Editing Stompin' Tom Connors (section)

==Personal life==

Connors married Lena Welsh on November 2, 1973. The ceremony was broadcast live on ''[[Elwood Glover's Luncheon Date]]'' on [[CBC Television]].<ref>{{cite magazine|title = Lena Welsh and Stompin' Tom Connors, November 2, 1973|url = http://www.torontolife.com/daily/style/weddings-style/2010/03/04/from-the-archives-the-city%E2%80%99s-most-memorable-weddings/attachment/historical6-2/|magazine = [[Toronto Life]]|access-date = March 7, 2013|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100804015626/http://www.torontolife.com/daily/style/weddings-style/2010/03/04/from-the-archives-the-city%E2%80%99s-most-memorable-weddings/attachment/historical6-2/|archive-date = August 4, 2010|df = mdy-all}}</ref> During an interview on the show, he said they had chosen to get married on television to share this happy moment with his fans across the country whose support had rescued him from a difficult pre-showbusiness life.<ref>{{cite AV media|url=http://www.cbc.ca/rewind/episode/2013/03/14/stompin-tom-connors/|title=Remembering Stompin' Tom Connors|date=March 14, 2013|work=[[Rewind (radio program)|Rewind]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130701043505/http://www.cbc.ca/rewind/episode/2013/03/14/stompin-tom-connors/|author=Michael Enright|author-link=Michael Enright (broadcaster)|format=audio|archive-date=July 1, 2013|access-date=March 14, 2013}}</ref>
Connors had two sons, Taw<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/stompin-tom-connors-son-tour-1.3747617 |title=Stompin' Tom Connors' son tours Ontario in tribute to father |date= September 5, 2016 |access-date= June 6, 2021 |website=cbc.ca}}</ref> and Tom Jr.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Jane Stevenson |url=https://torontosun.com/entertainment/music/stompin-tom-connors-stomps-his-way-into-cwof-with-familys-blessing|title=Stompin' Tom Connors stomps his way into CWOF with family's blessing|date= November 12, 2017   |access-date= June 6, 2021 |website=torontosun.com}}</ref>

Connors was a heavy smoker—estimated to consume 100 cigarettes a day<ref name="Bidini" />—and an equally heavy drinker. On tour, he had to drive the lead truck, and could never be the last person to go to bed, and that often meant that his fellow musicians had to keep up with his pace.<ref name="Bidini" />

Connors always wore his black [[Stetson]] in public, and refused to remove it for any reason, even when meeting [[Queen Elizabeth II]] at a dinner in Ottawa in October 2002. Buckingham Palace smoothed the way by likening Mr. Connors's hat to a religious headdress such as a nun's habit or a Sikh's turban.<ref name="MartinObit" />  However, Connors did go hatless during his nationally-televised wedding on CBC-TV to Lena Welsh.

===Retirement and nationalist protest===
As the 1970s progressed, he retired to his farm at Ballinafad,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stompin' Tom Moves In|first=Winifred |last=Smith |url=http://news.haltonhills.halinet.on.ca/2315505/page/12?n=14&q=Stompin%27%20Tom%20Connors&docid=OOI.2315505|work=[[The Georgetown Herald]]|date=June 4, 1975|access-date=March 8, 2013}}</ref> near [[Erin, Ontario]], to protest the lack of support given to Canadian stories by the policies of the Federal government, particularly the [[Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission]] (CRTC).<ref>{{Cite web|author=Jennifer Barr|title=Stompin' Tom media critic champions Canadian talent|url=http://news.haltonhills.halinet.on.ca/2314036/page/5?n=7&q=Stompin%27%20Tom%20Connors&docid=OOI.2314036|work=Acton Free Press|date=January 19, 1977|access-date=March 7, 2013}}</ref> He also boycotted the [[Juno Award]]s in protest of the qualification guidelines set by the [[Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]] (CARAS) for possible nominees who were being consistently nominated and awarded outside of their musical genre. He strongly opposed artists who conducted most of their business in the United States being nominated for Junos in Canada. Connors, who referred to these particular artists as "turncoat Canadians", felt that, since they had chosen to live and work in the U.S., it was only fair that they competed with Americans for Grammy Awards, and left the Juno competition to those who lived and conducted business in Canada.

His protest caught national attention when he sent back his six Junos accompanied by a letter to the board of directors.

{{Blockquote|Gentlemen:

I am returning herewith the six Juno awards that I once felt honoured to have received and which, I am no longer proud to have in my possession. As far as I am concerned you can give them to the border jumpers who didn't receive an award this year and maybe you can have them presented by [[Charley Pride]]. I feel that the Junos should be for people who are living in Canada, whose main base of business operations is in Canada, who are working toward the recognition of Canadian talent in this country and who are trying to further the export of such talent from this country to the world with a view to proudly showing off what this country can contribute to the world market.

