How I Became an Overnight Success in Seventy-Five Years

Canada Day Message from Lieutenant Governor Lincoln M. Alexander

As representative of Her Majesty the Queen in the Province of Ontario, it gives me great pleasure to extend greetings to everyone attending the special luncheon at the Royal York Hotel on June 28, 1989.

I very deeply regret having to rescind my original acceptance of the kind invitation to attend the luncheon. My participation at a luncheon on the occasion of a state visit to Ontario prevents me from being with you.

On July 1st, Canadians in a variety of ways will celebrate 122 years of progress, growth and stability. All of us should be mindful of the challenges and opportunities of the present and of the excitement, hope and peace which the years to come will bring.

I would at this time like to commend the members of The

Empire Club of Canada and The Royal Commonwealth Society who, by their Canada Day luncheon, endeavour to engender participation and patriotism in the celebration of our country's birthday.

I am delighted to extend happy 122nd birthday and every best wish to all for an enjoyable and memorable Canada Day luncheon.

Introduction: Sarah Band

Honoured guests, members of The Empire Club.

It is a very great pleasure, although a daunting task, to welcome our guest today. In preparing my notes to introduce Ed Mirvish, I faced comparison with the accolades which accompany Royal Orders, business citations and journalistic profiles in the nation's news magazines. What then remains to be said of a man so famous?

I'm sure there is a lot more to come from Mr. Mirvish, but in the meantime, I would like to touch on some of his achievements. The Order of Canada recognizes his wonderful contributions to this country. This country whose 122nd birthday we celebrate today. Ed Mirvish has made a landmark contribution to the arts in Great Britain and his rank of Commander of the British Empire acknowledges that gigantic achievement.

There remains only his Doctorate in Law, recognizing support for his favourite university and, of course, his achievements in business.

As a shopkeeper myself, beset by the challenges of finding merchandise and keeping customers happy, I am not just impressed, I'm overwhelmed by the success of his Bloor/Bathurst St. store. Mine in Yorkville has--well--less success than that.

Our speaker today is a leader of our community, a man recognized by royalty for his leadership in the arts, a man of letters, and an outstanding Canadian merchant. I find it difficult to say more, so I will close with perhaps the most famous remark 1 have ever heard about this great Canadian. It is attributed to a Londoner who was asked about the man who had just purchased Britain's most famous theatre. When the BBC asked this man to comment on the newcomer, he said: "Well, l don't rightly know the chap, but any man with 'Honest' in front of his name, I'd watch him!"

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce the man all Canadians love to watch, the man with 'Honest' in front of his name; Ed Mirvish.

Ed Mirvish:

Madam President, honoured guests, members of The Empire Club, members of The Royal Commonwealth Society, ladies and gentlemen, l would like to thank you for inviting me here this afternoon and for giving me the pleasure of speaking to you.

It is always a privilege to express ones viewpoints before a distinguished audience. I would like to remind you that your ticket this afternoon cost $18--$17.75 is for the lunch--the other 25 cents is for my talk.

My talk is titled "How I Became An Overnight Success In Seventy-Five Years".

What a wonderful way for me to be able to celebrate "Canada Day" and to express publicly how fortunate we are to be living in Canada. I am always aware that there is a great element of luck in all our lives. We are lucky to be living in a country that offers us the opportunity to grow. I am certain that there are many areas in this world that no matter how hard you might strive and work, and no matter how much ability you may possess, you would never be able to elevate yourself. There are countries where you could be forced to live with poverty and hardship from the cradle to the grave. We are so lucky!

Canada has allowed me the freedom to work, express myself and develop. In spite of little formal education and very limited or practically no financial base it has been possible for me to go from Dundas Street to Buckingham Palace, and it has been a nice trip all the way. This great country of ours has given me this chance.

1 would like to speak to you about my 27 years of involvement in the world of theatre and also my almost 40 formative years prior to acquiring the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

When I tell our son that I started working at the age of nine, he wants to know what I did before that? Was I a bum? So I do not belabour the point. I was a school dropout at age 15. 1 must say that up until 27 years ago, I did not consider myself a theatre-goer. My wife, Anne, has always been passionately interested in theatre, music and art as her family was before her. In fact, as a teenaged vocalist, Anne had been singled out by

Percy Faith and has also studied art with Hortense Gordon from "Painters Eleven". Through my wife's influence our son, David, was exposed to these art forms from very early childhood with very positive results.

