Adrienne Clarkson

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The Right Honourable Adrienne Louise Clarkson (Chinese: ???; pinyin: W? B?ngzh?, Hakka: ?g P�n-k�), PC, CC, CMM, COM, CD, LL.D (born February 10, 1939) is an accomplished Canadian journalist. From October 7, 1999 to September 27, 2005 she served as the 26th Governor General of Canada: she was the first Chinese Canadian and second woman to hold this position, the first being [[Jeanne Sauv�]].

Contents

Early life and career

Clarkson is a Hakka born in Hong Kong to Australian-born Chinese businessman William Poy (??? Pinyin: W? Y?ngc�i) and Ethel Poy. Her ancestry is from Taishan, Guangdong, China and she was raised in Ottawa. While sources described William Poy as a decorated WWII veteran, it was reported in Frank Magazine that Poy was allegedly a deserter.

Clarkson's paternal grandfather (?? Pinyin: W? P�i) migrated to Australia and opened a general store in Chiltern, Victoria called Willie Ah Poy Fruiterer and Confectioner (Note "Ah Poy" was his name in the vocative based on the Taishanese pronunciation). His eldest son William was later sent back to Taishan and made his way to Hong Kong. He later married and worked with his father for the Canadian government. It was this connection from working for the Canadian government that had gained the family opportunity to come to Canada. Since Clarkson's father was a British subject, he was a part of a prisoner-of-war exchange with the Japanese Imperial Forces. It was using the "special circumstances" clause in the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923 that made it possible to allow Chinese into Canada during the Second World War in 1942. Clarkson claims that one of her earliest memories is of hiding in her Hong Kong basement during the invasion. [1]

It is said that the surname "Poy" came about when Canadian immigration official confounded the familial address of Clarkson's grandfather "Ah Poy" (??) for his surname. From then on, the family took on the anglicized name "Poy" in Canada.

Her brother is retired Toronto plastic surgeon Dr Neville Poy. Her sister-in-law is Senator Vivienne Poy.

Much has been made of Clarkson's immigrant/refugee status as well as her "humble roots". Clarkson's detractors point out that in actuallity she was born into the Hong Kong elite and was lived in a house filled with servants. When the family came to Canada their initial soundings were far less glamorous but they were by no means poor.

Clarkson studied at Ottawa public schools until 1956 (graduating from Lisgar Collegiate Institute) when she entered the University of Toronto's Trinity College. It is during this time that she won a Governor General's medal in English. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1960, after which she travelled with her parents to East and Southeast Asia. Her post-graduate studies were undertaken at the Sorbonne.

She began working on her Master's degree in 1962, with a thesis on George Meredith's poems. The following year, she married Stephen Clarkson, a University of Toronto political science professor. They divorced in 1975. The couple had three daughters. Kyra Clarkson (born 1969) was a Northern Secondary School grad and is currently an architect with the firm Tod Williams Billie Tsien in New York City. Kyra lives in Brooklyn Heights neighbourhood in New York. In 1971 the couple had twin daughters Blaise and Pascal. At the age of nine months Pascal died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Blaise Clarkson went on to become a University of Toronto medical student. Stephen Clarkson was awarded full custody of the two surviving children. After the divorce, the children became estranged from their mother and now rarely speak to her. Christina McCall, Stephen Clarkson's second wife adopted the two daughters.

File:Clarksoncap4.JPG
A young Adrienne Clarkson hosting The Fifth Estate during the 1970s.

She is well known from her work in broadcasting, having hosted and produced several shows for the CBC between 1964-1982. In 1964 she began working as freelance book reviewer for the afternoon variety show Take 30 after being introduced to the producers by a college friend. After less than a year in this capacity she was promoted to co-host, becoming one of the first members of a visible minority with a prominent position in Canadian TV. She remained with Take 30 for a decade during which time she also branched into print journalism, becoming a regular contributor to publications including Maclean's and Chatelaine. She also wrote and published her own romanic fiction novels; A Lover More Condoling in 1968 and Hunger Trace in 1970. She also published the non-fiction book True to You in My Fashion: A Woman Talks to Men About Marriage, a collection of interviews with men on the subject of divorce in 1971 (during which time her first marriage had hit a hard patch).

