@jbcurio
Writer/researcher/public historian for hire, specializing in Toronto/Ontario history that ties into the current zeitgeist. Former Sunday Star quizmaster and Historicist. Crafts award-winning stories. Walks a lot. Has adventures with stuffed porcupines.
The Curio Emporium returns with a look at the Ontario government's tourist suggestions from 60 years ago. #ontariohistory
jbscurioemporium.substack.com/p/march-8-on...
Tales of Toronto returns with a 1945 Saturday Night article that goes behind the scenes at the Royal Ontario Museum. #TOHistory
(This seemed like a nice, quick post to do while I'm navigating a late winter cold. Blergh.)
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2026/03/09/b...
The Curio Emporium returns with a look at the Ontario government's tourist suggestions from 60 years ago. #ontariohistory
jbscurioemporium.substack.com/p/march-8-on...
Tales of Toronto returns with a 1945 Saturday Night article that goes behind the scenes at the Royal Ontario Museum. #TOHistory
(This seemed like a nice, quick post to do while I'm navigating a late winter cold. Blergh.)
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2026/03/09/b...
NEW! For the Toronto Star, to accompany @balkissoon.bsky.social's piece on "The Age of Impunity," I compiled a few scandalous political figures - some who paid for their deeds, some who didn't, and some who had to be forced out.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
3) We'll round out this trio with the story of Dora Hood, a Toronto bookseller who had some famous clients.
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2021/02/26/d...
2) Sticking with politics, a look at the 1966 mayoral race in East York which, thanks to amalgamation, pitted two incumbent female mayors against each other.
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2023/03/08/t...
1) A trio of pieces from the vaults for International Women's Day. First, the story of Margaret Haile, the first woman to run for a seat in the Ontario Legislature, as part of a socialist slate of candidates which included a future Toronto mayor.
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2021/03/08/a...
New ideas need old buildings. In today’s @globeandmail I showcase a vision for Toronto’s Old City Hall as a space for contemporary culture - opening this year. Let’s go.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
Here's the lead article. You can find both in the Opinion section of today's print edition of the Saturday Star.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
NEW! For the Toronto Star, to accompany @balkissoon.bsky.social's piece on "The Age of Impunity," I compiled a few scandalous political figures - some who paid for their deeds, some who didn't, and some who had to be forced out.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
In terms of my career, this is very true. Despite what people say, there is an audience for longer storytelling.
Side research find: if you were putting together a series of radio talks on "Great Canadians" in 1946, who would you expect to be on that list from the perspective of 80 years? Or who would make the cut now that wouldn't have then?
Saturday Night, September 28, 1946 #vintagead #cdnhistory
Side research find: after a hard day at the office, why not ease into the night and beyond with soft music?
Detroit Free Press, March 6, 1966 #vintagead
Side research find: when the economic established published ads loudly supporting the value - and advancement - of education.
Saturday Night, November 9, 1946. #cdnhistory #vintagead
Are signs like this really necessary in these troubled times?
Something that often amuses me when travelling is how hideous hotel corridor carpet patterns can be. It also appears to fascinate @lloydalter.bsky.social in his latest post.
lloydalter.substack.com/p/why-are-ho...
Toronto’s beloved repertory cinemas are thriving with classic and cult films, singalongs and burlesque
My @thestar.com column this week: there’s no science that can make sense of Doug Ford’s decision to move the Science Centre.
The new facility will cost more and deliver less — and waste a whole bunch of time that parents and kids will never get back.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
The "new" version of the Mel's Rockpile theme sounds like "hey AI, can you compose something similar but not the same that you think can pass for music written in the late 1970s?"
The randomness of the music substitutions is epitomized by season 3's Mel's Rockpile/Richard Harris skit. In the new version, the background music has been replaced, while "MacArthur Park" is intact!
Here's how it originally sounded, in the syndicated cut (go to 11:22).
youtu.be/A3JkapWZlMI?...
Sampling Amazon Prime's addition of SCTV. Nice to see original episodes (with some cuts)...but wow, is the new substitute opening theme music used for all seasons gawdawful.
I'm going to guess the music rights budget was extremely tight, even for pieces composed for the show?
Archives and Museums Matter -
gilliandr.wordpress.com/2026/03/01/n...
Side research find: a report on the growth of "incovenience stores" in the late 1970s - grocery stores lacking typical customer service features. We're talking the early days of No Frills, alongside competitors like Steinberg's Valdi and Dominion's Thrift.
Toronto Star, Jan 24, 1979 #TOHistory
Side research find: the state of the Toronto Star's website just over a quarter-of-a-century ago.
Toronto Star, May 2, 2000 #TOHistory
The most writing I ever saw in a book was a copy of John Lydon's autobiography I once noticed in a Little Free Library, where a previous owner wrote a lengthy essay about not being a poseur.
3) Here are a few bonus features for the piece on the opening of the Ontario Science Centre, including press coverage, promotional materials, and more!
jamiebradburnwriting.wordpress.com/2019/09/27/b...
"The original centre was conceived as an instrument for discovery. Its terraces, bridges and ravine setting turned science into a spatial experience. The new building promises a different kind of education: It is a maze of spin and broken promises."
2) Then, as a bookend, a story I wrote about its last day of operation in 2024, which I rushed over to see when the news broke.
You know what else broke that day?
My heart.
www.tvo.org/article/insi...
