User:Knowltonnash~enwiki/Lorraine Thomson

Lorraine Thomson, Broadcaster: Lorraine Thomson-Nash was born in Regina Saskatchewan and started her career as a dancer in Toronto, studying with Gweneth Lloyd, Boris Volkoff, Betty Oliphant and in New York City where she was offered a job with the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes and the touring company of Kiss Me Kate. She also auditioned for CBC television in 1952 and Lorraine became the first dancer hired by CBC TV and so she chose to stay in Canada and work on such shows as The Big Revue, Wayne & Shuster, The Barris Beat, The Denny Vaughan Show, Jack Duffy Show, Hit Parade, and Sunday Night Showtime.

As her career progressed, Lorraine began to be invited to appear on current affairs programs such as CBC TV’s Open House to teach exercises and then conduct interviews on Tabloid, 701, CTV/ W5, she was also a frequent guest panelist on Front Page Challenge. In 1963 Lorraine auditioned to host a two and one half hour daily radio show called Audio.She was chosen from among the 20 people who auditioned and she hosted the program for 4 years. During this time she was invited to audition for the To-day show in NYC but again stayed in Canada.

She created a panel show called The Naked Mind, www.tvarchive.ca/database/17886naked-mind,-the/details. As the program host, Lorraine became the first woman to host a panel/game show on Television and then the first to host a game show on Radio called Four For Forty. Other programs hosted over the years included The Weaker? Sex where she replaced Pamela Mason. What is Truth? Head To Head for CHCH TV, The Grey Cup Parade, The Santa Claus Parade, Miss Teen Canada with Alex Trebek and several series for TV Ontario. In all Lorraine recorded more than 4,000 interviews for Radio and Television including an interview at Buckingham Palace with Prince Philip.

In 1972 she was hired as program co-ordinator for Front Page Challenge where she worked for 18 years, booking the mystery guests, preparing research and doing the pre -interviews with the guests. During this time she also hosted the Television show VIP for 10years. www.tvarchive .ca/database/18932/v.i.p. /details. Interviews included Lord Thomson of Fleet, Martha Mitchell, Harrison Salisbury, Eric Bruhn, Clare Booth Luce, Sir Edward Heath, Ken Read, Chief Dan George, Buzz Aldrin, Clement Freud, Butterfly McQueen, Anna Russell, June Havoc, Lorne Green, Rosanno Brazzi, to name a few. Lorraine became the first woman to produce Variety Specials for CBC television,including Juliette’s Favourite Things, The Gordon Sinclair Gala, Gordon Pinsent Sings Those Hollywood Songs and many fall launches and affiliates meetings for CBC. She created, wrote, hosted and co-produced CBC television Portraits with Gweneth Lloyd, Celia Franca and Ludmilla Chiarieff, the founders of three Canadian ballet companies.

In addition, Lorraine has had a long and varied involvement with ACTRA. First elected as a dancer representative in 1958 and then elected many times, serving on Toronto and National Boards. In 1975, while serving as vice-president, Lorraine was selected as a delegate to represent Canada during International Women’s Year attending meetings of FIA in London, in East Berlin, and the USSR. In 1972 Lorraine co-founded the “ACTRA AWARDS” www.actratoronto.com/awards-in toronto/wedohavestars.pdf, to celebrate the best in Canadian radio and television. She produced the Awards for 8 years with ACTRA and CBC Television.

In 1982 Lorraine was elected to the Board of the Actra Fraternal Benefit Society and became the first female Governor. When she retired in 2000, she was honoured with a Life membership by AFBS.

In 1981, she was nominated for the ACTRA award for Best Host Television for her work on V.I.P. In 1982, she was nominated for the ACTRA award for Best Host Radio for her work on Four to Six, on CBC Radio. In 1988, she was nominated for a Gemini award for Best Variety Program as the co/producer/writer of Gordon Pinsent Sings Those Hollywood Songs.

In 1989, Lorraine accepted an appointment to become a member of the Federal Immigration and Refugee Board to judge refugee claims, a position she held for five years. As well Lorraine was a board member for CMHA, Cystic Fibrosis and a special friend of The Famous People Players.

With the support of the Actra Fraternal Benefit Society, Lorraine created its Oral History Project, to preserve and celebrate the history of the broadcast industry and collected more than 60 interviews. Realizing that more needed to be done to save Canada’s broadcast history led Lorraine to chairing the organizing committee for the Canadian Broadcast Museum Foundation. Lorraine now serves as a founding member of that Board. http/www.cbmf-fmcr.ca/newsletter/june82008/thomson.php.

Ms. Thomson has two children Francesca Mallin- Parker and James Mallin and three grandchildren Jesse and Robert Parker and Daisy Mallin. Lorraine is married to Knowlton Nash. www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2006/06/23 nash-award.htm/? Ref=rss, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/knowltonnash.