In 1974 Clarkson began her own public affairs television show Adrienne at Large. The show was not particularly successful and lasted less than four months. For Clarkson, the series allowed her to travel outside of Canada. She recorded segments for the show in foreign countries like South Africa (where she interviewed Nadine Gordimer and Helen Suzman) and her native Hong Kong.

In 1975 the CBC created the hard journalism program The Fifth Estate as a means of meeting their requirements under the Canadian Content Law. Clarkson co-hosted the show with Warner Troyer for the first season, but due to their constant bickering Troyer left the series at the end of the first season and Clarkson hosted solo thereafter.

In 1982, after winning several ACTRA awards, Clarkson ended her job with the Fifth Estate. Shortly afterwards, Premier William Davis appointed her the Agent General for Ontario in France. In this role she promoted the province in several European countries and acted as a cultural liaison between Ontario and France. She left this position in 1987 to become President and Publisher of McClelland and Stewart. At the time the publisher was in a period of great financial difficulty. Clarkson was not successful at improving the company's financial problems and was highly unpopular with employees. After several protest resignations, Clarkson herself resigned after 18 months. She maintains the imprint Adrienne Clarkson Books with McClelland and Stewart.

After her unsuccessful career in publishing, Clarkson opted to return to television. In the summer of 1988 she hosted Adrienne Clarkson Summer Festival. The series was popular enough to be picked up and repackaged as Adrienne Clarkson Presents. Although critically acclaimed, the arts program never received high ratings. As host and executive producer of Adrienne Clarkson Presents she received numerous Gemini Award nominations, winning in 1993 for Best Host in a Light Information, Variety or Performing Arts Program or Series. She was the 1995 recipient of the Donald Brittain Award, a special award given every year for the best social/political documentary program. In 1995 she also won a [[G�meaux Award]] (the French-Language equivalent of a Gemini) for Adrienne Clarkson Presents.

Her precise diction and sometimes haughty demeanor has been the subject of satire, most famously in the CBC Radio series Double Exposure, where co-creator Linda Cullen mimicked Ms. Clarkson with the line, "I'm Adrienne Clarkson, and you're not" (derived from Chevy Chase's early Saturday Night Live refrain).

File:Clarksoncap1.JPG
Clarkson in the 1970s.

In 1992 she was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. Her citation read:

One of our best-known media personalities, she has hosted more than three thousand five hundred television programs in one of the most respected careers in Canadian broadcasting history. She also served as the hard-working and successful Agent General for Ontario in France. She is a dedicated patron of the arts, journalism and many charitable organizations including the Kidney Foundation, Horizons of Canada and P.E.N. International. [2]

Throughout the 1990's there was much speculation that Clarkson would soon be given a high level patronage appointment. This was finally realized in 1995 [3] when Prime Minister [[Jean Chr�tien]] and then Heritage Minister Michel Dupuy appointed her to the chair of the board of the Canadian Museum of Civilization, and later, to the Canadian War Museum as well. It was during Clarkson's time that the War Museum announced the decision to build the impressive building which now houses its collection. During this time she continued to host Adrienne Clarkson Presents.

She married philospher John Ralston Saul on 31 July 1999. The couple had lived together for 15 years before marrying.

  1. ^  Dec 23rd 2003 CTV News article http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1103821171465_99230371?s_name=&no_ads=
  2. ^  Adrienne Clarkson's Order of Canada citation http://gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=3005
  3. ^  Department of Heritage Press Release Nov 7th 1995 http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/newsroom/news_e.cfm?Action=Display&code=5NR150E

Governor General

File:AdrienneClarksonandJohnRalstonSaulOfficialPortraittogethercrowncopyright.jpg
Adrienne Clarkson and husband John Ralston Saul

On October 7, 1999 she was sworn in as the twenty-sixth Governor General of Canada, after being appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, Canada?s head of state, on the advice of Prime Minister [[Jean Chr�tien]]. Clarkson is the first non-white Canadian Governor General, the second female, and the first without a military or political background. She was also the first (and thus far only) Governor General to be awarded the Order of Canada prior to taking office.

