TDM’s Album picks for 2013

December 31, 2013

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Here are Terry’s favourite albums of 2013:

5. The High Bar Gang Lost and Undone (True North Records)
Available on: iTunes
Unlike any other record released this year. The title says it all – these are lost songs given new life. A fine mix of Gospel and Country/folk/bluegrass, it’s old songs made new with layers of real voices and very real instruments, all watched over by the ears of Ry Cooder.
See them live. Delightful.

4. Blue Rodeo In our Nature (Warner Music)
Available on: iTunes
Because they’ve been making great music for two generations of Canadians, the question is ‘Do we take them for granted’? I think we do. This really is Greg Keelor’s LP, not that Jim Cuddy disappears but Greg had a lot to say and sing. It’s fair to say that Blue Rodeo are the sound of Canada. High Country Harmonies.

3. Serena Ryder Harmony (Capitol/Universal)
Available on: iTunes
Yes the LP was released late 2012 but it spent its sensational life being discovered all during 2013. Gold and Platinum status awarded in 2013. A whole new voice for Serena.
More please.

2. Lee Harvey Osmond The Folk Sinner (Latent Recordings)
Available on: iTunes
The pride of Hamilton, Ontario – the ever shifting, ever changing Tom Wilson, of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings. This is his side project – something to keep him off the streets and out of the gangs. Some side project!!

1. Arcade Fire Reflektor (Merge Records)
Available on: iTunes
Will show up on everybody’s best of list this year. A Grammy for Album of the Year, a sensational club concert after SNL, a 20-minute film Here Comes The Night and so much more. But that’s all filigree. This is all about the music. Each and every song is complete and connected to the next. A true LP, the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Beatles. And they’re Canadian eh!!

Nebraska – Interviews by TDM

November 22, 2013

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“Payne has never before been this melancholy, or this sincere. Nebraska looks into America’s soul and finds a troubling emptiness.”

–Peter Howell ,Toronto Star

Director Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants) takes the helm for this black and white road trip drama starring Bruce Dern as a tempestuous Missouri father who’s convinced he’s won a million dollar magazine sweepstakes, and Will Forte as the son who grudgingly agrees to drive him to Nebraska to claim his winnings. Bob Odenkirk and Stacy Keach costar. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
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Interview with Director Alexander Payne and Terry David Mulligan:

Alexander Payne

Director, producer and screenwriter Alexander Payne was born in Omaha, Nebraska. Of Greek descent (the family name was changed from Papadopoulos), his parents George and Peggy ran a Greek restaurant. He has two older brothers.
Alexander attended Stanford University, where he majored in Spanish and History. He then went on to study film at UCLA Film School. His university thesis film was screened at the Sundance film festival, which led to him being backed by Miramax to write and direct Citizen Ruth (1996). Payne prefers to have control over his movies, from scripts to cast. known for the films Election, About Schmidt, Sideways and The Descendants. His films are noted for their dark humor and satirical depictions of contemporary American society.

Often sets his films in and around Omaha, Nebraska
Frequently films scenes at natural history museums
Frequently casts Phil Reeves
Frequently uses actual people in roles of minor characters in his movies (real life policemen for policemen, real life restaurant servers for servers, real life teachers for teachers)
Frequently incoporates telephone monologues as a dramatic device
His films often revolve around adultery in marriage and relationships
His films often deal with a sense of loneliness depicted by the main character
Features characters that endeavor for self-fulfillment and individualism (Sideways (2004), About Schmidt (2002)).

Interview with Actor Will Forte and Terry David Mulligan:

Will Forte

Forte was age 32 before he came to the public’s attention on “Saturday Night Live”(1975), but had been working in comedy since 1997. Forte is the son of artist Patricia and financial broker Orville Willis Forte III (divorced) and has one older sister, Michelle. A creative and artist child, he was an athlete (football and swimming) in high school and voted Best Personality at Acalanes High School. After graduating from UCLA with a degree in History, Forte had a brief career at a brokerage house before deciding to try comedy. Although he rarely performed stand-up, he joined the world- famous “Groundlings” and was hired as a writer for the series, “The Jenny McCarthy Show” (1997), The Army Show, and The David Letterman Show. He eventually caught the attention of Carsey-Werner executive Tom Werner when he wrote a pilot about two childlike idiot brothers (eventually turned into the film, The Brothers Solomon (2007)) and was hired for the shows, “3rd Rock from the Sun” (1996) and “That ’70s Show” (1998).
In 2002, Forte moved from his home state of California to New York City to join “Saturday Night Live” (1975) as a writer and cast member. Although known as shy and reserved in his personal life, Forte was one of the individuals responsible for the shows move to absurd, surrealist comedy. Along with voice-over acting, guest appearances on television and small roles in films, Forte had his biggest opportunities to be a movie star with films he wrote. Forte wrote the screenplay for The Brothers Solomon (2007) (and had the leading role of childlike “Dean Solomon”) and played the title role and co-wrote the SNL film MacGruber (2010). Although both films were given small budgets ($10,000,000 each), the were both considered box-office and critical failures, although they do have a cult following.
After MacGruber’s theatrical release, Forte left SNL for personal and professional reasons, although he has returned as a guest performer. Forte has had a recurring role on the series 30 Rock and made numerous other guest appearances on other TV comedies. Since leaving SNL, he has also increased his work as a voice artist and appeared in 5 movies (A Good Old Fashioned Orgy, Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie, Rock of Ages, That’s My Boy, and The Watch).
Since 2012, he has moved into dramatic and straight roles on a television pilot titled Rebounding by the producers of Modern Family and Irish film Run and Jump. In August 2012, he was cast (and first choice) in the much anticipated Alexander Payne film Nebraska, despite rumors that higher profile actors such as Casey Affleck and Paul Rudd were interested in the role.

