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The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
I'd never heard this story before, although I suspect it's pretty famous. It's about the father of a well known Toronto Maple Leafs player who was so angry he couldn't watch his son play on Hockey Night In Canada, that it led to a dramatic - and deadly - standoff at a B.C. TV/radio station complex in 1970.
If you're not familiar with this story, it's an incredibly compelling retelling of an infamous incident that's almost beyond belief - and that quickly spiralled out of control.
'I Absolutely Froze': The Night 'Spinner' Spencer's Dad Attacked The CBC
- splunge
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Re: The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
wow, new story to me. thanks for sharing.
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Re: The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
I found the story frightening but amazing. Still, as awful as it was, this is my favourite part:
"There was a young man doing his very first shift as a DJ that night.
"And along the hall comes this crazy looking man with a gun waving all over the place," Fawcett says. "The poor kid locked the booth and flattened himself on the floor. And there he stayed for a good hour and a half."
His first ever shift! I wonder whatever happened to that guy and whether he stayed in radio. What an incredible tale he must have to tell about what may have been his very first time on the radio.
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Thread Starter- unclefester
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Re: The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
I was working in St. Kitts in 1974 and the Buffalo Sabers had their training camp there that year.
Brian Spencer was a member of the Sabers & I vividly remember seeing him just about every day at the diner next door to the radio station.
He drove a Silver Cloud Rolls Royce. And he had a few tattoo's as well.. Both a bit odd for the time.
He was a bit of an eccentric chap
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Re: The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
- mace
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Re: The Day The Leafs & The CBC Led To A Dad With A Gun - And A Killing
The story is told in the Michael McKinley book "Hockey Night In Canada: 60 Seasons" There is a black and white photograph of the interview with Ward and Brian. He kept the names of the three RCMP officers involved in his father's death in his wallet as he journeyed through the NHL with the Leafs, Islanders, Sabres and Penguins. On the night he died, Spenser was purchasing some crack/cocaine when he was confronted by several thugs at gunpoint. He refused to surrender his wallet which contained the names of the three police officers who had killed his father. So they shot him to death. If you can find this book it is a fascinating read, covering the radio days of HNIC and the early days of the tv broadcasts. Lots of cool historical archival photos as well.