Tributes are pouring in for beloved Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent, with friends and fans recalling his playful humour and creative spirit.
The Newfoundland native and award-winning star of the film “Away From Her” died Saturday at age 92.
Admirers from actors and directors to politicians and everyday Canadians mourned and honoured Pinsent in the wake of his passing, calling him a national treasure, a charming storyteller and an icon of the arts.
Canadian filmmaker Sarah Polley, who directed the 2006 drama “Away From Her” in which Pinsent turned in his best-known and most highly acclaimed performance, said he had “an enormous capacity for joy in absolutely everything he did.”
“It was infectious and educational,” she said on Twitter. “There wasn’t a moment without a twinkle of mischief and a determination to enjoy the moment.”
Comedian and fellow Newfoundlander Rick Mercer says Pinsent was “a true renaissance man,” adding the actor, writer, director, painter and one-time dance instructor was the “epitome of class and one hell of a funny guy.”
Similar reflections came from Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey.
“he made us laugh. He made us cry. He brought our province to the world stage. He represented us in a way like no other,” he said on Twitter. “Thank you, Gordon Pinsent, for all you did for the arts, for Newfoundland and Labrador, and for our country.”
Jonathan Torrens of Trailer Park Boys and Street Cents fame recounted an amusing tale from the filming of “The Shipping News,” a major Hollywood production starring Kevin Spacey, Julianne Moore and Cate Blanchett.
When the film was being shot in Newfoundland, “so the story goes, Kevin Spacey arrived in town with several security guards in tow,” he said on Twitter.
“If you’ve ever been to Newfoundland, you would know that the people there wouldn’t care who he was,” Torrens said. “They would care more about what he was.”
Most of the guards were sent home, and eventually a barricade set up to keep “curious people away” was taken down, he said.
“What they didn’t see coming was that people would walk onto the set right past Kevin Spacey and over to Gordon Pinsent,” Torrens said. “The real star of the movie. A local boy. Who remembered everyone’s name and kept disappearing to play crib and have a cuppa with locals. Legend.”
He added: “No one can ever act as well as Mr. Pinsent but we should all aspire to act like him. A true gentleman and Canadian Star if ever there was one.”
Gordon Pinsent was one of Canada’s most iconic actors. He was passionate, captivating, and endlessly talented. His family has said that he “loved this country and its people, purpose, and culture to his last breath” – and I hope he knew that we felt the same about him.
“He was my hero. My friend. My family. And easily the funniest man on earth,” Dunn, creator of the Queer As Folk reboot, said on Twitter. “Eternally grateful to have known you.”
Canadian film critic Richard Crouse said he was in awe of Pinsent’s talent and even more so his “ability to be a true gentlemen, always ready with a story and a laugh.”
“Everything you’ve heard about him is true, he was one of a kind,” he said on Twitter.
Even Canadians that had never met Pinsent offered short but heartfelt eulogies on social media, like one Twitter user who simply said: “I didn’t know Gordon Pinsent but it sure feels like we’ve been friends my entire life.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2023.
Gordon had an enormous capacity for joy in absolutely everything he did. It was infectious and educational. There wasn’t a moment without a twinkle of mischief and a determination to enjoy the moment. pic.twitter.com/xEATSy4kZd
Gordon Pinsent was our North Star. A true renaissance man. Actor, writer, director, painter and one time dance instructor. Gordon beat the path and made it possible for all that followed. The epitome of class & one hell of a funny guy. The Rowdy Man is gone but never forgotten. pic.twitter.com/TRpCCvK9mQ
The Rowdyman. Gordon Pinsent was a legend that paved the way for all of us working in entertainment. He was my hero. My friend. My family. And easily the funniest man on earth. Eternally grateful to have known you. pic.twitter.com/nEdP5aYsLR
We lost a legend yesterday. Gordon Pinsent. I’ll never forget our times together. True red blooded proud Canadian. He was adored the world over. Loved hearing tales from my pal @kbruce237 .. ????. They adored each other .. gonna miss you pal. What a life you had Gordon ???? pic.twitter.com/Jp0fT7QkoP
Demands for government intervention in Air Canada labour talks could negatively affect airline competition in Canada, the CEO of travel company Transat AT Inc. said.
“The extension of such an extraordinary intervention to Air Canada would be an undeniable competitive advantage to the detriment of other Canadian airlines,” Annick Guérard told analysts on an earnings conference call on Thursday.
“The time and urgency is now. It is time to restore healthy competition in Canada,” she added.
Air Canada has asked the federal government to be ready to intervene and request arbitration as early as this weekend to avoid disruptions.
Comments on the potential Air Canada pilot strike or lock out came as Transat reported third-quarter financial results.
Guérard recalled Transat’s labour negotiations with its flight attendants earlier this year, which the company said it handled without asking for government intervention.
The airline’s 2,100 flight attendants voted 99 per cent in favour of a strike mandate and twice rejected tentative deals before approving a new collective agreement in late February.
As the collective agreement for Air Transat pilots ends in June next year, Guérard anticipates similar pressure to increase overall wages as seen in Air Canada’s negotiations, but reckons it will come out “as a win, win, win deal.”
“The pilots are preparing on their side, we are preparing on our side and we’re confident that we’re going to come up with a reasonable deal,” she told analysts when asked about the upcoming negotiations.
The parent company of Air Transat reported it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31. The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
It attributed reduced revenues to lower airline unit revenues, competition, industry-wide overcapacity and economic uncertainty.
Air Transat is also among the airlines facing challenges related to the recall of Pratt & Whitney turbofan jet engines for inspection and repair.
The recall has so far grounded six aircraft, Guérard said on the call.
“We have agreed to financial compensation for grounded aircraft during the 2023-2024 period,” she said. “Alongside this financial compensation, Pratt & Whitney will provide us with two additional spare engines, which we intend to monetize through a sell and lease back transaction.”
Looking ahead, the CEO said she expects consumer demand to remain somewhat uncertain amid high interest rates.
“We are currently seeing ongoing pricing pressure extending into the winter season,” she added. Air Transat is not planning on adding additional aircraft next year but anticipates stability.
“(2025) for us will be much more stable than 2024 in terms of fleet movements and operation, and this will definitely have a positive effect on cost and customer satisfaction as well,” the CEO told analysts.
“We are more and more moving away from all the disruption that we had to go through early in 2024,” she added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