MY VANCOUVER – THEN & NOW: TERRY DAVID MULLIGAN

November 1, 2013

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My Vancouver – Then & Now: TERRY DAVID MULLIGAN

by LAURA GOLDSTEIN in VANCOUVERITES on October 31, 2013

Terry David Mulligan, veteran radio and TV broadcaster, actor and wine connoisseur.
Photo: Terry David Mulligan

My Vancouver – Then & Now Series

As one of the most desirable cities in the world in which to live, Vancouver has played a pivotal role in the destinies of many athletes, performers and creative minds. Whether as a stepping stone at the beginning of their long careers (Academy Award –winner Jim Erickson); a safe harbour for immigrants to start again (Prima Ballerina, Chan Hon Goh ) or reaching the pinnacle of their life’s work here ( NHL’s ‘Captain Canuck’, Trevor Linden, ) the celebrated personalities of this new Inside Vancouver Series by Laura Goldstein, all have one thing in common: MY VANCOUVER THEN & NOW is immeasurably in their hearts.

It seems Vancouver’s Terry David Mulligan has lived multiple lifetimes with hundreds of yarns to prove it. From Royal Canadian Mountie to eclectic radio host; film and television actor; 14-year Western correspondent and VJ for Citytv’s MuchMusic then host of MuchWest; author and wine connoisseur.
“I’ve interviewed almost everyone,” quips Mulligan matter-of-factly and immediately jumps into a barrage of great anecdotes and juicy trivia. “I had a great working relationship with Janis Joplin. She’d break out the bourbon in a taped interview – drink me under the table- but I’d get so drunk I could only use the first half of the interview!” he admits.
“I had to record three interviews with Jimi Hendrix in Vancouver in 1968, I was so nervous. I didn’t realize until after the interview that he spent summer’s here in Vancouver at his grandmother Nora’s house. I thought he came from London. That experience made me a better interviewer.”

His book, Mulligan’s Stew published in 2011, is the ultimate smorgasbord of rock ‘n roll anecdotes during Vancouver’s summer of love: hanging out with Cheech and Chong or shopping with Jim Morrison on Davie Street. “ Morrison was looking for Hemingway books and Beatle boots and was always quoting poetry- very hard to make sense of what he was saying,” reminisces Mulligan.
Born in New Westminster, B.C., Mulligan’s first career was as an RCMP officer in Red Deer, Alberta from 1960 to 1964. “But I just wanted to be involved with music and got pulled into radio,” he says. “When I phoned my Dad to tell him I had left the Mounties, he didn’t speak to me for a year.”
Mulligan’s passion for music was obviously contagious- he was given the opportunity to create and program Canada’s first underground rock station CLKG-FM, now CFOX. For 15 years he has produced and hosted Mulligan Stew, a weekly 2-hour music program of hot tracks for Alberta’s Public Radio Network, CKUA and The Tasting Room, a travel, food and wine show, for BC Radio.
Next time you are watching the X-Files (shot in Vancouver) or The Fantastic Fouramongst many others, don’t be surprised to see Mulligan in a character role.
He was named Broadcaster of the Year in 2012 by the British Columbia Association of Broadcasters.
“We had a beautiful old renovated farmhouse on the Naramata Bench in the Okanagan for 4 years but when our kids moved to Salt Spring Island, we wanted to be closer to them and our grandchildren, so my wife Meg and I moved back to a heritage home in North Vancouver,” says Mulligan who produces many of his broadcasts from his home studio.
Irreverent, opinionated and very witty, Mulligan championed the government’s ban on cross-border wine shipping by driving into Alberta with 10 bottles of B.C. wine. (He wasn’t prosecuted and continues to be a staunch supporter for Parliament to overturn the antiquated law dating back to Prohibition.)
He and good buddy, fellow Vancouverite, Jason Priestley, “ we met years ago when we’d audition for acting roles at the same time- me in the Dad roles – he as my kid, ” collaborate on a celebrity wine show, Hollywood & Vines shot on locations all over the world. Now in it’s 3rd season, it’s syndicated on the UK’s Travel Channel and Super Channel in North America.
“We wanted to demystify wine for people- make it fun and entertaining. Jason is so well versed about wine, he could be a sommelier,” says Mulligan. “He has over 5,000 bottles in his home wine cellar! He’s the pro- I’m the schmo who just co-hosts and edits. ”

MY VANCOUVER – THEN & NOW: TERRY DAVID MULLIGAN

November 1, 2013

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My Vancouver – Then & Now: TERRY DAVID MULLIGAN

by LAURA GOLDSTEIN in VANCOUVERITES on October 31, 2013

Photo: Terry David Mulligan

Terry David Mulligan, veteran radio and TV broadcaster, actor and wine connoisseur.
Photo: Terry David Mulligan

My Vancouver – Then & Now Series

“I’ve interviewed almost everyone,” quips Mulligan matter-of-factly and immediately jumps into a barrage of great anecdotes and juicy trivia. “I had a great working relationship with Janis Joplin. She’d break out the bourbon in a taped interview – drink me under the table- but I’d get so drunk I could only use the first half of the interview!” he admits.
“I had to record three interviews with Jimi Hendrix in Vancouver in 1968, I was so nervous. I didn’t realize until after the interview that he spent summer’s here in Vancouver at his grandmother Nora’s house. I thought he came from London. That experience made me a better interviewer.”

His book, Mulligan’s Stew published in 2011, is the ultimate smorgasbord of rock ‘n roll anecdotes during Vancouver’s summer of love: hanging out with Cheech and Chong or shopping with Jim Morrison on Davie Street. “ Morrison was looking for Hemingway books and Beatle boots and was always quoting poetry- very hard to make sense of what he was saying,” reminisces Mulligan.