But prior to acquiring the Royal Alexandra 1 was basically a storekeeper enjoying the retail merchandising experience. Nevertheless during the early years of our marriage my wife did persuade me to go to concerts and art shows occasionally and, although I did not appreciate it at the time, in retrospect I am sure it was good for me. I remember the first year of our marriage when my wife had me attend a symphony concert at the Varsity Stadium. It was a sweltering hot summer evening with the temperature ranging 90 degrees fahrenheit. l had put in a full day's work and, as we did not own a car at the time, we boarded a Bloor Street car, jammed with sweltering crowds of people. At the stadium we sat on hard benches right behind the drums and percussion section of the orchestra. When they started to play Beethoven's Fifth right in my ear I can tell you our first year of marriage almost did not make it to a second year.

I remember going to an art show with my wife at the Museum Of Modern Art in New York City. Looking at a mattress that was split open and nailed to the wall, I saw the stuffing and springs were all jumping out of it. I stared at this mattress in disbelief and finally turned to my wife and said, "Is this art?" She answered "Did you think of it?". No, 1 didn't think of it, but with a little thought, I could do better than that! When 1 arrived back in Toronto that "Mattress" really bugged me.

At that time I had a factory, Edmir Moulding Corporation and Toronto Engineering Co. which made moulds for the plastic trade. I had this idea that I would go to the junkyard and find pieces of machinery, give them titles and ship them off to some city like Chicago where no one knew me. I would pay an art gallery to give a show to this unknown, undiscovered businessman who was a sculptor. I was curious to see how the critics would receive my 25 or 30 pieces of art.

To test my idea 1 made two sculptures. One was part of a governor off a machine. It consisted of spheres that swung around on two arms. I tempered and polished them to a cold shiny blue and mounted this sculpture on a large green marble base. 1 then attached a fancy brass nameplate to this work and called this sculpture "Cold Frustration" by Ed Mirvish. My second work of art was a very complicated piece of machinery from some farm equipment. This 1 mounted and called "Chaos". At this particular time we had just opened the Poor Alex Theatre at Bloor Street and Brunswick Avenue. I placed the two sculptures in the theatre lobby on the opening night of a new show. 1 was looking forward to getting some reaction or feedback from the public regarding my work. My wife attended this opening with me and, after taking one look at my art, she phoned our son David who was in New York at the time. He was arranging his first art show for his new art gallery. She told David that his father was "ridiculing art" and advised him to get me to remove my creations from the public view. Mind you, one of the patrons showed interest in my art. I probably could have sold it. To end this story, the sculpture was removed and I still think it was a good idea that never saw the light of day! This was only one of the many ideas that I have had over the years that were never proven right or wrong.

In 1962 the Royal Alexandra theatre, which was built in 1907 and recognized by Show Business Magazine of New York City as one of the finest theatres on the North American continent, was offered for sale. The executives of the estate decided that if it could not be sold as a theatre it was to be demolished and the land used for some other development. There were no buyers in 1962 until I came along. Not knowing or understanding the theatre business, I saw this historic building as a terrific bargain. Which it was.

1 had no problem making the purchase. One of the conditions of the sale was that I was to keep it open as a legitimate theatre for a minimum of five years. After this period, if 1 could not sustain it as a theatre, 1 could use the building and property for whatever use I chose.

Because this theatre was dark most of the year prior to my acquisition, the bare minimum had been done to maintain it. A considerable amount of restoration was necessary. My intentions were to try to keep it open and alive as a legitimate theatre. To give myself a fighting chance I felt 1 had to restore this theatre to its original beauty and splendour. To accomplish this I had to spend more than double the cost of the price 1 had paid for this property. I must say 1 received excellent value for my money. The architects were Alward and Quinlock and Herbert Irving was the interior decorator.

The first lesson that I learned about owning a theatre was the fact that as long as you keep the theatre locked up you know exactly how much it costs you every week. Once you open the door and put a production on the stage it could be risky to the point of putting you in bankruptcy. By the end of our fifth year of ownership of the Royal Alex the figures were such that we were breaking even or making a small profit. Even more importantly I had developed an affection for theatre.

