Mervyn J. Huston (1912 - March 7, 2001) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

pharmacologist and humorist. A longtime professor and academic dean at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

's school of pharmacy,"Passion for Life"

Alumni Association, Autumn 2001. he was best known for his humor novel ''Gophers Don't Pay Taxes'', which won the

Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, also known as the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour or just the Leacock Medal, is an annual literary award presented for the best book of humour written in English by a Canadian writer, published or self ...

in 1982."Leacock winner plays a shopworn theme". ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', May 13, 1982. Originally from

Ashcroft Ashcroft may refer to: Places * Ashcroft, British Columbia, a village in Canada **Ashcroft House in Bagpath, Gloucestershire, England—eponym of the Canadian village * Ashcroft, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia * Ashcroft, Colorado, ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Huston worked in his father's pharmacy as a teenager before studying pharmacology at the University of Alberta and the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

. He became director of the pharmacy program at the University of Alberta's

Faculty of Medicine A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, M ...

in 1946, and dean of the expanded Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1955. He held the latter role until his retirement in 1978, and served as an associate editor of the ''

Canadian Pharmacists Journal Established in 1868, the ''Canadian Pharmacists Journal'' (''CPJ'') is the oldest continuously published periodical in Canada. This peer-reviewed journal is published 6 times per year, and features original research, clinical reviews, commentaries ...

''. His other humor works included ''Canada Eh to Zed'', ''Great Golf Humour'', ''Toast to the Bride'', ''Prescription for Humour'', ''Golf and Murphy's Law'' and ''The Great Canadian Lover''. He was also a musician, playing saxophone in a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

music band in his youth and later playing bassoon with the

Edmonton Symphony Orchestra The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Edmonton, Alberta. As the professional orchestra of Alberta's creative capital city it presents over 85 concerts a year of symphonic music in all genres, from classical to co ...

. He died in 2001.

References

1912 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Canadian novelists Canadian male novelists Stephen Leacock Award winners Canadian pharmacologists University of Alberta alumni Academic staff of the University of Alberta Writers from British Columbia People from the Thompson-Nicola Regional District {{Canada-writer-stub