Born in New Westminster, B.C., Mulligan’s first career was as an RCMP officer in Red Deer, Alberta from 1960 to 1964. “But I just wanted to be involved with music and got pulled into radio,” he says. “When I phoned my Dad to tell him I had left the Mounties, he didn’t speak to me for a year.”

Mulligan’s passion for music was obviously contagious- he was given the opportunity to create and program Canada’s first underground rock station CLKG-FM, now CFOX. For 15 years he has produced and hosted Mulligan Stew, a weekly 2-hour music program of hot tracks for Alberta’s Public Radio Network, CKUA and The Tasting Room, a travel, food and wine show, for BC Radio.

Next time you are watching the X-Files (shot in Vancouver) or The Fantastic Fouramongst many others, don’t be surprised to see Mulligan in a character role.

He was named Broadcaster of the Year in 2012 by the British Columbia Association of Broadcasters.

“We had a beautiful old renovated farmhouse on the Naramata Bench in the Okanagan for 4 years but when our kids moved to Salt Spring Island, we wanted to be closer to them and our grandchildren, so my wife Meg and I moved back to a heritage home in North Vancouver,” says Mulligan who produces many of his broadcasts from his home studio.

Irreverent, opinionated and very witty, Mulligan championed the government’s ban on cross-border wine shipping by driving into Alberta with 10 bottles of B.C. wine. (He wasn’t prosecuted and continues to be a staunch supporter for Parliament to overturn the antiquated law dating back to Prohibition.)

He and good buddy, fellow Vancouverite, Jason Priestley, “ we met years ago when we’d audition for acting roles at the same time- me in the Dad roles – he as my kid, ” collaborate on a celebrity wine show, Hollywood & Vines shot on locations all over the world. Now in it’s 3rd season, it’s syndicated on the UK’s Travel Channel and Super Channel in North America.

“We wanted to demystify wine for people- make it fun and entertaining. Jason is so well versed about wine, he could be a sommelier,” says Mulligan. “He has over 5,000 bottles in his home wine cellar! He’s the pro- I’m the schmo who just co-hosts and edits. ”

Liam Mayclem Takes You (and Jason Priestley) “Inside the Kitchen” on San Francisco Food Tours

November 1, 2013

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http://blogs.kqed.org/bayareabites/2013/08/07/liam-mayclem-takes-you-and-jason-priestley-inside-the-kitchen-on-san-francisco-food-tours/

Liam Mayclem

Liam Mayclem, host of the “Inside the Kitchen” tours, at Boudin Bakery at Fisherman’s Wharf Photo: Rick Camargo
Liam Mayclem covers food in a fun and diligent fashion. He is widely known around these parts for his work as an Emmy award-winning host and a producer for CBS 5 TV’s “Eye on The Bay” and Foodie Chap series. Mayclem is a familiar face because he seems to say “yes” to it all: emceeing food and music events, acting in TV commercials and traveling. Now, Mayclem has a new project that will have him interacting with the public in an intimate fashion. Culinary tours are all the rage now and Mayclem has signed a deal to host “Inside the Kitchen” tours with The Ritz Carlton hotel in San Francisco, a natural fit given his years touring restaurants and kitchens for TV shows. The tours begin this month for the public, but one recent private tour guest was actor Jason Priestley, who was in town filming a Canadian TV show in which Mayclem’s food tour is included in an episode.
Bay Area Bites caught up with Mayclem to talk about his latest project and get his thoughts on current food trends and favorite food haunts. His comments have been edited for content and clarity.
Bay Area Bites: Tell me about filming with Jason Priestley for a Canadian-produced show called “Hollywood & Vines.”
Mayclem: I took the 90210 star for a tasty stretch of 94110 — Valencia in the Mission. Jason loves his food and wine and his knowledge runs deep, especially with vino. We stopped at four spots on our walkabout: Mission Cheese (wine and fromage), Abbot’s Cellar (beer paired perfectly with seasonal offerings), Tacolicious (tequila & tacos), Craftsman & Wolves (sweet ending & vino).
Jason was particularly impressed with the Pasion Margarita at Tacolicious. This bright yellow cocktail sings “drink me” the moment it appears — it’s just so darn inviting. It tickles, then burns, hangs in your chest and overstays its welcome. Jason referred to it as “Deep Spice — the fifth Spice Girl, so lovely when you first meet and then she grabs you by the throat and takes you down.” Needless to say we were all keen to order another after the first one settled but sadly there was filming to be done and we marched on, the grip of “Deep Spice” still with us. This episode featuring my Valencia Street Food Tour will air across Canada and internationally in October.

Jason Priestly, Terry David Mulligan and Liam Mayclem at Chef’s Table at Parallel 37. Photo courtesy of Liam Mayclem.

Jason Priestly, Terry David Mulligan and Liam Mayclem at Chef’s Table at Parallel 37. Photo courtesy of Liam Mayclem.
Bay Area Bites: How did you get involved with the food tours at The Ritz Carlton? Can you talk about food tours as a trend?
Mayclem: Joyfully, I have been doing culinary tours of the Bay Area on TV for eight years as part of “Eye on the Bay,” showcasing the best of our culinary universe: food trucks to fine dining, pop-ups to permanent mom & pops. The idea of doing an actual walking tour with a real live group had never really occurred to me. There are many who do it really well (Avital Tours for example) so why crowd the space? However over lunch with Diana Haven, a PR pal and my former booking producer at TechTV, the topic came up about a partnership with The Ritz Carlton-San Francisco and a series of walking tours curated by me. It seemed like a great way to share my knowledge, my passion and my relationships with chefs and purveyors with others. People visit San Francisco by the busload to eat and drink. There is much to show off here and I do it with pride.
So I went away and designed four unique tours, each one with additional elements, such as special guests (such as Ben Fong-Torres for the Chinatown tour), a hands-on experience (for example, Pizza making at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana) and a post-tour chef’s table dinner with Chef Michael Rotondo atParallel 37 at The Ritz Carlton-San Francisco. There will also be a surprise each week, which of course I cannot reveal but you can book a spot on the tour and find out! The first tours are Valencia Street: Gourmet Corridor (August 10); A Taste of San Francisco (August 17); San Francisco’s China (August 24); and The Craft of the Cocktail (August 31).

