Bill Westwick

William George Westwick was born on August 2, 1908, in Ottawa, Ontario, to parents Harry "Rat" Westwick and Rubina Duval.[3] Westwick had two brothers and two sisters. His father won the Stanley Cup playing for the Ottawa Silver Seven, and won national championships as a lacrosse player.[4] Thomas Westwick was an uncle to Westwick as his father's brother. Tommy Gorman was also an uncle to Westwick, having married Harry Westwick's sister Mary in 1910.[4][5] Westwick attended Lisgar Collegiate Institute, where he was an amateur boxer and a collegiate champion. He also played football, hockey and lacrosse.[6]

Westwick began writing for the Ottawa Journal in 1926, mentored by its sports editor Basil O'Meara, who convinced Westwick to write about sports instead of pursuing a professional hockey playing career.[6][7] Westwick served a brief time as city editor of the Ottawa Journal, then succeeded O'Meara as the sports editor from 1942 to 1973.[2][6] As the sports editor, Westwick sought for his staff to report the facts first, then develop a personal writing style with time.[7]

Columns by Westwick regularly covered ice hockey, Canadian football, and boxing.[8][9] He frequently wrote about heavyweight boxing championships,[7][10] and also reported on the World Series, the Stanley Cup, the Olympic Games, and the British Empire Games.[7] Notable sports events covered were the heavyweight championship won by Cassius Clay, the Richard Riot, the 1960 World Series, and the perfect game pitched by Don Larsen.[6]

During the mid-1950s when the Ottawa Rough Riders were struggling, Westwick poked fun at the team rather than criticize. When coach Chan Caldwell suggested that the team could practice on a train ride to an away game by attaching a railway flatcar filled with dirt, Westwick played along with the joke although the plan never happened.[2] Fellow journalist Eddie MacCabe recalled that Westwick reported on the idea with "brilliant clarity and memorable hilarity".[2]

Following a 1959 National Hockey League playoffs game, Westwick quoted league president Clarence Campbell as accusing the referee Red Storey of "freezing" in the final minutes of a near-riotous game.[11] Storey subsequently resigned as a referee. Campbell stated that Westwick took the words out of context, accused him of "breaking confidence" in the article.[7][11] Westwick's fellow newsmen defended his article and did not question its veracity.[2]

The Canadian Football Hall of Fame and Museum, c. 2007

In addition to writing, Westwick served as a horse racing official,[8] and was on the selection committee for the Canadian Football Hall of Fame from 1964 to 1982.[9][12] He retired from the Ottawa Journal on August 29, 1973, and was succeeded by Eddie MacCabe as the sports editor, who had been his assistant since 1952.[13]

Westwick was married to Rita, and had two sons and three daughters.[2][6][15] He resided in the Sandy Hill neighbourhood of Ottawa,[16] and had a family cottage on Long Lake near Buckingham, Quebec.[17] He died on June 19, 1990, in Ottawa, and was cremated.[10][15]

In 1948, Westwick received the National Press Club of Canada Sports Award for his coverage of the 36th Grey Cup, when the Ottawa Rough Riders lost to Calgary Stampeders. In 1961, he received a Canadian Sports Advisory Council award for encouragement of amateur sport.[9] His career in journalism was also recognized with a Governor General's Award.[6] After his retirement from the Ottawa Journal, he was the guest of honour at a testimonial dinner held at the Château Laurier on October 24, 1973.[8][16] The dinner was attended by more than 500 people including prominent sports persons. He received lifetime passes to games for the Ottawa Rough Riders and the Ottawa 67's, and a key to the city of Ottawa.[16]

Westwick was inducted into the builder category of the Ottawa Sport Hall of Fame on May 24, 1983,[18] and was inducted into the Football Reporters of Canada section of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1984.[9][12]