1 of 1- Hansa
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When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
If you watched children's television in Ontario in the 1970s or 1980s you probably knew who Alex Laurier was. He was a regular guest on Uncle Bobby where he played the guitar and sang songs, he played "Moose" to Niki Tilroe's "Beaver" on TVO's CUCUMBER club show and most famously of all he was the most frequent co-host on the Polka Dot Door (for which he also got into costume as Polkaroo).
Alex Laurier was a stage name, his real name is Alex Eftimoff and amazingly, he was convicted of four sexual offences against children in 1974, early in the Polka Dot Door's run, and received a suspended sentence and two years' probation - but continued to star on the show into the mid-80s and co-hosted CUCUMBER in 1975, the year after his convictions. He also continued on Uncle Bobby.
After Polka Dot Door his career faded. He made a few non-children's TV guest shots on shows like Street Legal in the late-1980s and early 90s and then his career came to a screeching halt in 1994 when he was charged, convicted, and sentenced to a year imprisonment for a 1973 sexual assault on an 8 year old boy.
I don't know if the 1974 conviction got any media attention at the time. I couldn't find anything in an archive search of the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail (though his 1994 conviction did make the papers). I vaguely recall seeing it as a small item in the inside pages of the Toronto Sun in 1974 when I was looking for something else in a microfilm of the paper at the library but it may have actually been the 1994 conviction - unfortunately Sun archives aren't online anywhere that I can find.
So did TVO and CTV just not notice his conviction when it happened in 1974 - not realize the Alex Emtimoff was Alex Laurier - or did they just not care?
If anyone does have access to Toronto Sun archives for 1974 (they may be in Factiva which I don't have access to), I'd be curious if his conviction got any coverage at the time.
Of course, if this happened today it would be front-page news, perhaps even internationally, as soon as charges were laid, he would be pulled off the air, probably regardless of what happened in court, contracts would be cancelled and reruns would be pulled with his old shows being put in cold storage or even wiped.
Last edited by Hansa (October 2, 2025 12:19 pm)
- newsguy1
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
And let's not forget Australian singer and comedian Rolph Harris.
He charmed and delighted adults and children alike, making Vancouver a second home Harris was found guilty of a string of indecent assaults between 1968 and 1986 following a trial in 2014 - and was jailed for five years and nine months.He was released from prison in 2017 - but never apologised to his victims.
He died at age 93 of cancer.
Harris was most famous for his beloved song "Tie Me Kangaroo Down."
Last edited by newsguy1 (October 2, 2025 12:47 pm)
- Hansa
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
And of course there was Jimmy Saville of Top of the Pops and the kids show Jim'll Fix It who looked exactly like what you'd think a sex offender would look like but wasn't called to account until after his death.
I highly recommend "The Reckoning", the BBC miniseries on his case in which he's chillingly portrayed by Steve Coogan.
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Thread Starter- Chrisphen
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
From the World of Sports - Harold Ballard was a mighty ringleader of diddlers, and yet he is still adored. Strange stuff.
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
Hansa wrote:
If you watched children's television in Ontario in the 1970s or 1980s you probably knew who Alex Laurier was. He was a regular guest on Uncle Bobby where he played the guitar and sang songs, he played "Moose" to Niki Tilroe's "Beaver" on TVO's CUCUMBER club show and most famously of all he was the most frequent co-host on the Polka Dot Door (for which he also got into costume as Polkaroo).
Alex Laurier was a stage name, his real name is Alex Eftimoff and amazingly, he was convicted of four sexual offences against children in 1974, early in the Polka Dot Door's run, and received a suspended sentence and two years' probation - but continued to star on the show into the mid-80s and co-hosted CUCUMBER in 1975, the year after his convictions. He also continued on Uncle Bobby.
How do you know he was convicted then?
After Polka Dot Door his career faded. He made a few non-children's TV guest shots on shows like Street Legal in the late-1980s and early 90s and then his career came to a screeching halt in 1994 when he was charged, convicted, and sentenced to a year imprisonment for a 1973 sexual assault on an 8 year old boy.
I don't know if the 1974 conviction got any media attention at the time. I couldn't find anything in an archive search of the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail (though his 1994 conviction did make the papers). I vaguely recall seeing it as a small item in the inside pages of the Toronto Sun in 1974 when I was looking for something else in a microfilm of the paper at the library but it may have actually been the 1994 conviction - unfortunately Sun archives aren't online anywhere that I can find.
So did TVO and CTV just not notice his conviction when it happened in 1974 - not realize the Alex Emtimoff was Alex Laurier - or did they just not care?
If anyone does have access to Toronto Sun archives for 1974 (they may be in Factiva which I don't have access to), I'd be curious if his conviction got any coverage at the time.
Of course, if this happened today it would be front-page news, perhaps even internationally, as soon as charges were laid, he would be pulled off the air, probably regardless of what happened in court, contracts would be cancelled and reruns would be pulled with his old shows being put in cold storage or even wiped.
- Hansa
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
How do you know he was convicted then?
"Court was told that Eftimoff, 57, was convicted in four similar incidents that occurred in the summer of 1974, resulting in a suspended sentence and two years' probation with counselling. In 1984, he obtained a pardon." ("Ex-entertainer jailed for assault", Toronto Star, July 15, 1994, page A26)
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Thread Starter- g121
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
From the World of Sports - Harold Ballard was a mighty ringleader of diddlers, and yet he is still adored. Strange stuff.
huh? .. Ballard "adored" ??? ..
Ballard was pretty much universally regarded as a bully, a buffoon, a boor & a clown.
Rosie DiManno gives an accurate scathing depiction of the man ..
*edit*
Last edited by g121 (October 2, 2025 9:51 pm)
- SpinningWheel
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Re: When a convicted child molester became a Canadian children's TV star
You may recall that Mike Stafford used to speak about uncle Bobby in the neighborhood on air, I'm 2 years older than Mike and grew up a little east of Kennedy and Eglinton and uncle Bobby was well known as a creep when he was on television, as far as I recall but it's been a long time. He lived at Midland and Eglinton as well. According to Stafford Bobby was known to go shopping at the supermarket at Kennedy and Eglinton dressed in his night clothes. I can't say I can verify that, thank goodness. Who needs a memory like that? FFS, he was up there with the friendly giant and Mr Dressup! Big time heroes!
Last edited by SpinningWheel (October 2, 2025 9:09 pm)