Until the academy appears to comply more closely with aspirations of this kind, I will no longer stand for any nominations, nor will I accept any award given.

Yours very truly,
Stompin' Tom Connors<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Stompin' Tom discloses reasons for Juno nomination withdrawal|url=http://www.stompintom.com/stompintomtimes/rpm.html|magazine=[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]|date=April 22, 1978|access-date=March 8, 2013}}</ref>
}}

He remained in retirement for 12 years, only returning to the studio in 1986 to produce a new album to promote Canadian artists.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stompin' Tom is back from 10-year exile|url=http://news.haltonhills.halinet.on.ca/2326051/page/1?n=6&q=Stompin%27%20Tom%20Connors&docid=OOI.2326051|work=[[The Georgetown Herald]]|date=December 10, 1986|access-date=March 7, 2013}}</ref> That year, [[Tim Vesely]] and [[Dave Bidini]] of [[Rheostatics]] crashed his 50th birthday party and published an article about it in a Toronto newspaper,<ref name=blamecanada>[http://exclaim.ca/Features/Timeline/rheostatics-blame_canada "Rheostatics: Blame Canada"]. ''[[Exclaim!]]'', November 2001.</ref> initiating a resurgence of public and record label interest in his work which resulted in the release in 1988 of ''Fiddle and Song'', his first new album since 1977.

===Guest of honour on ''Late Night''===
Connors' music is rarely heard outside Canada, with the possible exception of his [[anthem]]ic "[[The Hockey Song]]" which has been recorded by many artists and played regularly within the arenas of the National Hockey League. It has been suggested that Connors refused to allow foreign release of his material, although a more likely reason is that the very Canadian-specific subject matter of many of his folk songs has resulted in limited demand in foreign markets. When ''[[Late Night with Conan O'Brien]]'' taped a week's worth of shows in Canada in 2004, Connors was one of the guests of honour, leading the Toronto audience in a rendition of "The Hockey Song"; this was one of the few times Connors performed on American television. Another Canadian-taped installment of ''Late Night'' featured a segment in which [[Triumph the Insult Comic Dog]] visited [[Quebec]]; a parody of Connors' "Canada Day, Up Canada Way" is heard during the segment.

===Dispute with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation===
According to Connors' promoter, Brian Edwards, the CBC had expressed interest for Connors to do a music special since 1990.<ref name="Rocklands">[http://www.stompintom.com/whatsnew/snubbed_by_cbc.html "Stompin' Tom Snubbed by CBC TV"] (press release by Brian Edwards, Rocklands Entertainment Inc., Peterborough Ontario), 2006</ref> Connors shot and edited a live concert presentation at Hamilton Place at a cost of over $200,000 of his own money in September 2005. Edwards said that a copy was presented to the CBC's head of TV variety and that he received a reply the next day telling him that a decision would be reached within a few weeks. After 10 weeks, another email was then sent to the newly appointed programming VP, and a prompt reply came back that said that the broadcaster was moving away from music and variety programming and that the Connors special did not fit with its strategy.

Edwards said that he received another letter from the CBC that reinforced its lack of interest in the concert special but said that Connors would have been a great guest to perform a song on the network's ''[[Hockeyville]]'' series or an excellent subject for a ''[[Life and Times (TV series)|Life and Times]]'' project. In response, Connors said:

{{Blockquote|As far as I'm concerned, if the CBC, our own public network, will not reconsider their refusal to air a Stompin' Tom special, they can take their wonderful offer of letting me sing a song as a guest on some other program and shove it.<ref name="Rocklands" />
}}

Ultimately, the film was released on DVD as ''Stompin' Tom In Concert'' by [[EMI]] in 2006.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.discogs.com/release/13466736-Stompin-Tom-Stompin-Tom-in-Live-Concert | title=Stompin' Tom - Stompin' Tom in Live Concert | website=[[Discogs]] | date=2006 }}</ref> The soundtrack was released posthumously on CD<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.discogs.com/release/13817145-Stompin-Tom-Connors-Stompin-Tom-in-Live-Concert-Soundtrack | title=Stompin' Tom Connors - Stompin' Tom in Live Concert (Soundtrack) | website=[[Discogs]] | date=2014 }}</ref> at the same time as a DVD & Blue Ray re-issue by [[Universal Music Canada]] in 2014.<ref name="discogs.com">{{cite web | url=https://www.discogs.com/master/1976677-Stompin-Tom-Stompin-Tom-in-Live-Concert | title=Stompin' Tom - Stompin' Tom in Live Concert | website=[[Discogs]] | date=2006 }}</ref>

