Thomas Dale Jackson, (born 27 October 1948) is a Canadian actor and singer. He created and starred in an annual series of

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

concerts called the Huron Carole for 18 years. He was the Chancellor of

Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes.

from 2009 until 2013. He played Billy Twofeathers on '' Shining Time Station'' and Peter Kenidi on ''

North of 60 ''North of 60'' is a 1990s Canadian television drama depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest (north of 60° north latitude, hence the title). It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is ...

''.

Life and career

Tom Jackson was born on the One Arrow Reserve,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, near

Batoche Batoche may refer to: *Batoche, Saskatchewan, a historic site in Saskatchewan *Batoche (electoral district), an electoral district in Saskatchewan * Batoche (former electoral district), a former electoral district in Saskatchewan *Batoche (N.W.T. el ...

, the son of Rose, a

Cree The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations. In Canada, over 350,000 people are Cree o ...

, and Marshall, an

Englishman The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language, a West Germanic language, and share a common history and culture. The English identity is of Anglo-Saxon origin, when they were known in ...

. He moved with his family to

Namao, Alberta Namao () is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within Sturgeon County. It is located at the intersection of Highway 37 and Highway 28, approximately north of Edmonton's city limits. It was the namesake of RCAF Station Namao, now CFB Edmonto ...

at age seven, and then to

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 ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

when he was fourteen. A year later, he dropped out of high school and lived on the streets for several years. As an actor, he has starred in television shows such as ''

'' and '' Shining Time Station'' where his character Billy Twofeathers debuted in its Halloween episode "Scare Dares", and made a guest appearance on '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' in the season seven episode Journey's End. His films include 'Loyalties', '

The Diviners ''The Diviners'' is a novel by Margaret Laurence. Published by McClelland & Stewart in 1974, it was Laurence's final novel, and is considered one of the classics of Canadian literature. The novel won the Governor General's Award for English-lan ...

''. He also starred in ''

Grizzly Falls ''Grizzly Falls'' is a 1999 adventure film about a boy and a bear, set in British Columbia in the early 20th century. It was written by Stuart Margolin and Richard Beattie, and directed by Stewart Raffill. Plot The film starts with an old man, ...

'', in 1999. His film career remains active with his appearance in the 2007 horror thriller, '' Skinwalkers''. In 2014, he appeared in acclaimed director Sidney J. Furie's '' The Dependables'', as Sergeant Robinson. In 2019, he played White Bull, a Ute

drug lord A drug lord, drug baron, kingpin or narcotrafficker is a high-ranking crime boss who controls a sizable network of people involved in the illegal drug trade. Such figures are often difficult to bring to justice, as they are normally not directly ...

, opposite

Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on '' Th ...

in the film ''

Cold Pursuit ''Cold Pursuit'' is a 2019 action thriller film directed by Hans Petter Moland from a screenplay by Frank Baldwin. A co-production between the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and France, the film stars Liam Neeson, Tom Bateman, Tom J ...

''. He has also released several albums of

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

and folk music.

Personal life

Tom now resides in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

with his wife Alison (née Jones) and four children.

Philanthropy

A well-known

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, Jackson created an annual series of

concerts called the Huron Carole. Featuring Jackson and numerous other Canadian singers and performers, the Huron Carole troupe travels across the country each year, raising money for the Canadian Association of Food Banks. An album of Christmas songs recorded to tie-in with the tour is an annual best seller in Canada. After 17 years, Jackson retired the Huron Carole and in its place launched ''Singing for Supper'', a cross-Canada tour that plays smaller community venues raising money and gifts of food, during the 2005 Christmas season. After ''North of 60'' cast member Mervin Good Eagle died by suicide in October 1996, Tom started the Dreamcatcher Tour. In the spring of 1997 Jackson's home town was bracing for "the flood of the century" that had already put towns south of the US/Canada border under water. Jackson was instrumental in organizing flood relief concerts across the nation (Calgary, Winnipeg).

Honours and decorations

Jackson has been honoured several times for his life's work. Most notably, in 2000, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

and is a former member of the

Advisory Council. He has been nominated for

Juno Awards The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

and

Gemini Awards The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States a ...

. He has also received honours from several Canadian universities, including honorary degrees from the

University of Calgary The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...

and the

University of Lethbridge , mottoeng = ''Let there be light'' , type = Public , established = , academic_affiliations = Universities Canada , endowment = $73 million (2019) , chancellor = Charles Weasel ...

. He also received the Humanitarian Award at the 2007 Juno Awards due to his charitable efforts. In May 2014, Jackson received a

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

(GGPAA) for his lifetime contributions to Canadian broadcasting. At the Gala honouring GGPAA recipients on 10 May, Jackson took to the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) (french: Centre national des Arts) is a Arts centre, performing arts organisation in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre (building), National Arts Centre build ...

stage to perform one of his songs. On 14 April 2009, Jackson was announced as the tenth chancellor for Trent University. Jackson held this position until 2013.

Filmography

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

*
Official websiteTom Jackson profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Tom 1948 births Canadian country guitarists Canadian country singers Canadian folk guitarists Canadian folk singers Canadian humanitarians Canadian male film actors Canadian male guitarists Canadian male television actors Canadian Métis people Canadian people of English descent Canadian people of Native American descent Chancellors of Trent University Cree people First Nations male actors First Nations musicians Governor General's Performing Arts Award winners Indspire Awards Living people Métis musicians Male actors from Calgary Male actors from Saskatchewan Male actors from Winnipeg Musicians from Calgary Musicians from Saskatchewan Musicians from Winnipeg Companions of the Order of Canada 20th-century Canadian guitarists 21st-century Canadian guitarists 20th-century Canadian male singers 21st-century Canadian male singers 20th-century First Nations people 21st-century First Nations people