Liam Mayclem surrounded by tour guests at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana in North Beach Photo: Rick Camargo
Bay Area Bites: What are the other food & drink trends you see these days?
Mayclem: The food truck trend continues with a new one popping up every week. They bloomed at a time when the economy was tanking and “cheap eats” became the order of the day.
Then there are pop-ups, where inspired chefs pick a spot for a one-night food event. Ravi Kapur did a series. Other favorites are Rice, Paper, Scissors and Creole night at The Residence.
Being bi-coastal is a trend — Danny Bowen of Mission Chinese, the original pop-up chef, now has a second Mission Chinese in New York. And the New York food festival, Lucky Rice by Danielle Chang, celebrating Asian-inspired cocktails and eats, is coming to the Bay in September, as well as to Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Miami.
The “bar chef” is celebrated as much as the food chef by many and that’s a rather cool thing. There is communication between the kitchen and the bar today that perhaps did not occur a few years ago. Bartenders who make crafted cocktails are sourcing ingredients from farmers’ markets in the same ways chefs do and that’s a grand mark of progress. Props to Scott Beattie (Goose & Gander), Greg Lindgren and Jon Gasparini (Rye and 15 Romolo), Jeff Hollinger and Jonny Raglin (Comstock Saloon) and The Bon Vivants (Trick Dog) for leading the charge, raising the bar and staying true to their commitment to quality-crafted cocktails. The reward for us is that many one-time bartenders at joints owned by others now have their own spots to fully express their cocktail flare. Aren’t we lucky? And all their spots have good eats to soak up the cocktails… but it’s cocktails first and then the food!

Liam Mayclem on Check, Please! Bay Area.
Bay Area Bites: You were on Check, Please! Bay Area. What was that experience like?
Mayclem: Being on Check, Please! was a treat because for once I got to speak my mind as a food fan in a loose space and in the company of my pal Leslie Sbrocco. She is a lovely lady who enjoys food and vino as much as me. I adore her. I spoke of my love for Chef Roland Passot’s La Folie and argued the merits of the tasty voyage of culinary discovery with every dish, as another guest complained about the food at La Folie being bland. Needless to say, it was a spirited and fun experience, and led to the only time a viewer has ever yelled at me: “You are a bully and a snob,” shouted by a female cabbie as she sped away, soon after the airing of the episode. She may have been a pal of the guy at the Check, Please! table with opposing views and taste buds! We taped the show four years ago and people still bring it up. Clearly Leslie has an army of dedicated disciples… I mean viewers!
Bay Area Bites: Do you cook at home?
Mayclem: I do cook, but not a lot. Why cook when I can choose to eat out at any one of the 4,200 restaurants in San Francisco any night of the week? With all the hours I have spent at the side of Michelin starred chefs I should be a culinary whiz in the kitchen, but alas I am not. However, I do cook a mean and, dare I say it, terribly tasty Shepherd’s Pie, a dish my mother cooked often growing up in Ireland and England. I always have to explain to people Shepherd’s Pie is cooked with lamb and Cottage Pie with beef. I once partnered with Chef Roland Passot in a Foodie Chap Shepherd’s Pie cook-off against two Michelin starred chefs Dominique Crenn and Chef Russell Jackson (now on the Food Network). Team Mayclem & Passot took home the top prize — it was the foie gras and truffles that won over the judges. Being a gent I gave my trophy to team Crenn & Jackson. But I will forever enjoy the bragging rights — Best Shepherd’s Pie with Chef Roland Passot.
Bay Area Bites: Who is your partner and how did you meet?
Mayclem: I have been with my partner, photographer Rick Camargo, for seven years. We met at a BBQ at a pal’s house in 2006. It was love over steak and we have not looked back. He drives me, inspires me, supports me and puts up with me. I am a most lucky man.
Bay Area Bites: What are your favorite food haunts and how did you get so interested in food?
Mayclem: Here are spots I have eaten at recently and enjoyed:

New spot: Coqueta. Every dish was bangin’ with flavor.
At the counter: Slanted Door. Bartenders with tenure and mad bar skills — and you can eat the whole menu.
Cheap eats: The Galley at Clooney’s with Chef Justin Navarro– pub grub with flair and surprises. His French onion soup sandwich — wow!
Neighborhood spot: Rich Table in Hayes Valley: Solid food with a non-fussy inviting vibe.