Following the terrorist attacks United States on September 11, 2001, Governor General Clarkson praised Operation Yellow Ribbon, saying that "communities across the country selflessly opened their homes and hearts to stranded air travellers." Chr�tien and U.S. Ambassador Paul Cellucci would also do the same thing. The three would later stand together on Parliament Hill during the memorial service to honour the attacks' victims on September 14, 2001, which over 100,000 attended�the largest single vigil ever seen in the nation's capital.

As Governor General she acted as Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Armed Forces. In this capacity she visited the battle group aiding the invasion of Afghanistan in 2002. During her last days in office, Clarkson was given a large farewell ceremony by the Canadian Armed Forces. She has been widely praised by many Canadians for being the first Governor General to take the role of Commander-in-Chief seriously. She has also been credited for helping to boost Canadian pride in the armed forces.

Controversies

As Clarkson was one of Canada's most visible and well-known Governors General, her high profile caused her to be at the centre of a number of public controversies during her term, something few of her predecessors had to deal with.

Throughout the first few years of her term in office, Clarkson was praised as being a more modern Governor General and bringing more public attention to the office than in recent decades. Criticism soon ensued, however, regarding the way she and her office spent money. Under her tenure, the office's spending has increased almost 200%. The budget for 2003 was estimated to be at $41 million. Part of this increase was due to accounting reasons: several costs associated with the Governor General that were formerly paid by various government ministries were transferred to the Governor General's office, such as bodyguard services.

In late 2003 she undertook a 19-day circumpolar "northern identity" tour to Russia, Finland, and Iceland, along with 50 other prominent Canadians which was seen as a waste of money by some of the Canadian public, particularly after several scandals surrounding high spending in the government, notably the sponsorship scandal and the lavish expense claims of Privacy Commissioner George Radwanski; but her office defended the trip as successful, particularly with regard to her warm reception in Russia and her meeting with Vladimir Putin. The trip was commissioned and paid for by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade; however, the general itinerary was under her office's control. A scheduled continuation of the circumpolar "northern identity" tour that would have included visits to Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Greenland was scrapped by the Federal Government in early 2004. The increase in spending resulted in some politicians calling for the role of the Governor General to be reduced or even for the position to be eliminated. A poll taken late in 2003 found a majority of Canadians thought Clarkson was "too grand" for the office. In 2005, less than two weeks after her term as Governor General came to an end, Clarkson publicly criticised the federal government of [[Jean Chr�tien]] for not coming to the defence of the office and claimed that she had been asked by the Department of Foreign Affairs to take the trip in the first place. [4]

In 2004, Clarkson and her office were once again in hot water; this time with Canadian monarchists. During a ceremony to recognize Canada's involvement at Juno Beach in the D-Day landings of 1944, Clarkson's office claimed that she was attending as Canada's Head of State, when in fact the Queen, who was in attendance at the ceremony, is Canada's Head of State and should have been treated as the senior official in attendance. Rideau Hall later retracted the statement saying that it was an error of a junior official.

During a visit to Vancouver in September 2004, Clarkson was booed and hissed at by a small, though very vocal, group of protesters. She was on a goodwill tour of a poor area of the city; however, the protesters argued that her visit was nothing more than a publicity stunt to try and gain some of her lost popular support to get her time in office extended. This is all despite the fact that she and her husband visit and support developing communities across Canada, many times without the glare of the television camera. In November 2004 it was announced that Clarkson's budget would be cut by ten percent, despite the fact that it has been parliament itself that had approved her budget each year.

In early 2005 there were mixed feelings amongst Canadian Monarchists as to her role in the changing of Canada's Letters of Credence and Letters of Recall, which no longer refer to the Queen as Canada's head of state. Clarkson, as both the Queen's and the Crown's representative, could (and should, many monarchists felt) have vetoed that change.

