Once home to Toronto’s waterfront community, Parkdale changed gears after the Gardiner Expressway was built, drawing a far more working-class crowd. While in recent years the strip of Queen Street between Dufferin and Roncey has often been characterised as a no-man’s land, this west-end hood is now on the up. You can get your hands on everything from contemporary jewellery to 19th century antiques.
Get ready for some super-cute aping around, Disney’s nature doc Chimpanzee is getting its Canadian premiere at TIFF Bell Lightbox on Friday. The movie is screening as part of the 15th TIFF Kids International Film Festival, which kicks off today at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
Could this finally be the year that the Toronto Blue Jays return to the post-season and make their run at another World Series title? The Jays had a solid spring under their belts and, despite last night’s home-opener loss, the team looks set to be competitive in the toughest division in Major League Baseball as they do battle against the dreaded New York Yankees and company. We caught up with ace pitcher Ricky Romero just after spring training and asked him what the season holds for the Blue Jays.
Before the animalistic UFC, there was this: men wrestling on an Oriental rug in the middle of a field, wearing penny loafers. Ah, yes, judging by this 1905 pic of a match from the Toronto archive, it seems wrestling was a true gentlemen’s sport.
Falcon Powder may sound like a dry, bird-like substance used in some ancient skin-soothing ritual, but it is actually a Canadian Comedy Award-nominated sketch troupe that promises to “blow the socks off your mind’s feet while punching your heart in the face.” We chatted with member Scott Montgomery about secret inspirations, being the “best of the fest” and finding Buffalo airport.
Talk about road rage. Back in 1908, there weren’t the thousands of cars on the road that there are now, but they did have mud. Lots of mud. And once your wagon got stuck, like this one on Ashdale Avenue, you were stuck there for ages.
The Toronto Blue Jays first arrived on the scene as the local boys of summer on a decidedly un-summery day at Exhibition Stadium 35 years ago on April 7, 1977. Five pennants, two World Series championships and a new building later and the Blue Jays are, indisputably, Canada’s team. While things may be looking good right now, it’s been an up-and-down 35 years for the club. Here are five of the highest highs and five of the lowest lows in the team’s history.
A mature blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha and Cabernet. We don’t often see wines of this vintage at the LCBO and certainly not at this price. Dense purple in colour, this Spanish wine has an oaky, red berry and cedar nose, but it still retains its youthful spicy, red cherry flavour thanks to its lively acidity.
Beau’s All-Natural Brewing Company puts out a seasonal beer every three months, and this spring they’ve released an India Pale Ale that they’re calling the Beaver River I.P.Eh?
Toronto street artist Deadboy is stepping out of the shadows for his first-ever art show and sale, which opens at Ossington’s Don’t Tell Mama Gallery today. In recent months, the artist, who wears a skull mask to conceal his identity from the media, he has become known for his comic stencils of Mayor Rob Ford, who he recently painted as Humpty Dumpty about to fall off the wall. We caught up with Deadboy to talk about Banksy, copping flak from the graffiti community and why he counts the Toronto police among his fans.
Emporium by I Miss You, the latest vintage offering on Ossington, has opened up in the space formerly occupied by Philip Sparks’ pop-up shop. The tiny shop is the doing of Julie Yoo, owner of next-door’s I Miss You Vintage. Prior to opening her boutique — which serves up a combo of vintage and designer consignment pieces — Yoo was in the antiques business for 15 years. With Emporium, she is returning to her roots.
Come springtime, kids in the ‘30s created dioramas for their parents. As you can see, their art “skills” sucked just as bad then as they do now. We’re guessing this is the Mad Hatter’s tea party from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. What is the Mad Hatter trying to do, limbo under the table? And the last time we checked, there was only one Alice, not two. Nice try, kiddies, but no A for effort here.