My love affair with food began in 1988 when I moved to France for a job as a journalist on an Anglo-French radio station. A dish called Veau et champignon a la crème changed my life. It was my introduction to French food and the culinary love fest was on. However, I credit the 200-plus chefs I have interviewed for “Eye on the Bay” and on KCBS as the Foodie Chap as the real reason I appreciate food and have a love for the culinary arts. These hard-working men and women are steadfast in their commitment every day to quality on every plate at every service. They have taught me to appreciate the purveyors and farmers, without whom we would have no reason to eat out. We are spoiled here, so very spoiled, with the abundance of fresh food, quality chefs and diversity of cuisine. My curiosity regarding all things culinary became an interest, a love and a passion.
Bay Area Bites: You do a lot of charity emcee work and acting. What have you worked on recently and what is in the immediate future?
Mayclem: My spare time is filled with charity commitments and I have my favorites. I recently hosted La Cocina’s Gala Dinner. What a special night in the company of amazing women who came to America as immigrants and now, with a some guidance from La Cocina and a kitchen to work out of, they are in business and thriving. I also hosted events recently for SF & Marin Food Bank, Project Open Hand, SF CASA.
I hope to launch a TV version of Foodie Chap in the next year. A solid local show committed to food and chefs would be great and I hope to be able to bring that to air on TV or your tablet in 2014.

Hollywood and VInes TV Season 3 is near…

October 2, 2013

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Jay Onrait and Dan O’Toole, Jason Priestley, Terry David Mulligan,
Hollywood and Vines TV shoot in LA

Jason and Terry just completed a 2 day sweep through Hollywoodland
Shooting started at The Merchantile – a fine wine bar – on Sunset Blvd.
JP and TDM showed UK in linen jackets and slacks.
Our guests – The Tickle Trunk Twins – Sportscasters Jay Onrait and Dan O’Toole from Fox Sports walked in dressed to wash their cars.
Soooo LA.
Fashion aside. We couldn’t wait to talk to these boys.
Stars on Canada’s TSN they have brought the whole glammy package South to America.
They’ve just started on air so the USA is just getting a first taste of their traveling gong show but very soon they’ll be the talk of the Town so to speak.
We covered a lot of ground including The Tickle Trunk, Friendly Giant, cars, fame and wine, on both sides of the border.
Then show intros and extros right underneath the Hollywood Sign
Then it was shooting at the corner of the real Hollywood and Vine.
It was crazy.
And finally our day ended with an interview featuring Anson Mount. Lead actor in the very successful Hell on Wheels.
He had come directly from appearing on the Arsenio Hall Show and Mr Hall had discovered that Mr Mount loved his bourbons and poured him a generous parting shot.
This by the time his driver dropped him off he was well and truly on theme.
We did spend a lot of time talking bourbon and such.
A little on wine and a lot about acting.
Year Three is nicely coming together.
Bridget is editing and Frank is working on the music
Almost done.
Cheers

Season 3 Update- Sept 2013

Jimi Hendrix Interview…45 Years ago

September 7, 2013

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45 years ago TODAY Saturday…I interviewed Jimi…

Winefest offering this year’s visitors a Mulligan

September 6, 2013

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By Peter Rusland – Cowichan News Leader Pictorial
Published: September 05, 2013 9:00 AM
Updated: September 05, 2013 4:11 PM

http://www.cowichannewsleader.com/entertainment/221871031.html
Opens minds, full stomachs and glasses of Google research are among Terry Tips for a terrific time at the Cowichan Wine & Culinary Festival.
Terry David Mulligan, a prominent Vancouver TV and radio show host and author, pours years of viticultural smarts into his popular Tasting Room radio show — and Hollywood & Vines TV show shared with fellow actor and corkhead Jason Priestley.
Mulligan joins Troy Townsin of CBC’s Time For Wine, and sommelier-author Treve Ring during a lively panel discussion at Rocky Creek Winery Sept. 14.
Mulligan can’t wait.
“I’ve been bored out of my mind with various panels, but I intend this hour will be as entertaining as possible,” he told the News Leader Pictorial, while sipping pinot noir from Cowichan’s Unsworth Winery.
It and Rocky Creek are just two of a dozen valley wineries — plus various bistros — tapping barrels and starting ovens for the Sept. 7 to 15 cork-and-fork festival launched by Saturday’s team-theme Grape Stomp! at Cowichan Exhibition grounds.
Cowichan’s festival is new to Mulligan — an actor, DJ and former host of Good Rockin’ Tonight — who has visited the Warm Land, but not as a globetrotting wine critic.
“I truly have no expectations of the Cowichan Valley. I’m going over to learn, and find out more about the area.
“It’s time for me to get caught up with everyone in Cowichan,” he said of vino reporting planned for The Tasting Room and beyond.
“Not everyone will get a rave review — I’ll talk about the wines that interest me; they all have to find their own voice. Wines that should be encouraged, I’ll encourage.”
Mulligan also encouraged festival goers to plan routes to maximize tasting time.
“You can’t do everything, so make your choices and live with them. Ask around and do some Googling about (for example) who Unsworth is, and why they’re making a sensational pinot.
“Go to shows like mine and do some due diligence, and ask which wines are making headlines,” suggested Mulligan.
“Also, make a short list and try and take your time; if you just blaze through the festival, you won’t remember anything. Eat before you go, too.”
But for Mulligan, festivals offer more than vino.
“I’ll also looking forward to checking out the culinary side of Cowichan. I know great food when I taste it, and great food that pairs with wine.”
That fare will be served by local eateries including the Stone Soup Inn, Thistles Cafe, the Teafarm, La Pommerie, Satellite Bar & Grille, Pioneer House, and Vinoteca during a chalice of chef’s dinners, many back ed by live music and art exhibits.
A highlight meal will be the 150-seat Cowichan Long Table Dinner by the Island Chefs’ Collaborative at Dragonfly Farms on Sept. 8, marking the IFF’s debut pairing with the Cowichan Wineries Co-operative.
That’s where products by Blue Grouse, Averill Creek, Vignetti Zanatta, Rocky Creek, Silverside, and Damali wineries, plus Merridale Ciderworks, can be tried during the farm-to-table event.
Meanwhile, Rocky Creek’s panel will tap key questions.
“We’ll ask ‘ What grape will lead the island in the future?’” year-round rosé fan Mulligan explained.
“The region that’s successful will have something that gets people’s attention.
“In Oregon, it’s pinot noir. Right now, everyone’s just guessing. I think it might be pinot noir, or a blend, because you make can a lot of everything.”
Also on deck: What do island wineries want to be known for? What kind of destination are they?
Mulligan’s experienced a barrel of wineries and festivals.
“One of my favourites is Cornucopia in Whistler in November, because it’s smaller venues and contained — you can walk from event to event.
“The other one is The Playhouse, Vancouver’s wine festival.”
Mulligan urged Cowichan’s 16 or so wineries to bottle locally but think provincially — even globally.
“Lots of wineries sell out locally, but some equate that to having great wines, but if they bring that wine to Victoria, Vancouver, or Calgary there may be a hard reality coming their way.
“You can’t just be heroes in your own ball park, you have to expand outside your region.”
But Mulligan was miffed at Prohibition-type barriers to bringing wines across provincial boundaries.
“It gets hairy with Tourism B.C. saying ‘Come to wine country’, and the Alberta government saying ‘You can’t just bring wine in from B.C.’
“It’s a lousy cash grab (by government). But finally, wineries are realizing they’ve cowed since 1928 — no one has ever been charged.
“It’s all phoney (threats), and the wineries are standing up and shipping. Their (bureaucrats’) bluff has been called.”
For festival details, visit wines.cowichan.net, or call 250-748-5622.