===Autobiography===
''Stompin' Tom: Before the Fame'' is an autobiography detailing Connors' childhood years in an orphanage, and as a [[farm labourer]]. It was a runner-up for the [[Edna Staebler Award]] for [[Creative Non-Fiction]] in 1996<ref name="wlu96">[https://web.archive.org/web/20121001115435/https://www.wlu.ca/page.php?grp_id=2529&p=11317 ''Wilfrid Laurier University''] 1996: George G. Blackburn. Retrieved November 17, 2012</ref> and became a bestseller in 1997. It details his life before becoming famous. In 2000 Connors wrote his second autobiography ''The Connors Tone''.

===Death and memorial service===
Connors died of kidney failure on March 6, 2013, at his home in Ballinafad.<ref name = "MartinObit" /><ref name="Ballinafad">{{Cite web|url=http://www.orangeville.com/news-story/2501222-erin-area-resident-stompin-tom-connors-dead-at-77/|title=Erin-area resident, Stompin' Tom Connors dead at 77|date=March 7, 2013|work=Orangeville Banner|first=Greg |last=Quill}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title = Stompin' Tom Connors|url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/10042187/Stompin-Tom-Connors.html|date = May 5, 2013|newspaper = [[The Daily Telegraph]]|location=London}}</ref> He refused to seek medical treatment, as he was skeptical of the benefits of medical technology.<ref name = "MartinObit" /> On March 7, flags were lowered to half-mast at the [[National Arts Centre]] in Ottawa,<ref>{{Cite web|title = The NAC mourns the loss of Stompin' Tom Connors|url = http://nac-cna.ca/en/stories/story/the-nac-mourns-the-loss-of-stompin-tom-connors|publisher = [[National Arts Centre]]|date = March 7, 2013|access-date = March 9, 2013}}</ref><ref name="XinhuaObit">{{Cite web|author = Christopher Guly|title = Canadian folk legend Stompin' Tom Connors remembered|url = http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/entertainment/2013-03/08/c_132217048.htm|agency = [[Xinhua News Agency]]|date = March 8, 2013|access-date = March 8, 2013|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160412035859/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/entertainment/2013-03/08/c_132217048.htm|archive-date = April 12, 2016|df = mdy-all}}</ref> and also in [[Tillsonburg]], to mark his death.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Town of Tillsonburg Honours Stompin' Tom|url = http://www.tillsonburg.ca/LocalGovernment/MediaandCommunications/NewsDetails/tabid/2517/ArticleId/1477/Town-of-Tillsonburg-Honours-Stompin-Tom.aspx|date = March 7, 2013|access-date = March 9, 2013|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130716225601/http://www.tillsonburg.ca/LocalGovernment/MediaandCommunications/NewsDetails/tabid/2517/ArticleId/1477/Town-of-Tillsonburg-Honours-Stompin-Tom.aspx|archive-date = July 16, 2013|df = mdy-all}}</ref> On March 9, that following Saturday night, ''[[Hockey Night in Canada]]'' broadcast a special tribute to Connors at the opening of its broadcast.<ref>{{Cite news|title = Hockey Night in Canada pays tribute to late Stompin' Tom Connors |url = https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/hockey-night-pays-tribute-to-stompin-tom-connors-1.1348216|publisher = [[CBC Sports]]|date = March 9, 2013|access-date = March 10, 2013}}</ref>

Immediately after his death, ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'' noted:

{{Blockquote|These days, Canada isn't scared to be a little loud and proud. Politicians push patriotic buttons and endlessly recite their devotion to "hard-working Canadians." Advertisers shamelessly (and successfully) plug our country and its natural beauty, and play up Canadians' adventuresome and ribald sides. But Stompin' Tom was doing that a long time ago, celebrating the end of a hard week's work with famous lyrics like,

:''The girls are out to bingo and the boys are getting' stinko''
:''And we'll think no more of [[Inco]] on a Sudbury Saturday night.''<ref>{{cite news|title = Thank you, Stompin' Tom Connors. We needed you |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/commentary/editorials/thank-you-stompin-tom-connors-we-needed-you/article9441159/%3bjsessionid=qrcQR4lVTCShRbLd6n3DkLjGpn9TyjL1Hwn6pwb9FHx2nCBv7L29!-526044479/?ord=1|newspaper = [[The Globe and Mail]]|date = March 7, 2013|access-date = March 10, 2013|location=Toronto}}</ref>
}}

In a 1995 interview, Mr. Connors offered the opinion that nobody should die happy:

{{Blockquote|I think people should die without their dreams being fulfilled, so maybe they can have an excuse for coming around again.<ref name = "NYTobit" />
}}

