About Bob Edwards

Robert Chambers "Bob" Edwards was a pioneer journalist of Western Canada, but that ain't half the most interesting part of him. His papers — The Wetaskiwin Free Lance and Breeze (1890s), the Alberta Sun (1899), and most famously the Eye Opener (1902–1922)— anticipated satirical magazines like Frank, Private Eye, and The Onion (in all the various ways that those varied publications vary). He was the great-granddaddy of gonzo journalism, spending half his time as soused as a washerwoman's nephew and the other half writing about it gleefully and unrepentantly. He skewered the politicians of his day, invented spoof articles that deflated "straight" newspapers' pretensions — creating "bleak micro-narratives of urban desperation" out of the society column, for instance — made and broke political and social reputations, agitated for the public good, exposed grafters and con-artists in both the pubilc and private spheres, and had a whack of fun doing it.

"Bob Edwards was a genius. That's all your really need to know." —Will Ferguson

The stuff that came out of his pen (well, some of it, anyhow) is deathless. He was a superb aphorist, and should be quoted at every opportunity. Much of his political commentary is as relevant today as it was when he penned it — just change the names of the politicians to suit, and voila! your very own prefab This Hour Has 22 Minutes.

Edwards was also an astute chronicler of the Calgary of his time; so much so that scrolling through the back issues of the Eye Opener on microfilm is like getting into some weird time machine that shows you the present in the language of the past. All of Calgary's flaws, problems, and virtues are there to behold in their rawest form. Plus ça change ...

Unfortunately,The Best of Bob Edwards (edited by Hugh Dempsey) has been out of print since the early 1980s. Fortunately, Brindle & Glass is publishing a new edition of his writings: Irresponsible Freaks, Highball Guzzlers & Unabashed Grafters (edited by James Martin). 'Zat sound like a plug? It is, dear reader. But we know you won't mind.

We're celebratin'. We got books to celebrate, and we got celebrations to celebrate, and we're feelin' fine about it. Come & join us.

Why Now?

a) 2004 is the 100th anniversary of Bob Edwards's arrival in Calgary, and thus the 100th anniversary of the Calgary Eye Opener (though the Eye Opener as such had operated in High River since 1902)
b) this is the 30th anniversary of the Bob Edwards Luncheon. The recipient of this year's Bob Edwards Award is Rick Mercer, the most appropriate recipient in years.
c) we were drunk, and it seemed like a good idea when we thought of it. Heaven help us.

We at BobFest gratefully thank our sponsors: