What one of its creators humbly posits is “the best radio show ever made” will enjoy renewed attention with the publication of a book dedicated to exploring the world of “The Great Eastern,” a satirical comedy about Newfoundland’s institutions which aired on CBC Radio from 1994 to 1999.

UWindsor history professor Steven Palmer was one of the show’s writers. He appreciates the perspective of Stan Dragland, author of the book-length essay Strangers & Others: The Great Eastern.

“I’ve tried to write partly in the spirit of the program, which is irreverent and comic,” says Dragland, a professor emeritus of English at Western University, now living in St. John’s.

Dr. Palmer, who penned the show with Ed Riche and Mack Furlong, said that Dragland imagined the trio as a collective writing voice. That is how the show presented itself, and the final credits were always fictional.

“The great radio professionals who worked at CBC St. John’s often lent us their voices for parts and cameos, and it gave the show a beautiful vocal range,” says Palmer.

The show called itself Newfoundland’s cultural magazine, hosted by the fictional Paul Moth, a drug addict with a fetish for shoes.

“We were thinking of a kind of Homer Simpson meets Frank Zappa character — ‘hip but humbled’ was his motto — a guy with a long history in the arts who has had a big fall,” says Palmer.

In Dragland’s telling, “The Great Eastern” embodies the Newfoundland of the late 1990s.

“We were writing from a place of difference; that difference doesn't exist nearly as palpably now,” Palmer says, adding that at the time, many in the province were still sore about its lost independence.

“Dragland definitely understands a lot of what we were trying to accomplish — the architecture of the show, the complex sound production and mixes, the creation of a parallel universe.

“He researched everything so deeply — he probably knows the show better than I do at this point — and yet he found that the logic and continuities of the parallel world actually withstand scrutiny, that there's an integrity and coherence to it.”

Palmer says “The Great Eastern” is the best radio show ever made, and can still be enjoyed like a great vinyl album.

“I know that sounds like a stretch,” he says. “Read Dragland’s book and see if you think maybe I don't have a case.”

Palmer will attend a public launch event for Strangers & Others: The Great Eastern at Biblioasis bookstore, 1520 Wyandotte Street East, at 7 p.m. Thursday, November 24. To learn more about the show, visit “The Great Eastern Archives.”

—Loren Mastracci

Now that autumnal weather has finally arrived, look for storms during the University Wind Ensemble’s fall concert, Friday, November 25, at the Capitol Theatre. The program will range from John Mackey’s 2015 composition Lightning Field to the 1899 march The Thunderer by John Philip Sousa.

Under the direction of professor Nicholas Papador, the ensemble boasts almost 50 members, comprised of woodwinds, brass and percussion. Find more information, including a full program and list of performers, on the concert website.

Friday’s concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $15, with a special student price of $5. Order tickets by phone at 519-253-3000, ext. 4212, purchase online at www.uwindsor.ca/music, or pay in cash at the door.

The Capitol Theatre is located at 121 University Avenue West.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne spoke to several hundred people — including business students and alumni — at the annual Georgie-Odette Leadership Symposium last Thursday at the Odette School of Business.

Marchionne, a dual Canadian-Italian citizen, completed an MBA and a BComm at UWindsor. He is a barrister, solicitor and chartered accountant who majored in philosophy and also received an honorary Doctor of Laws from UWindsor.

He told the Odette audience that the university provided a “phenomenal” experience: “I spent the best years of my life at this school.”

Marchionne also met with a small group of engineering students during a tour of the Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation. He again fondly recalled his days as a UWindsor business student and told the eager graduate students in the Windsor-Torino-FCA exchange program to slow down and enjoy this “intellectually stimulating” part of their lives.

Benedetto Giubilato, a Sicilian student who has one year left in the UWindsor-Politecnico di Torino dual degree automotive master’s program, said he was interested in learning about Marchionne’s experience as a student.

“He said you have to build your character and you have to build it with many bricks — not just engineering,” Giubilato said. “I mean, if Sergio Marchionne told me, it means it works.”

Marchionne began his professional career in 1983 at Deloitte & Touche. When Giubilato asked him how his life changed when he entered the workforce, the room erupted with laughter.

“Enjoy this place; I mean that sincerely,” Marchionne said. “Make the best of it. You will remember this very fondly.”

Marchionne helped establish the Windsor-Torino exchange program, a first-of-its-kind joint degree agreement that allows students to complete two master’s degrees from UWindsor and the Politecnico di Torino in Italy while contributing to cutting-edge research and development projects at FCA.

Lancer basketball fans will need to get their fix tonight —Wednesday, November 23 — when both men’s and women’s teams play their final home games before the holiday break in the Dennis Fairall Fieldhouse.

Windsor will play host to the Waterloo Warriors in a doubleheader. The 4-0 Lancer women will tip off at 6 p.m.; the 2-2 men’s team will look to get over .500 against the 0-3 Warriors at 8 p.m.

Season tickets are still available and can be purchased at the gate for only $75. As always, UWindsor students are admitted free with valid ID.

UWindsor faculty and staff will enjoy savings on almost everything at the Campus Bookstore on Thursday, November 24. Customers will scratch cards to earn discounts of between 10 and 25 per cent on their purchase, excluding textbooks and course materials, computers, gift cards and already reduced items.

Get a jump on your holiday shopping during UWindsor Staff Discount Day! The Campus Bookstore is located on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre.

A second location for the University Print Shop will offer convenience to its clientele, says operator Luc Quenneville.

The space, adjacent to the Campus Bookstore on the lower level of the CAW Student Centre, will host a grand opening Thursday, November 24.

“Bring your files to our new location and we can provide every service,” says Quenneville. “We are connected digitally to the equipment in Chrysler Hall.”

Besides printing documents in colour or black and white, the Print Shop Hub will specialize in quick copying, wide-format printing, and laminating, he says. It will operate weekdays from 9 a.m. to noon.

“It’s the perfect place to zip in and get some work done,” Quenneville says. “We’re hoping to better serve our student clientele by being right in the middle of the action.”

Thursday’s celebration will offer patrons freebies, a raffle, and coupons for discounts on Print Shop services.

The Campus Food Bank serving UWindsor students has relocated to the basement of Canterbury College, 2500 University Avenue West.

The service provides non-perishable food items to registered students. Clients may access it once every two weeks without providing evidence of need. Its entrance is discreet and provides anonymity to users.

Volunteers staff it:

• Mondays, noon to 2 p.m.
• Tuesdays, 2 to 4 p.m.
• Wednesdays, noon to 2 p.m.
• Thursdays, 10 a.m. to noon

except during holidays and exam periods.

Organizers ask University groups to keep it in mind when holding charity drives. Canned meat, hearty soups and stews, peanut butter, canned fruit and cereals are especially in demand. For details, e-mail office@ionacollege.edu.

Thank you to community members who provided feedback on the draft Policy on Executive Compensation. The feedback received was supportive of the policy, indicating that the approach taken is fair and reasonable in that designated executives are treated in the same way as faculty.

The feedback can be summarized as follows: In using the same comparator group as faculty, there was a comment about using the right numbers in the calculation of the 50th percentile. The policy commits the University to using only information that is publicly available to set compensation. In addition, a sentence was added to the policy to make it clear that the sum of the salary and performance pay for any designated executive cannot exceed the 50th percentile.

The policy has now been approved by the University of Windsor Board of Governors and is posted on the University Secretariat website.