Book Reviews – RockStar Weekly

June 2, 2013

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Terry David Mulligan – Mulligan’s Stew: My Life So Far – Book Review

Written by Dan Savoie

Terry David Mulligan - Mulligan's Stew: My Life So Far Anyone over the age of 30 should recognize the name Terry David Mulligan as a radio personality somewhere in the country. He’s been around the block in such places as Toronto, Regina, Red Deer and Vancouver; and most currently on CKUA in Alberta as the host of his long-running program Mulligan’s Stew. If that doesn’t ring a bell, then maybe you’ll remember his friendly face as the host (or VJ) of the national television programs Good Rockin’ Tonite and MuchWest. Either way, Terry has been the one guiding our musical interests since the 60s through his celebrity interviews and love of rock and roll, whether we realized it or not.
In his biography Mulligan’s Stew – My Life So Far, Terry takes us down memory lane during the dawn of a new and exciting musical form called rock and roll. His original calling as a Mountie in Red Deer was for naught as his ears and soul were drawn to the glamour and quick fame of radio and the new music that he wanted to share with his family, friends and listeners.
I think everyone who has seen him has had a Mulligan Moment – one of those unforgettable moments when an interview captured our attention and stayed with us through the years. My Mulligan Moment came when Terry was hosting Good Rockin’ Tonite in the 80s and his guest for the show was KISS leader Paul Stanley, who offered his sunglasses to a viewer during the interview. I never did get the glasses, but it was a moment this young KISS fan remembers well.
Mulligan’s Stew is a well written and compelling read that sheds some insight not only on Terry’s life, but also early glimpses of Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Bryan Adams and The Guess Who. The chatty writing style gives the book a bit of a personal feel and at times can feel like you’re there having a coffee hearing all these great brushes with the famous.
One of the highlights of the book happens in Vancouver in the late 60s at the height of the Summer of Love, which includes endless music festivals highlighted by an interview with Jimi Hendrix and shopping on Davie Street with Jim Morrison, who was looking for early Hemingway books and Beatle boots. Vancouver would never been the same, especially once Hendrix, Morrison and Joplin passed away within months of each other.
It’s also a good account of some of Canada’s early FM radio moments as stations learned to develop their own style in a new and quickly evolving medium. And like any good DJ in Canada, he’s seen it all and hit the airwaves across the country on several stations during his career.
Mulligan’s Stew is a must have for Canadian music fans. The accounts of early Guess Who and Bryan Adams are worth the cover price alone – especially the Guess Who’s failed attempt at a 1967 tour beginning in London.
Not as personal and in depth as other biographies, Terry mostly skips discussing his early personal life, and instead jumps right into the Mountie years and the music. There are some personal and intimate moments scattered throughout, but this book is mostly about the public side of the DJ, VJ and actor that has been a part of our lives for about 50 years.

Vancouver's most awesome: Terry David Mulligan Posted March 21, 2012 by Boby Kronbauer

March 22, 2012

hello

A few months back I urged you to read TDM’s autobiography Mulligan’s Stew, with the promise that if you did you would get a lot more out of the interview that we’re publishing with him. Did you read it? The story of this legendary music journalist where he shares his life (so far) with us? From being an RCMP officer with a smalltown rock radio show in Alberta all the way to hosting a wine TV show with Jason Priestley, if you haven’t yet I urge you to pick up this fantastic offering from and about one of Vancouver’s treasures: Terry David Mulligan.
http://vancouverisawesome.com/2012/03/21/vancouvers-most-awesome-terry-david-mulligan/
He’s the subject of a roast this Friday at Federico’s Supper Club on Commercial, so I figured we’d publish this piece while the Mulligan iron is hot. Click HERE to learn more about the roast c/o Miss604.com and continue reading for some thoughts from Terry on why he returned to Vancouver, what he’s been up to with Jason Priestley, and who his favourite Vancouver band of all time is.
TDM
With Josie in his backyard on the North Shore. Photo: Bob Kronbauer
So, why’d you move back to Vancouver?
Grandkids. Our kids are having kids and two of them are on Saltspring Island and, you know, Naramata Bench is four-and-a-half to five hours away from Vancouver and then Vancouver is another four, four-and-a-half hours to Saltspring, and that’s a day. How many days have you got? You’ve got a couple, one day down, one day back, one day on Saltspring? That’s just crazy. And also we have a grandson here in North Vancouver, or West Van. North Van, actually, and we just wanted to see them. And when you get to that point you just go “Well, there’s no decision to be made. Let’s go.” That’s it. Let’s go.
So do you think you’re back for good?
The only thing that I could see doing would be dividing our time between San Francisco, which we love, we lived there for four years, and Vancouver. And not specifically San Francisco. More like Napa or Sonoma – Vancouver. Because I’m going to continue to do the wine show, I hope, and we love San Francisco, crazy about San Francisco, but it’s even more expensive than Vancouver. I think what we’ll do is we’ll spend most of our time here but we will spend maybe January, February, March there kind of thing…
Is that when you film your show, Hollywood and Vines? In February?
No, we shoot it when Priestley’s got time, when he’s not directing or acting and when Chad [their producer] isn’t doing something.