Although we are now in our 27th year of being involved with the Grand Old Lady of King Street, I am always aware that this is a high risk and highly volatile business. A business about which you can never get smug or over-confident. When it works it is most rewarding and satisfying. It has introduced me to another world and to many interesting people. For the first 20 years of my ownership of the Royal Alex I would, from time to time, voice my complaints about the unpredictability and aggravation of the theatre business. Then suddenly 1 announced that I had bought the Old Vic theatre in London, England. People close to me just shook their heads.

On June 8, 1982 a lawyer friend of mine named Bert Stitt, who had been involved with our original purchase of the Royal Alex 20 years earlier, drew my attention to an ad that said the Old Vic theatre was up for sale to the highest bidder. Closed bids had to be in the hands of the Old Vic trustees not later than June 11, 1982--72 hours away. Bert, my lawyer, said that he was aware that I had never branched out and over the many years my business had been confined to the area of Bloor and Bathurst Street or the area of King and Duncan Street. Nevertheless the lawyer wanted to make me aware that this world-famous historical landmark was available.

As of this time 1 had never seen the Old Vic. Over the years many shows from England had played our theatre in Toronto. With these shows came world-famous actors. Among them were Sir Ralph Richardson, Sir John Gielgud, Peter O'Toole and others. I would hear stories from these actors about their early days of training at the Old Vic. Stories of how Emma Cons and Lillian Bayliss had made the Old Vic the national theatre of Great Britain. I only had a few hours to decide, but I thought to myself what a great privilege it would be to be a part of this famous theatre and its long history. The Old Vic was built in 1818--one of the oldest theatres in London.

As there were only three short days left and 1 did not want to depend on the mails I decided to fly a lawyer over with my offer to ensure that the documents would reach the trustees by June 11. My offer was delivered on time and the new owner was to be announced by June 25, 1982. On June 23, 1982, I received a cable saying that I was the new owner. I had outbid Andrew Lloyd Webber, one of the world's most talented and successful composers and producers and Trevor Nunn, one of the world's great directors. I was now the new owner of the Old Vic theatre.

I have always felt that one of the greatest needs that people have is the need for change. You don't want life to get dull, dull, dull. 1 guarantee you that when you step into things you don't know too much about you get a lot of changes and surprises.

On my first trip over to England, when I gave the trustees the check for payment of the theatre, I was surprised to find that a large five story building almost as large as the Old Vic and standing next door adjacent to my newly acquired theatre came with the deal. I could almost smell roast beef. That was a nice surprise.

The immediate reaction of the general public was relief that the Old Vic would continue as a theatre. But there were doubts about a foreigner named Honest Ed taking over this historic landmark. I mentioned that I was no foreigner, "I was just a lad from the colonies".

On my first trip over to England, I recall a T.V. crew outside the Old Vic theatre interviewing passersby at random. They asked one man what he thought of a Canadian called Honest Ed owning the Old Vic? He answered, "Anybody called Honest Ed, I wouldn't trust him, I'd watch every move he makes". This remark went over the air all over Great Britain. These remarks are understandable. Over a quarter century earlier when I bought the Royal Alexandra, although many people were happy that this theatre was safe for the time being, many were concerned with what I would do with it. They did have qualms. Frankly, in the early years I was often tempted to put vending machines on the back of the seats and sell toothpaste and razor blades. I am glad I resisted.

To get back to the Old Vic. In my subsequent visits, once the people saw that I was sincere in my intentions to restore this important historic theatre, they were most gracious. The very nature of theatre is such that it is often 90 percent talk, and 10 percent reality. It is understandable that people should have doubts. I can only say that I feel privileged and grateful to be a part of the Old Vic theatre. It has opened up a whole new world for us and made accessible the European theatrical scene.

For the first 23 years at the Royal Alex and our first three years at the Old Vic we had always bought touring road shows from either Great Britain, the United States, or other parts of the world. For the past three years in both theatres, both in England and in Canada, we are now producing our own shows. There is a time for everything. In recent years, (for whatever the reason) we thought that the travelling road shows were deteriorating. It could have been the economic changes in theatre or the "star" system.

