Tom Patterson (theatre producer)
{{Short description|Canadian journalist, founder of the Stratford Festival}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Tom Patterson
| image =
| imagesize =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1920|6|11|df=y}}
| birth_place = Stratford, Ontario
| death_date = {{death_date_and age|2005|2|23|1920|6|11|df=y}}
| death_place = Toronto, Ontario
| education = University of Toronto (BA 1948)
| spouse = {{marriage|Dorothy Westgarth Hoyle|1948}}
}}
Harry Thomas Patterson {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|OC|OOnt}} (11 June 1920 – 23 February 2005) was a Stratford, Ontario born journalist who went on to found the Stratford Festival of Canada, then called the Stratford Shakespearean Festival, the largest theatre festival in Canada.
Biography
Patterson was a veteran of World War II and a journalist writing for Maclean's magazine in the early 1950s.Tom Patterson. They never rationed courage: Letters home from the war, 1940-1945. Mercury Press. 1995. {{ISBN|978-1-55128-026-4}} From the time that he was a teenager, he had thought that his home town of Stratford, Ontario should be home to performances of Shakespeare's plays. The town was suffering from industrial decline due to the declining fortunes of the rail industry. Patterson, with no experience of the theatre, proposed the idea of a theatre festival. In 1952, he invited the prominent British director Tyrone Guthrie to visit Stratford and help bring their idea of a Shakespearean theatre to fruition. When Guthrie accepted the offer to visit, national newspapers started to take notice. Patterson told The Globe and Mail he wanted to provide "Canadian acting talent the opportunity to work with top directors and actors without having to leave the country". For his part, Guthrie was interested in a venture that "offers a fresh advance in the production of Shakespeare".{{Citation|last=Whitaker|first=Herbert|title=Tyrone Guthrie accepts Stratford's bid to attend this year's Festival|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=19 June 1952|page=9}}
With Guthrie supporting the Festival idea, Patterson persuaded the town council to back it, and had an enthusiastic committee of local citizens to help organize it. Guthrie advised him to hire a big name for the first production, so Patterson received a small loan from the city council so he could visit Alec Guinness and invite him to perform in the opening season.{{Citation|last=Whitaker|first=Herbert|title=A Great Shakespeare Festival; Stratford Starts the Wheels|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=2 August 1952|page=7}} The festival has grown and expanded significantly since that time.{{cite news | author= |date=25 February 2005 |title=Obit: Tom Patterson |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1484321/Tom-Patterson.html | work=Telegraph |location=London, UK |access-date=5 March 2017}}J. Alan B. Somerset. 1991. The Stratford Festival Story, 1st edition. Greenwood Press. {{ISBN|978-0-313-27804-4}}Tom Patterson. 1987. First Stage. McClelland and Stewart. {{ISBN|978-0-7710-6949-9}}
Patterson served as the festival's general manager during the first season and worked in other capacities until 1967. He also founded the touring company Canadian Players with actor Douglas Campbell and took part in the establishment of a number of cultural institutions, including the Canadian Theatre Centre and the National Theatre School. Patterson was also the founder of the Dawson City Gold Rush Festival.{{cite news | author= |date=25 February 2005 |title=Obit: Tom Patterson |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1484321/Tom-Patterson.html | work=Telegraph |location=London, UK |access-date=5 March 2017}}
Patterson was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1967 and was also awarded the Order of Ontario. He also received honorary degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Western Ontario. One of the festival theatres was named after him in 1991, as is one of the islands in the Avon River.Martin Hunter. Romancing the Bard: Stratford at Fifty. Dundurn Press. 2001. {{ISBN|978-1-55002-363-3}}[https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/25/theater/25patter.html The New York Times - Theater - Tom Patterson, Stratford Festival Founder, Dies at 84]
His memoirs, First Stage: The making of the Stratford Festival, co-authored with Allan Gould, were published in 1986.{{cite news | author= |date=25 February 2005 |title=Obit: Tom Patterson |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1484321/Tom-Patterson.html | work=Telegraph |location=London, UK |access-date=5 March 2017}}
References
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External links
- [https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/stratford-festival-founder-tom-patterson-dies-1.531721 Stratford Festival founder Tom Patterson dies (CBC)]
- [http://www.cbc.ca/player/Digital+Archives/Arts+and+Entertainment/Theatre/ID/1829346916/?page=2 Interview with Tom Patterson on the fortieth anniversary of the festival]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Tom}}
Category:Canadian theatre managers and producers
Category:Canadian male journalists
Category:Canadian military personnel of World War II
Category:Journalists from Ontario
Category:Officers of the Order of Canada