John Mackin

John Makin joined the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve during World War II. He saw active duty in the North Atlantic on a number of ships, including the HMCS St. Hyacinthe, St. Clair, and Tillsonburg. Demobilized in 1945, he began a radio career in Alberta. Over the next few years he performed a variety of announcing and management functions at CKRD (Red Deer), CFAC (Calgary) and CJCA (Edmonton). In 1958, he moved his family to Toronto look for work as an actor. He did commercials, narrations and voice overs, live theatre, and television where he was a regular on such programs as the Forest Rangers and Wojeck. Mackin produced a number of documentaries, winning several awards and critical acclaim. In 1964, he was offered an opportunity to work in London, England and performed in programs for the BBC and Rediffusion as well as various stage productions. But he missed Canada and returned home in 1967. In 1972, he returned to radio and was a was news commentator, open line host and Legislative Bureau Chief at CKDA/CFMS-FM. John Mackin died at home on January 10, 2006.