that Henry Kissinger committed war crimes during his tenure, and many are disappointed he died before being tried for his crimes against humanity. He was the last surviving member of the Nixon administration cabinet, dying on November 29th at the age of 100. Thank you. Roger Castell was an American artist,

most known for creating the posters for the films Jaws and The Empire Strikes Back. That's right, that iconic Jaws poster, with the shark approaching a lone female swimmer, was his creation. That very same image, seen on the t-shirt worn by Gore Downey during the Tragically Hip's final tour. That was his.

Roger died of kidney and heart failure in Massachusetts on November 8, 2023 at the age of 92. H.R. Poppin' Step Push your bend when things get rough at the age of 92. A boy in his fancy golden flute heard a boat from off the bay. Come and play with me, Jimmy, come and play with me. And I will take you on a trip far across the sea. The boat belonged to a kooky old witch who had in mind the flute to snitch. From her broom-broom in the sky, she watched her plans materialize.

She waved her wand, the beautiful boat was gone. The skies grew dark, the sea grew rough, and the boats sailed on and on and on and on and on and on. But Poppin' Stuff was watching, and knew exactly what to do. He saw the witch's bold attack, and as the boy was fighting back, he called his rescue racer, who was off and made rehearsed. And off to save the boy they flew. But who would get there first? But now the boy had washed ashore, Puff arrived to save the day,

which made the witch so mad and sore, She shook her fist and screamed away. H.R. Poppin' Stuff H.R. Poppin' Stuff Who is your friend when things get rough? H.R. Poppin' Stuff Can't do a little cause you can't do enough. H.R. Poppin' Stuff Who is your friend when things get rough? H.R. Puffin Stuff Can't do a little Cause you can't do enough H.R. Puffin Stuff

There's a bend when things get rough H.R. Puffin Stuff Can't do a little Cause you can't do enough Marty Croft and his brother Sid were known as the Croft Brothers. Born in Montreal, they made numerous children's television

and variety show programs, including H.R. Puffin Stuff, Land of the Lost, and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters. I was too young to enjoy these shows, but from what I've seen on YouTube, that was some pretty trippy stuff. Large-headed puppets,

high-concept plots, low-budget special effects. Shout out to Canada Kev. Marty Croft died from kidney failure in Los Angeles, California on November 25, 2023, at the age of 86. Yahoo! We're going to celebrate ya Yahoo! This is your celebration Celebrate good times, come on

Let's celebrate Celebrate good times, come on Let's celebrate There's a party going on right here A celebration to last throughout the years So bring your good times and your laughter too We're gonna celebrate your party with you. Come on now. Celebration.

Let's all celebrate and have a good time. Celebration. We're gonna celebrate and have a good time. It's time to come together. It's up to you together It's up to you What's your pleasure Everyone around the world Come on

It's a celebration It's a celebration Yahoo Celebration. Yahoo! Celebrate good times, come on. It's a celebration. Celebrate good times, come on. Let's celebrate. There's a party going on right here.

A dedication to last throughout the years. So bring your good times and your laughter too. We're going to celebrate and party with you. Come on now. Celebration. Let's all celebrate and have a good time. Yeah, yeah. Celebration.

We're going to celebrate and have a good time. It's time to come together. It's up to you. What's your pleasure? Everyone around the world. Come on. Yahoo. It's a celebration.

Yahoo. It's a celebration. Celebrate good times, come on Let's celebrate, come on now Celebrate good times, come on Let's celebrate We're gonna have a good time George Funky Brown was a founding member of Cool and the Gang, playing drums with the band from 1964 to 1998,

before switching to keyboards until his death on November 16th. Cool and the Gang won two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, the Soul Train Legend Award, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. George Brown is also in the Songwriters Hall of Fame, having co-written Jungle Boogie, shout out to the Pulp Fiction soundtrack Ladies Night and Celebration Celebrate good times, come on

Celebrate good times, come on It's a celebration Celebrate good times, come on. Come on and celebrate tonight. Celebrate good times, come on. Because everything's going to be all right. Let's celebrate. Celebrate good times, come on.

Oh, yeah. The big stuff. Who do you think you are? This stuff, this stuff. You're never gonna get my love. Now because you wear all those fancy clothes Oh yeah And have a big fine car Oh yes you do now

Do you think I can afford To give you my love? Oh yeah You think you're higher Than every star above Mr. Big Stuff Who do you think you are? Mr. Big Stuff Who do you think you are Mr. Big Stuff

You're never gonna get my love Now I know all the girls I've seen you with I know you broke their hearts One after another Now bit by bit You made them cry Many poor girls cry Gene Knight is the singer who recorded Mr. Big Stuff at Stax Records. Mr. Big Stuff, a number two Billboard Hot 100 hit in 1971,

was certified double platinum and was the number one soul single of the year. Gene Knight died at a hospital in Tampa, Florida on November 22, 2023, never gonna get my love. Big Stuff, Big Stuff, you're never gonna break my heart. Big Stuff, Big Stuff, you're never gonna make me cry. Big Stuff, Big Stuff, tell me, just who do you think you are? Big Stuff, Big Stuff, you're never gonna get my love Mr. Big Stuff, you're never gonna break my heart Mr. Big Stuff, you're never gonna make me cry Mr. Big Stuff, tell me, tell me, just who do you think you are

Mr. Big Stuff It was Christmas Eve, babe In the drunk tank An old man said to me Won't see another one And then he sang a song The rare old mountain dew I turned my face away And dreamed about you

Got on a lucky one Came in 18 to 1 I've got a feeling this year is for me and you so happy Christmas

I love you baby I can see a better time When all our dreams come true They got cars big as bars, they got rivers of gold But the windows right through you, it's no place for the old When you first took my hand on a cold Christmas Eve You promised me Broadway was waiting for me You were handsome, you were pretty, queen of New York City When the band finished playing, they held out for more Sinatra was swinging, all the junk they were singing

We kissed on a corner, then danced through the night The boys of the NYPD choir were singing, go away babe And the bells were ringing out for Christmas Day You're a bum, you're a punk, you're an old slut And jump right there on the stand on a trippin' light bed You scumbag, you mugger, chitchy, blousy, faggot Happy Christmas, you're all so great, God, it's our love The boys of the NYPD chorus still singin' I could have been someone Well so could anyone

You took my dreams from me When I first found you I kept them with me, babe I put them with my own Can't make it out alone I built my dreams around you The boys on the online painting course The singing go away by

And the bells are ringing out For Christmas Day I've said this many times on Toronto Mic'd, but there's only one Christmas song that I'll enjoy if I hear it in July. That, of course, is Fairy Tale of New York, a song written by Jem Finer and Shane McGowan, featuring singer-songwriter Kirstie McColl on vocals. It is the rare Christmas song that I can listen to outside of December. I've also spoken many times about The Body of an American. That's a Pogues

song that I fell in love with because they play it during wakes at Kavanaugh's Irish pub in The Wire. Needless to say, I love the Pogues. In the mix, I'll throw on anything from Dirty Old Town to the Irish Rover. Love the sound. and sadly, I awoke on November 30th to learn Shane McGowan, the Pogues frontman from 1982 until the breakup in 2014, had passed away at the age of 65. This has been the Ridley Funeral Home Memorial Episode of Toronto Mic'd

for the month of November 2023. If you lost somebody you love in November, my sincere condolences. Peace and love to all. I'm Toronto Mike. අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි Thank you.