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Transcription:
THE BARRIS BEAT.
Peterson Pays for Living in Toronto.
By Alex Barris
The Telegram, Toronto
Thursday, February 22, 1962
Do Canadians really appreciate homegrown artists, and more
especially those who don't move away? Let's look at the case of
Oscar Peterson.
Beyond any doubt, Peterson is one of the top jazz attractions
in the world. He is in demand in
Europe and tours there annually; he has played in
Japan and Australia;
the best jazz spots in the
United States bid for his services; he has won something
like a dozen top jazz awards in the past decade; his records
always sell well.
Peterson in the world of jazz stands at, or very near, the
top. Not many Candians who toil in other art vineyards have
achieved a comparable pre-eminence in their particular spheres
of creative activity.
But Peterson lives in Toronto and pays the price. Whether
he's prepared to continue doing so indefinitely is a question
to ponder.
When Oscar and Phil Nimmons
decided to establish their
Advanced School of Contemporary Music, there can be no
question that they could have done so in any major city on
this continent. Even if Nimmons is relatively unknown outside
Canada. the Peterson name alone would have been enough to
insure success.
But Oscar wanted to live in
Canada, his home. He wanted, moreover, to set up this
school here because it was a matter of some national pride to
him that such a school, one of the very few where jazz is dealt
with seriously, should exist in Canada.
It was his hope that as the school grew, he could spend more
and more time at home and less and less on the road. It was he
who urged his two sidemen,
Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen,
to do likewise. They also live here now, when the trio isn't
traveling, and also teach at the school.
Now, let's see how this has affected Peterson. We've had
other entertainers or artists who have left here for the
States: Gisele Mackenzie, Bob Goulet, Lorne Greene, and so on.
Whenever they have come back here for a TV show or some other
appearance, they have been able to demand - and get - fees far
higher than they made previously. That's only natural, and more
power to them.
But Peterson lives here, he is "available." He is one
of the few internationally known "names" we have
living in Toronto. (Wayne and Shuster come to mind, of course,
but they managed to get a long-term CBC contract. Soon after,
they "made it" on the Sullivan show). Does Peterson get much TV
work, and is he well paid for it?
In the 1961-62 season, the
CBC has used him exactly twice. And each time, the money
he received was well below the money paid to "imported"
stars. His most recent appearance was on Parade. He got
substantially less money than Brenda Lee, who was brought in
from New York the following week.
The airplane fare between here and New York is about $50.
The difference between what Peterson got and what Miss Lee got
was more like $500 or $1,000. And this doesn't even take into
account the fact that Peterson's aides - Brown and Thigpen - are
themselves of a high enough calibre that he must, in all
conscience, pay them better than I imagine Miss Lee has to pay
the dreary noisemakers she brought along.
If I seem to be picking on the CBC, it's only because this sort
of thing happens only on the CBC - after all, CTV hasn't yet
reached the stage where it uses any high-priced talent, local
or imported.
So, here is Peterson, one of the greatest musicians Canada
has produced, living within easy reach of the hub of
entertainment activity in this country, yet taken so much for
granted that he is seen only twice in a full season of TV --
and then at fees that are reduced because he lives here.
So much for the TV end of it. Tomorrow, we’ll go on with
other aspects of this examination of the case of Oscar
Peterson.
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