Jack Wasserman (February 27, 1927April 6, 1977) was a nightlife and celebrity columnist for the ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published s ...

'' newspaper from 1949 until his death. He also had a program on Vancouver talk-radio station CJOR (1968).

Life

Wasserman was born in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

on February 27, 1927. His column, read throughout British Columbia, largely comprised short items strung together, with the names of celebrities in boldface. He often reported things he or others overheard backstage or at political rallies. Wasserman would have some inside information on headline stories. Wasserman's interview subjects included

Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, ...

Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as on ...

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop music, p ...

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and

Tommy Douglas Thomas Clement Douglas (20 October 1904 – 24 February 1986) was a Scottish-born Canadian politician who served as seventh premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961 and Leader of the New Democratic Party from 1961 to 1971. A Baptist min ...

. When printers at the ''Vancouver Sun'' declared a strike, Wasserman, anticipating a long work stoppage, approached his friend Jim Pattison, owner of radio station CJOR, for a job. Wasserman would go on the air with a three-hour talk show weekday mornings from nine until noon. His competition would be radio veteran Jack Webster. The ''Sun'' responded by firing Wasserman, and replacing him with Denny Boyd. Wasserman brought many major celebrities to the show through his connections with local promoters and nightclub owners. His guests included

, and many others, including politicians such as

. His ratings, however, could not beat Webster's, and in a couple of years Wasserman returned to the ''Sun'' and resumed his column, until his death. He briefly had a show named ''Wasserman's World'' on

CKNW CKNW is a news/talk formatted radio station in Vancouver, British Columbia, owned by Corus Entertainment. It broadcasts on an assigned frequency of AM 980 kHz, and is unusual in that it is a 50,000-watt, Class A station broadcasting on a region ...

(1970). Wasserman's society and celebrity columns (and occasional political analysis) covered the often-lurid details of the Vancouver nightlife and society scene in the 1950s and 1960s, when famous dinner clubs such as The Cave and Isy's attracted big names from around the world. Quoting from one of his columns: :Vancouver erupted as the

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

capital of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, rivaling and finally outstripping

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

in the East and

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

in the south as one of the few places where the brightest stars of the nightclub era could be glimpsed from behind a post, through a smoke-filled room, over the heads of $20 tippers at ringside. Only in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...

, in season, were more superstars available in nightclubs. Wasserman died after collapsing during an event at the

Hotel Vancouver The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, formerly and still informally called the Hotel Vancouver, is a historic hotel in Vancouver, British Columbia. Located along West Georgia Street the hotel is situated within the city's Financial District, in Downtown ...

on April 6, 1977. Following his death, British Columbia premier

Bill Bennett William Richards Bennett, (April 14, 1932 – December 3, 2015) was the 27th premier of British Columbia from 1975 to 1986. He was a son of Annie Elizabeth May (Richards) and former Premier, W. A. C. Bennett. He was a 3rd cousin, twice removed, ...

described him as a "very fair member of the media" in a speech to the BC legislature.

References

External links

Jack Wasserman interviewing W.A.C. Bennett about the 1952 election, CBC Archives TV clipRemembering iconic reporters "The Three Jacks"
– Vancouver Sun {{DEFAULTSORT:Wasserman, Jack 1927 births 1977 deaths Journalists from Winnipeg Canadian columnists Canadian male journalists Canadian radio personalities Vancouver Sun people Jewish Canadian journalists