Is it true that you originally met Jason at a celebrity fishing tournament?
Actually, we had seen each other before that at auditions. He would be going in to audition for the role of ‘Son’ and I would be going to audition for the role of ‘Dad’, or ‘Brother.’ But it was during that celebrity fishing trip that we just started to talk about doing a show. He had come to my house before the trip and he said “All those CDs that you’ve got.” “Yeah?” “Well do they send them to you?” And I said, “Well, yeah. I’m playing them on the radio and they’re promo copies and they want me to know about their music.” “Wow. Free music. How about that.” And we just sat there and looked at our rod tips for about 30 seconds. And then he went “Wow. Imagine if we did a wine show.” And then another minute went by and then “Free wine?”. We both looked at each other and went “Free wine. Wow! Free wine!” and that’s exactly how it went. I mean we’re out on the ocean; we’ve got all the time in the world. Just sitting there bouncing around. Free wine. Yeah!
So we started talking about it and then it all sort of started to take shape. And then he had his accident with his car on the racetrack, and it took more than a year to recover, walk and talk and speak, and just sort of move again. And then he said, “Let’s go shoot the show.”. So I was thrilled and delighted, and that’s what we’ve been doing.
What was that fishing show you did… Terry and the Tiger? Was that a pilot or did you ever do more episodes than one?
It was a pilot. And I loved the show. Loved the show. It was myself and Tiger Williams, and our guest was John Candy.
[Laughs] Where’s the pilot? Where is it?
I’ve got it somewhere. I’m probably the only one who has a copy.
Can I see it?
No, it’s on 3/4 inch and I’ve got nothing to play it on. But I will, I’ll make certain to make a copy so that people can see it. I might even pop it on the internet. I loved it. I loved shooting it. I loved the actual thing. The only thing I didn’t like was the fact that the whole bust up of the guide shack in Campbell River. I tell you there must be people still telling the story of John Candy and Tiger Williams creating havoc one Saturday night in Campbell River. Can you imagine? And to get John out of bed and into a shower and into a boat so that we could finish off the show, that was the tough part. It was wild, it was WILD.
Would you want to do it again? Because I’ve thought about doing a modern fishing show that isn’t geared towards professional fishermen like all of the shows are these days. Something more accessible.
There’s only a couple of fishing shows that actually work, the rest of them just suck beyond belief. I just realized that to talk to John Candy in Hollywood would be tough, or New York or wherever, or on a movie set or whatever. To put him on a boat where he has no management, no agents, no lawyers, no nothing, just out on a boat, you get the best interview. Just get ‘em away from their normal life, get them out, put a rod in their hand and let them drift. You know, you get stuff from an interview out there that you wouldn’t get anywhere else. And very reflective. People start to think about their lives and their places in it. It’s pretty cool.
What’s the closest, best winery to Vancouver?
The best wineries here are California Cult Classics, which is in North Vancouver, below Marine Drive, in the industrial area. That’s Frank Gigliotti’s wine club and he brings his grapes overnight from Napa and he’s bringing in Stagecoach and Beckstoffer. Two of the best growers, the best, the best of the best in Napa and he brings them up in a huge plastic sack, travel container, and makes HUGE wines, like BIG reds and BIG whites in this incredible winery that’s right in the middle of the industrial area. And it’s a wine club and when they first started I think the barrels were, like, $8,000. And you could buy the barrel and you could have all the wine that came from that barrel, that’s a lot of bottles, right, and it was yours. On the face of the planet that’s your barrel and those are your wines and the wines are like top, the best of the best. If you were buying these wines in a wine store they’d be 75 bucks, easily, maybe a hundred, hundred twenty-five, hundred fifty. And Frank started this club and now it’s big time. I think those barrels may be $10,000 each now. And all the hockey players… two of them will go in together and get a barrel of wine. Between his wine and the winery in New Westminster, again in an industrial park that you would never see, it’s called something Pacific [Pacific Breeze Winery], they’re now winning wine shows with their wines. And they bring in their juice from other places as well. They’re guys who had won every amateur wine contest on the weekends for a couple of years and then they said “Let’s just start making wines” and they did. Wine people know them know now, because they’ve been winning awards.

Photo: California Cult Classics
What makes Vancouver awesome, for you?
Well, you have to understand that I’m seeing Vancouver with a whole different set of eyes. I grew up here. It was my home for many, many, many years. But I’ve been gone for four years in the Okanagan, so when you came back, you see Vancouver in a very different light. You appreciate Vancouver for what it is, but you have to go away. If you see if every day and you never see, you never have any comparisons, you might not miss it as much as I did. And I love the Okanagan and I’d still be there but we want to be grandparents, we want to be part of our kids’ families. And so there’s no question there, we’re going to do that. But to come back to Vancouver and rediscover it, I just love the city.