In January 2005, some expressed disappointment that Clarkson did not attend a memorial service for Alberta's late Lieutenant-Governor Lois Hole. Rideau Hall issued a statement saying that Clarkson could not attend because she was out of the country to represent Canada at the inauguration of the President of Ukraine, Mr. Victor Yushchenko; however, the inauguration was postponed and some felt Clarkson could have returned to Canada for the service.

It was later reported in The Toronto Sun and The Globe and Mail that after the postponement of the inauguration, Clarkson would base herself in Paris until a new date was set. This led to more outrage in the press. Further confusion was created when Rideau Hall informed the public that the Governor General was also to attend an audience of the Queen at Sandringham House. Rideau Hall stated that this dinner had been a "long-standing engagement"; however, the press later reported that sources at Buckingham Palace said the dinner was actually booked at the last minute. In response, some monarchists began lobbying Clarkson to resign if she had willingly used the Queen for publicity and damage control purposes.

In March 2005, there were again questions over Clarkson's spending after it was reported she intended to make official visits to Spain and The Netherlands. Many were also upset with her decision not to attend the VE Day celebrations in Europe on May 8 2005. However, Prime Minister Paul Martin has asked that she and her husband, John Ralston Saul, participate in the VE Day celebrations in the Netherlands and Moscow. Martin cancelled his planned trip due to the situation his minority government was in as the opposition Conservatives wanted to topple his Liberals for an election. [5] [6]

During Remembrance Day ceremonies, the Governor General, in accordance with tradition, alone places the first wreath during the ceremony on behalf of the "People of Canada." However, in a departure from this tradition, Clarkson and her husband John Ralston Saul would perform this task together. Though some were critical of this, others felt that such a break from tradition was a positive demonstration of Canadian equality. This was discontinued by Michaelle Jean on November 11th 2005.

Legacy

Despite the criticism, Ms. Clarkson and her husband travelled across Canada and met more Canadians than any other Governor General in Canadian history. She went to Kosovo to meet the troops, spent Christmas with the troops in the Persian Gulf on a Canadian destroyer and spent New Year's Day with Canadian troops in Afghanistan. Unlike many other political entities Ms. Clarkson also wrote most of her own speeches which were noted for being intellectual and yet approachable. Clarkson's tenure was also notable for her patronage of the arts.

File:Arms of Adrienne Clarkson.jpg
Clarkson's personal arms

While some Chinese Canadians feel pride in Clarkson's literary and political achievement, other Chinese Canadians point out that Clarkson has never made much of an effort to embrace her Chinese heritage. For example, although her parents were fluent in Chinese, Clarkson is not. Some thus find Clarkson to be without regard for her Chinese ancestry, and believe she has not been very representative of her minority group while in office.

Clarkson was asked, and agreed, to remain in office for an additional year to provide stability as the country faced potential constitutional difficulties of a minority government; other past Governors General have had their times in office extended in such circumstances, such as Roland Michener and Georges Vanier. This decision however, was met with mixed feelings across the country. (The Globe and Mail)

Early during Clarkson's time she created the Order of Merit of the Police Forces. Queen Elizabeth approved the Order in October 2000 and it was announced in March 2001. [7]. The first investiture took place on March 10th 2002 [8]. Such an Order had been suggested to Rideau Hall for nearly a decade [9]

On March 10, 2005, Clarkson announced that she would create a new trophy for women's hockey in Canada. On September 14, 2005 she announced that the new "Clarkson Cup" would be created by artist Beth Biggs of Iqaluit, Nunavut, along with the assistance of students from the Nunavut Arctic College. The details of how the competition will be arranged and the trophy awarded have not yet been announced. The Stanley Cup, the equivalent trophy for men's hockey, was donated in 1892 by a predecessor of Clarkson's, Lord Stanley.)

On July 8, 2005, Clarkson was admitted to hospital, to have a pacemaker installed [10]. On July 9, 2005, a notice posted on Clarkson's website said the operation was successful and she was resting in an undisclosed hospital in Toronto.

