CBC listeners will already have heard that Bob Johnston, long-time reporter and columnist, passed away on the Labour Day weekend. The National did a nice little tribute to him.
Johnston did almost daily short columns that were broadcast on local CBC AM (as it then was, now CBC Radio One) shows. When I was growing up, they were usually played on the morning show, and (I think) between 7:10 and 7:25.
The segments were these fantastic compilations of stories, often linking an event on a particular day to a larger historical issue. Most, again if I remember correctly, were Canadian history bits, but I could be wrong. As a young person, I loved these, and remember discussing several of them with my dad or others in my family. They were perfect as bits of radio, and while I looked at his book when it was published, it didn't have the appeal of his radio pieces.
Johnston was not a professional historian, but he had a clear love of history and could craft a good story. I've missed his pieces since they stopped running regularly many years ago. It's sad to know there will be no new ones.