On March 7, several members of the federal [[New Democratic Party (Canada)|New Democratic Party]] caucus, led by former musicians [[Charlie Angus]] and [[Andrew Cash]], performed a group rendition of Connors' signature song "[[Bud the Spud]]" in the foyer of the [[House of Commons of Canada]] in tribute.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://o.canada.com/2013/03/07/ndp-to-pay-tribute-to-stompin-tom-by-singing-bud-the-spud/#.UTkb_TePAhU|title = NDP to pay tribute to Stompin' Tom by singing 'Bud the Spud'|publisher = [[Canada.com]]|date = March 7, 2013}}</ref>

In addition to reports and obituaries published in the Canadian media, his death was also reported by ''[[The New York Times]]'',<ref name = "NYTobit" /> [[BBC News]]<ref name = "BBCobit" /> and the [[Xinhua News Agency]].<ref name = "XinhuaObit" />

A memorial was held on March 13, 2013, at the [[Peterborough Memorial Centre]] in [[Peterborough, Ontario]]. [[Tommy Hunter]] attended, and the celebration included speeches by former governor general [[Adrienne Clarkson]] and [[Ken Dryden]].<ref name = "CTV-Patch">{{Cite web|author = Nick Patch, [[The Canadian Press]]|title = Stompin' Tom fans, friends, family throw joyous memorial|url = http://www.ctvnews.ca/entertainment/stompin-tom-fans-friends-family-throw-joyous-memorial-1.1193419|publisher = [[CTV News]]|date = March 13, 2013|access-date = March 14, 2013}}</ref> Testimonials were given or read from others, including [[Roméo Dallaire]], [[Rita MacNeil]] and [[Liona Boyd]]. Before his death, Connors had personally selected the artists who would perform:<ref>{{Cite news|title = Memorial pays tribute to Stompin' Tom Connors|url = http://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/memorial-pays-tribute-to-stompin-tom-connors-1.1413117|publisher = [[CBC News]]|date = March 13, 2013|access-date = November 11, 2017}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Tribute
! Artists
|-
|''Peterborough Postman'', ''The Blue Berets'', ''The Ballad of Stompin' Tom'' and ''The Hockey Song'' (videos)
|Stompin' Tom Connors
|-
|Fiddle medley of traditional music (The Maritime Waltz)
|Billy Macinnis
|-
|''Man in the Black Hat''
|[[Tim Hus]]
|-
|''Little Wawa'' and ''Gumboot Cloggeroo'' (medley)
|[[J.P. Cormier]] and [[Dave Gunning]]
|-
|''[[Farewell to Nova Scotia]]''
|[[Sylvia Tyson]] and [[Cindy Church]]
|-
|''The Bridge Came Tumbling Down''
|[[Dave Bidini]]
|-
|''Coal Boat Song''
|[[Damhnait Doyle]]
|-
|''So Long Stompin' Tom''
|[[Mike Plume]]
|-
|''I am the Wind''
|Mark Laforme
|}

At the end of the service, before ''Sudbury Saturday Night'' was played, Tom Connors, Jr., spoke about his father, and looked to the future:

{{Blockquote|I heard some people comment at the funeral, saying there'll never be another Stompin' Tom. Well, I got news for you. We still have a Canada, and we still have the roads, towns, people, jobs – and that's what Tom wrote about. So never say never.... He never liked anyone copying him, but anyone who wants to sing about Canada, keep 'er on going.

It's nice to travel south. It might be warmer on the skin, but if you go east and west, it'll be warmer on your hearts.<ref name = "CTV-Patch" />
}}

He was subsequently buried at Erin Union Cemetery in [[Erin, Ontario]].<ref name = "Gravelle">{{cite news|author = Phil Gravelle|title = Paying tribute to Stompin' Tom's philosophy|url = http://erininsight.blogspot.ca/2014/06/paying-tribute-to-stompin-toms.html|newspaper = Erin Advocate|date = June 11, 2014}}</ref> The [[headstone]] contains these words:

{{Blockquote|<poem>
The body has returned to sod,
The spirit has returned to God.
So on this spot, no need for grief,
Here only lies a fallen leaf.
Until new blossoms form in time,
The tree is where I now reside.
But with this poem, as you can see,
They haven't heard the last of me.<ref name = "Gravelle" />
</poem>}}

Connors was also the subject of a video tribute at the [[2013 East Coast Music Awards]] on March 10.<ref name=cousins>[https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/folk-singer-rose-cousins-wins-3-east-coast-music-awards-1.1339123 "Folk singer Rose Cousins wins 3 East Coast Music Awards"]. [[CBC News]], March 11, 2013.</ref>