Shortly after her surgery, the Prime Minister's office confirmed that they were in the process of selecting a recommendation for the new Governor General. Haitian-born CBC broadcaster [[Micha�lle Jean]] was named as Clarkson's replacement on August 4, 2005 by Prime Minister Paul Martin. Jean replaced Clarkson on September 27, 2005. Jean recognised Clarkson as having "infused the office with a new energy", for "promot[ing] artists and their achievements from across Canada", and for her "close work with aboriginal communities". It has also been reported that Clarkson and Saul have purchased a new home in Toronto and were due to take possession at the end of September 2005. She has hinted she will be working with the Institute for Canadian Citizenship after stepping down as Governor General.

Much of her self imposed mandate was to bring attention to Northern Canada. On September 15th 2005 she announced the creation of the Governor General's Northern Medal. This will be awarded annually to a citizen whose actions and achievements have contributed to the evolution and constant reaffirmation of the Canadian North as part of the national identity. [11]

File:ClarksonandQueen2005.jpg
Beside the Queen during her visit to Canada in 2005.

On July 23, 2005 Clarkson was inducted as an honorary member to the Kainai Chieftainship during a traditional ceremony held at Red Crow Park, near Standoff, Alberta. After the ceremony she was adopted into the Blood Tribe with the name of "Grandmother of Many Nations". She was the first Governor General since Edward Schreyer in 1984 to be made an honorary chief and only the third woman to be inducted since the creation of the Chieftainship.

Following tradition Clarkson and Saul were to have planted two ceremonial oak trees to mark the end of her term in office on September 26, 2005 at 2:00 p.m. EST but this was cancelled due to bad weather. [12] That morning she attended a celebration at Parliament Hill in which Members of the House of Commons thanked her for her work. The Prime Minister personally expressed his thanks to her for remaining in office an extra year. At this ceremony, following tradition, Clarkson was presented with the Flag of the Governor General which flew at parliament when she was in attendance.

In the final days of her term, Clarkson attended the swearing in of her successor, Mme Jean. This was the first time in over 100 years that a Governor General attended the swearing in of his/her successor. After the ceremony Clarkson and Saul headed to their house in Toronto's The Annex district to resume their lives as private citizens.

After leaving Rideau Hall Clarkson signed a deal with Penguin Canada to publish her memoirs in two books. The first book will be entitled Heart Matters. This will make Clarkson the third former Governor General to release an autobiography, the first being Field Marshal Earl Alexander of Tunis and the second being Massey who released What's past is prologue : the memoirs of the Right Honourable Vincent Massey, C. H. in 1963.

Many credit Clarkson for being the first relevant Governor General since Vincent Massey in the 1950s (or, alternatively, since Roland Michener in the 1970s).

Religion

A member of the Church of St. Mary Magdalene (Toronto), Clarkson is a devout Anglican, as is her entire family going back five generations. Her uncle was a Priest in the Anglican Church in Hong Kong. Clarkson attended Trinity College because it was an Anglican institution. While there she casually dated divinity student Michael Peers who would later become an Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada. This friendship has been maintained over the years and Peers presided over Clarkson's marriage to Saul as well as officiating at her installation as Governor General and presided over the funerals of both her parents. Clarkson is also credited for returning prayer to the installation ceremony, which had been removed when Romeo LeBlanc was installed in 1995.

Clarkson was admired by the faithful for being open about her faith during her time in Rideau Hall, although she is said to be saddened by the fact that no Canadian youth ever questioned her about her faith during her tenure as GG. Her coat of arms includes several religious elements. Notably the tigers wear a badge based on the one granted to the Anglican Church of Canada in 1995. It also includes a Latin motto translating to "May Only The Truth Be Spoken, may only the truth be heard". In a December 2005 interview with the Anglican Journal she is quoted as saying that the point she wanted to make with these parts of their heraldic arms was that "I am an Anglican and that is part of my life; that I really feel at home in the Anglican Communion". [13] In this same interview she criticizes conservatives for creating what she calls the "deep divide" in the Anglican church regarding homosexuality.

