Laurie McBeth Webb

With the launch of the PWHL, I'm covering the history of women's hockey in Canada with a series of posts. I'm starting today with the 1890s! This photo is the earliest photo of women's hockey & the woman in white is Lady Isobel Stanley, daughter of the Governor General Lord Stanley. She was a pioneer when it came to women's hockey, and this photo is of her playing on the natural ice rink at Rideau Hall. Her father Lord Stanley was a big fan of hockey, and he turned a large lawn into a rink for his daughter to play the game on. The first documented game of women's hockey happened on Feb. 11, 1891. We have a newspaper account of the game, featuring a seven-a-side system, in the Ottawa Citizen. Throughout the 1890s, the game began to expand through eastern Canada. The McGill University's women's hockey team was created in 1894, followed by teams at the University of Toronto and Queen's University. On March 8, 1899, another account of a women's hockey game appeared in print, featuring a four-a-side system on the Rideau Skating Rink. To honour Lady Isobel Stanley's role in the early history of women's hockey, the Isobel Cup was named in her honour. That cup is the championship cup of the Premier Hockey Federation. The Isobel Gathorne-Hardy Award is presented by Hockey Canada to the active player at any level whose leadership and personal traits represent all female athletes. If you enjoy my Canadian history content, you can support my work with a donation at buymeacoffee.com/craigU

The TV movie Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer debuted in 1964 and has become a holiday classic. While it is associated with the United States, nearly every character was voiced by a Canadian and it was recorded at RCA Studios in Toronto. Canadian voice actors were chosen for two main reasons. The first was that many radio dramas were still produced in Canada, while the United States had ended production of most years earlier. This created a large talent pool in Canada. The second reason was that it was cheaper to record the voice cast in Canada due to lower labour costs in the country. The voice of Rudolph was recorded by Billie Mae Richards, who was born in Toronto. She was credited as Billy Richards as producers did not want to disclose that a woman had done the voice. Later in life, she was the voice of Tenderheart Bear on The Care Bears. Larry Mann voiced Yukon Cornelius and Bumble, who was born in Toronto and had many roles in films such as The Sting and The Heat Of The Night. Paul Soles, born in Toronto, was the voice of Hermey in the movie. He was also the voice of Spider-Man in the Spider-Man animated series. He also co-hosted Take 30 for 18 years on CBC. Other Canadian actors filling out the cast of the movie included: Alfie Scopp - Various Male Elves, Charlie-in-the-Box Paul Kligman - Donner and Coach Comet. Paul Klingman often worked with Wayne and Shuster. Carl Banas - Head Elf, Misfit Toys. He also had roles in The Raccoons and Wojeck. Bernard Cowan - Clarice's Father. He was a well-known Canadian announcer who worked shows such as Front Page Challenge, The Pierre Berton Show and Wayne and Shuster. He was also the cousin of Paul Soles. Santa and Mama Claus were played by Canadians Stan Francis and Peg Dixon. If you enjoy my Canadian history content, you can support my work with a donation at buymeacoffee.com/craigU