Mike Gzowski presents annual award in his father’s name to Hal Wake
Hal Wake is an
experienced moderator who is familiar with the issues around 211, serving as he
does on the board of the United Way of the Lower Mainland. A former CBC Radio
broadcaster, Hal hosted CBC Vancouver's early morning radio show, The Early
Edition, for several years, and also worked as a producer on Morningside during
his 17 year career with CBC. His work in radio and his experience in moderating
hundreds of events, has given him a deep understanding of how to create and
present discussions that are both entertaining and thought-provoking. His
credits as a moderator include the Leadership Comitium (a group of senior
executives from business and labour) at Simon Fraser University, and the
University of British Columbia's popular Talk of the Town lecture series. Since
leaving the CBC, he has worked as a communications consultant and was the Senior
Manager of Media Relations at the Insurance Corporation of BC (ICBC). Prior to
joining ICBC, he taught journalism at Langara College in Vancouver. He was
recently appointed Artistic Director of the Vancouver International Writers and
Readers Festival.
***
Hal trained as an
actor, and later as a stage manager and producer at Carleton University. He is
an
expert in
communications and media strategies, a strategic planner, a teacher, and a
broadcaster. Hal is
has just completed his
first year as Artistic Director of the Vancouver International Writers
Festival. He is
a most worthy
successor to the festival’s founder, Alma Lee.
Hal’s CBC career was
illustrious, and included several years as a Producer with Peter Gzowski's
legendary CBC Radio
programme 'Morningside'. Hal moved on to host the CBC Vancouver morning
show 'The Early
Edition' for several years. After leaving the CBC in the late 1990's, he was
appointed
head of communications
for ICBC. Hal lives in Vancouver, but he’s no stranger to Vancouver Island.
Over the past ten
years he has hosted a great many readings and panels with the Victoria Literary
Arts
Festival. We are very
pleased that he has agreed to come back and host the Christmas Writers Cabaret
for this third year.
***
Hal Wake, the host of CBC Radio's Early
Edition, is planning to pull the plug on his Corp. career sometime in March.
The Honest Truth got
to the smooth-talking radio man for a little chitchat before he gives up his
parking spot.
Q Where, when and what
was your first radio gig?
A Vancouver, 1976 or
so, I did a movie review for the Redeye program at Co-op Radio. I was so
nervous that I wouldn't go anywhere near the station and recorded it at home,
locked in the bedroom. I sent the tape down with a record to play behind my
voice. Three weeks later I was co-host of the program -- that's how desperate
they were.
Q Were the slashes at
CBC a catalyst behind your decision to retire after 18 years at the Corp?
A Partly. I knew that
I would be able to host the Early Edition for one or maybe two more years
before the early hours got to me. At every stage of my career at the CBC, I
have been able to move to a job that challenged me . . . . Now when I look down
the road a year or two, I don't see those kinds of jobs existing at the CBC.
Q How can the CBC be
saved?
A The CBC can only be
saved when people who value it make it clear to the politicians that if the
cuts continue there will be electoral consequences.
Q Are you a morning
person?
A I am now.
Q Have you ever truly
put your foot in your mouth on the air?
A Not that long ago
when the president of the CBC, Perrin Beatty was sitting four feet from me in
the studio waiting to be interviewed, we came out of the newscast and I said,
"Welcome to the Early Edition, I'm Half Hour."
Q What tips can you
give to young on-air hopefuls?
A Don't think about
the kind of position you want. Think about what you care about, unleash your
curiosity, listen to the stories people tell you, and try to find a place that
shares your passions.
Q Do you have any
pre-show rituals?
A I get a cup of cold
water, squeeze a slice of lemon into it, adjust my chair and then turn on the
microphone and try to say something that will make my technician, Mark Turenne,
laugh.
Q Have you received
any weird fan mail over the years? If so, what?
A A group of
delightful crazies from Denman Island once sent a picture of their bare bottoms
to celebrate the passing of the train at Fanny Bay on Vancouver Island.
Q What's your idea of
a really good time?
A After a really great
barbecue and a couple of bottles of wine, on a fine August evening on
Saltspring Island, with the smell of the trees and the ocean drifting lightly
on the breeze, lying back on the grass with family and friends and watching the
Perseid meteor shower.
Q What do you keep in
your junk drawer at home?
A I am one of those
people who do not restrict junk to drawers. I believe that junk has the same
right to liberty and the right of assembly that the rest of us do.
Q What will you miss
the most? What will you miss the least?
A I will miss working
with a great group of people to make radio at the CBC. I will not miss people
asking me what time I get up. (Just for the record: 3:45 a.m.).