Clarkson was also noted for visiting Anglican Churches around Canada on her many visits, saying that she enjoyed seeing how the church fit in communities in all parts of Canada. Her public faith, like much of her term, had its run-ins with controversy. She took particular criticism when she was seen taking communion in a Catholic Church instead of an Anglican one.

Notes

  1. ^  http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/installed.htm
  2. ^  This quote is taken from the Anglican Journal. Vol 131. No. 10, December 2005 page 10. This interview is accessible online at http://anglicanjournal.com/131/10/canada04.html
  3. ^  http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_16_39/ai_98370562
  4. ^  http://anglicanjournal.com/129/03/canada07.html

Titles and honours

Shorthand titles

Honours

Awards

Awards won

  • (1974) Actra Award
  • (1982) Actra Award
  • (1993) Gemini Award Best Host in a Light Information, Variety or Performing Arts Program or Series for Adrienne Clarkson Presents
  • (1995) Gemeaux Award Meilleur sp�cial des arts de la sc�ne for Peau, chair et os shown within Adrienne Clarkson Presents.

Award nominations

====Gemini Awards==== [15]

  • (1992) Best Host in a Light Information, Variety or Performing Arts Program or Series for Adrienne Clarkson Presents
  • (1993) Best Performing Arts Program for Adrienne Clarkson Presents - shared with Gordon Stewart
  • (1994) Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program for Adrienne Clarkson Presents
  • (1994) Best Host in a Lifestyle Information, Variety or Performing Arts Program or Series for Adrienne Clarkson Presents
  • (1995) Best Performing Arts Program for Adrienne Clarkson Presents
  • (1998) Best Performing Arts Program or Series, or Arts Documentary Program for Adrienne Clarkson Presents: Black and White to Colour: The Making of "The English Patient"
  • (1998) Best Performing Arts Program or Series, or Arts Documentary Program for Adrienne Clarkson Presents

Honorary Degrees

References

  1. ^  [24] Privy Council Database. Clarkson was sworn in on October 3rd 2005.
  2. ^  [25] Academy.ca awards database. Criteria was Search by persons name. All Award Shows. Adrienne Clarkson.
  3. ^ http://web.uvic.ca/univsec/governance/hondegreelist.html
  4. ^ http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=4215
  5. ^ http://www.lsuc.on.ca/news/a/archives/index.cfm?c=1029&i=6293
  6. ^  http://www.uottawa.ca/rector/citations/2003/citation_clarkson.html
  7. ^  http://www.news.utoronto.ca/bin2/010531a.asp
  8. ^  http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=4012
  9. ^  http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=4050
  10. ^  http://newsfromrussia.com/science/2003/09/30/50247.html

Bibliography

  • Clarkson also is a noted author and owns her own imprint Adrienne Clarkson Books under McClelland and Stewart.

Fiction

  • A Lover More Condoling. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1968.
  • Hunger Trace. New York: William Morrow, 1970. (reprinted in 1971 under the name Love Affair).

Non-Fiction

  • True to You in My Fashion: A Woman Talks to Men About Marriage. Toronto: New Press, 1971.
  • Writing Home: A PEN Canada Anthology (edited by Constance Rooke). McClelland & Stewart, 1997. - Clarkson contributes one essay.
  • Heart Matters Toronto: Penguin Canada. - Clarkson's autobiography (forthcoming Fall 2006)
  • The Circle Widens Toronto: Penguin Canada. -Historical non-fiction (forthcoming Fall 2007)

Other books of interest

  • Canada's House: Rideau Hall and the Invention of a Canadian Home by Margaret MacMillan, Marjorie Harris, & Anne L. Desjardins - Clarkson & Saul write their own insignt into the history and day-to-day running of Rideau Hall throughout the book.
  • A History of Women in the Canadian Military by Barbara Dundas (foreword by Clarkson)
  • An Unlikely Affair: the Irving Layton-Dorothy Rath Correspondence by Irving Layton & Dorothy Rath. Oakville: Mosaic Press/Valley Editions 1980. (foreword by Clarkson)

References

External links


References

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