TDM on the cover of Vancouver Magazine in 1987
What makes it great is, well, a day like this, which is beautiful. The pace of the city. The buzz of the city. The culinary adventure that is Vancouver food. I love the fact that when we get a day like this Vancouver gets outside. People know that it’s going to rain on our heads tomorrow, so everybody gets out. Allan Fotheringham, who used to be one of the, used to write, uh used to live and work here, an incredible writer and then went to Toronto and never came back. He’s still there. He said something, he used a phrase about Vancouver and he talked about the freedom at the end of the street. That means if you’re standing downtown by the Hotel Vancouver or somewhere in that area, and you’re surrounded by brick and mortar, and the city might be closing in on you, all you have to do is jus step out three steps and look down the end of the street and you’ve got Grouse Mountain, Seymour, Hollyburn, parts of Stanley Park, parts of the North Shore. There’s freedom. He used the term “freedom.” So, as much as Vancouver is getting built up, if you take the time to look there’s an entire forest, entire region of, we built this city on the edge of a rainforest. It’s there. Use it.
How many people live here and have never been to the top of Grouse Mountain? You know all the tourists go up there, that’s one of the first things they do. How many people in this town have never been up there? Have never done the Grouse Grind or have never been to Lighthouse Park or walked UBC Endowment Lands. They just sit in front of their TV. I mean, come on. Come on. This is beautiful.
Here’s what I do miss about Vancouver. And I notice it because I’ve been gone for four years. I’m going by lots now where there used to be really beautiful heritage homes and buildings. And now there’s towers and parking lots and anything other than what was there. When you go to Portland, for example, and you see that Portland really tried exceptionally hard to hold on to their heritage. And they kept those buildings that we’re tearing down. We were in such a hurry to build shit boxes like, well I can’t point at…you know, just houses, stucco. Like in the West End? Stucco apartment buildings that are just horrific, ugly as sin. And then you see the heritages houses that are still in the West End and you think, “Ah man, how beautiful was this area?” Couldn’t we have saved just a couple more buildings? Do ya think? And I’m astounded that Stanley Park survived. Astounded that there’s not a condominium complex, that isn’t like Manhattan.
Do you fish much, lately?
In my mind I fish every day! [laughs]
What do you fish for?
Trout. Off of Ambleside, and I’ll go up the coast. I get really owly if I don’t fish, because it’s good for the soul. And I haven’t, so I get owly just talking about it. I went trout fishing this summer, had great fun, but not near enough.
What’s your favourite lake that’s within a day from here?
Tunkwa. That’s Tunkwa on the back of the book. It’s above Merritt. It’s between Merritt and Kamloops and Cache Creek. It’s just outside of Logan Lake, the mining town. In the High Country and it’s where they held the world fly fishing championships. And the fish, when they come out of the water, are 3, 4, 5 pounds, and you can hear them laughing at you.

TDM on Tunkwa Lake. Photo courtesy Heritage House.
What’s your favourite new band from Vancouver? “New” can be 5 years.
Oh. [rubbing hands together] Ah man, I love Ryan McMahon. Really like him a lot as a singer and especially as a songwriter.
Favourite Vancouver band of all time?
I’m thinking it still might be The New Pornographers. Because, I mean, look at them. They’re a world-class band now. A lot of bands. I love Chilliwack. Sarah McLachlan is not a band, but she chose to live in Vancouver. She lives here. Is Vancouver now, even though she was originally from the Maritimes. And so she’s not a band but she certainly is an artist. So she’d be one of my top ones.
You know one of my favourite bands, absolutely flat out one of my favourite bands, was Trooper. ‘Cuz they knew how to write a rock ‘n’ roll hook. And they nailed it every time. All those hits that they’ve got, you hear them in any NHL rink all across the country? Cool, very cool.
And D.O.A.. D.O.A. have always been there. And they’re still there. So my pick is D.O.A. Even though I haven’t seen them in years, haven’t heard any new music or anything, I just love the fact that they’ve always represented Vancouver. And they have, one of their songs that they’ve always done is Lumberjack City, which is obviously about Vancouver.
Were you in town during the Olympics?
Yeah, we came down. We came down specifically to take in the sights and to take in the vibe of Vancouver. It was very cool.
Overall what did you think?
Very proud. Very proud. Very pleased that it all happened the way it did. It was incredible to watch the various crowds in the various venues pass each other, like ships. I had friends saying that something would come out of one venue and somebody would be going into another venue and they would all just pass, at intersections. It was like Disneyland, it was unbelievable. People will always have a fond remembrance of Vancouver and Whistler. It was just a great vibe.
If I was to give you season’s tickets to one team in the city, which would you take? And I’m not actually giving you them, by the way. [laughs]
Well, it would be the Canucks, because those are the hardest tickets to get.
What’s the best piece of advice that someone’s ever given you?
My father: Don’t take any shit. And he wasn’t talking about the big guys. He was talking about all the blue-collar people you meet in a day and it only takes one miserable person to ruin your day. You walk up to a ticket counter or a coffee counter or a bookstore or whatever, you just run across somebody and they’re miserable and they want you to be miserable as well. And he was just saying don’t take any shit. Keep the laughter and the lightness in your day, and you’ll be okay.
If I was to give you $100 right now where would you go and spend it?
I would take my wife and I would go to either Mangia E Bevi, the Italian place at 22nd and Marine in West Vancouver, or the Régalade, the French restaurant right next door. One of the two. That’s what I would do.

Photo: Bob Kronbauer
Again, don’t forget to check out Terry’s ROAST this Friday!
Special thanks to Liisa Hannus for transcribing the ridiculously long interview that you see portions of here. It was loooong!