BRIAN BRENNAN: BRIEF ENCOUNTERS June, 2015 At age 18, Debbie Lori Kaye became the youngest performer in history to have her own variety special on CBC TV. A tiny singer with a big voice, her star had been rising steadily
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BRIAN BRENNAN: BRIEF ENCOUNTERS October, 2014 There was no booze in the star’s dressing room when Richard Harris came to Canada to star as the the once and future King Arthur in a touring production of Camelot. The one-time roaring boy
JONATHAN MANTHORPE October 31, 2014 Before going to war it is always a good idea to have a clear purpose and outcome in mind. Yet six Royal Canadian Airforce CF-18s are set for bombing missions in the Middle East without any clear
BRIAN BRENNAN: BRIEF ENCOUNTERS October, 2014 I must admit I came loaded for bear when I went to interview bestselling American author Leon Uris. Earlier, I had written a negative review of Trinity, his 751-page novel dealing with Northern Ireland’s politics of violence.
BRIAN BRENNAN: BRIEF ENCOUNTERS October 2014 Before American Idol there was the Kiwanis International Talent Search. The year was 1956, the place was Denver, Colorado. Sixteen-year-old Judy Collins won first prize singing an English folk ballad, Pretty Saro, at a regional talent contest
JONATHAN MANTHORPE October 15, 2014 The email message that arrived in my office in Hong Kong throbbed with the near hysteria of the editor who wrote it. “Jonathan,” it said, “there’s an outbreak of the Black Death in India. Please get there ASAP
BRIAN BRENNAN: BRIEF ENCOUNTERS October 2014 Chuck Berry was cranky. He hadn’t seen a contract for his scheduled nightclub appearance, and he wasn’t about to step out of the airport limo that had brought him to the club. The club had sold tickets
JONATHAN MANTHORPE October 8, 2014 In a remarkable demonstration that may presage the end of one of the world’s most deeply embedded conflicts, three of North Korea’s most senior leaders have made a surprise visit to the South. The excuse for the unprecedented
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JONATHAN MANTHORPE October 1, 2014. Tens of thousands of Hongkongers took advantage of today’s Chinese national holiday to join students who have clogged the city’s streets for four days demanding Beijing deliver on its promise to give the territory democratic autonomy. But
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