"Big Name" actors do not want to commit themselves to long term contracts on the road. They want to feel free and open to movie contracts that may present themselves. These film contracts are always more lucrative and less demanding. In producing our own shows on both sides of the Atlantic I believe that we are moving in the right direction. Our subscription lists in both theatres are at an all time high.

Without the direct involvement and dedication of our son, David, this could not have happened. David is completely responsible for all of our productions and is doing a wonderful job. He has created a production office here in Toronto of very bright, intelligent, talented and capable young people. In England he has managed to engage Jonathan Miller, one of the worlds great directors with a long history of productions, both in drama, musicals, and opera. Dr. Miller is now in his second year with us as artistic director of the Old Vic. He is truly a renaissance man.

David has also backed the English Shakespeare Company together with the Irish National Bank and British Arts Council. The first English Shakespeare Company productions under our sponsorship were the three Henrys--Henry IV Part I and Part 11 and Henry V. The second production under our sponsorship was the complete 100-year War of the Roses, Shakespeare's great history cycle. In two different seasons both of these Shakespearian series played our Old Vic theatre.

The War of the Roses played seven weeks at the Old Vic including a "Survivors' Weekend". You could purchase all seven plays (with one ticket) and see them all in one weekend. One hundred years of continuous history. One show Friday evening, three shows Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. and three shows Sunday from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.--23 hours of continuous Shakespeare. These weekends were completely sold out.

In addition to the Old Vic these productions played eight other United Kingdom venues, the Hong Kong Festival, the Globe Theatre in Tokyo, the International Theatre Festival in Chicago, the Stamford Festival of the Arts in Connecticut and the Berlin Cultural City of Europe '88 Festival. They also toured the Netherlands, West Germany, East Berlin and Singapore. This must be the most ambitious tour ever undertaken by a large-scale independent British company (50 people). The company travels with more than 600 costumes and 2,500 props. By the end of the three-year cycle the English Shakespeare Company will have taken the Henrys and the War of the Roses to four continents and visited some 44 cities world-wide.

We are privileged to have been a part of this. The Old Vic under Jonathan Miller's direction has taken five Olivier Awards, England's equivalent to the Tony's in America. We have won more awards this year than any other theatre in England either subsidized or unsubsidized. This is hard for me to say because, boy, I hate people who brag!

A little more than two years ago we had to make a very serious decision. Over many years our subscription series has always been a very important part in the success of Toronto's Royal Alexandra theatre. Every year we would offer our subscribers a package of seven shows. Each show would play a minimum of six weeks. These seven shows would fill out our year. When the opportunity to produce "Les Miserables" presented itself we had to accept the fact that this show would disrupt our subscription season. It was a very hard judgement to make but we felt that we could not pass up this very important phenomenon in the theatre. From the many subscribers' letters that I have answered over the years I know that had we not produced "Les Miserables" many of our subscribers would have complained that we were not getting the important shows. We have a responsibility to keep the Royal Alex open 52 weeks a year. It would be especially nice if we could please everyone. Our subscribers' seats will always be protected and returned to the original owners when the subscription resumes. There are so many more plans that we have for the future and things that we are doing at present, but because you have been more than generous with your time I do not want to keep you here for another 23 hours.

An interviewer once asked me what 1 would like on my tombstone and how I would like to be remembered. I replied that I was not that interested in tombstones and cemeteries altogether. I said I would like to erect a huge throne in the centre of Honest Ed's retail store. I would then like my body cremated and the ashes put in an hour glass. I would then like someone sitting on the throne to keep turning the hour glass up and down, up and down, and the employees would point to the hour glass and say, "There's Ed. He's still running!" That's the way I would like to be remembered.

I would like to thank my wife, Anne, and son, David, our family, and our over 1,000 employees who always help to make me look good. In the final analysis we are all just caretakers and custodians. We cannot take anything with us. If sometimes the things we have done give some enjoyment to others it makes everything worthwhile.

Thank you.

The appreciation of the meeting was expressed by Been. Stephen F Andrunyk, Chairman, Toronto Branch, The Royal Commonwealth Society and a Past President of The Empire Club of Canada.