[9], During the 197879 season, with the Leafs struggling to make the playoffs, Ballard fired the team's popular head coach, Roger Neilson, against the wishes of the players. Around that time, the Leafs had made it as far as the Stanley Cup semifinals in 1978, losing to the two-time defending champions Montreal Canadiens. Ballard thus felt he had little financial incentive to sign better players. BALLARD, JEAN LORENA Jean Lorena Ballard, age 90, passed away Sunday, July 28, 2013 at Rose Haven Assisted Living Center in Menahga, MN. He was 86. Besides, what the hell position can a queen play? In the early 1950s, Ballard hired his long-time friend Stafford Smythe, son of Leafs owner Conn Smythe, as managing director of the Marlboros. Ballard's desire to control players and their salaries also put him at odds with Alan Eagleson, executive director of the NHL Players' Association and a player agent whose clients included Keon's successor as captain, Darryl Sittler. He tried to micromanage the team, interfering with coaches and players. Ballard's solution was to make the CBC pay for the upgrade. He had worked early on with Neil Young and Joni Mitchell in smaller venues, but by the time CPI came into being he saw the writing on the wall. Weve both been to jail.. William Tyndall Sr. 1964 - 2023 William Paul Tyndall Sr., of Enid, died Monday afternoon, February 27, 2023, after an extended series of illnesses related to diabetes. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. Growing up in Jordan, he went to St John's Catholic School for 8 years and graduated from Jordan High School in 1952. James Harold Ballard Obituary - Tribute Archive Indianapolis Star-News Obituary Indexes since December 20, 2006 . In 1944, Ballard formed Harold E. Ballard Ltd., the personal holding company he would later use to purchase shares in Maple Leaf Gardens Ltd. After being fined, he backed down and put the names in the opposite colours. He played a key role in the Leaf dynasty of the 1960s, winning Stanley Cups in 1962, 1963, 1964 and 1967. Remembering Gerald Edward Merriner | Obituaries - Amos Carvelli Funeral Try again later. Or, as The Globe and Mail's Stephen Brunt once put it, "a silver-spoon kid with survival instincts." At a game in the Philadelphia Spectrum in the late 1970's, Mr. Ballard defended his friend, a hockey legend named King Clancy, when Mr. Clancy, a former player and N.H.L. Some people took him for a boob, but they didn't realize how bright he was. [2] Born in Drain, Ore., she was a visitor to Spring Hill. Facing an untenable situation, Bassett resigned as chairman and sold his shares to Ballard and Stafford Smythe in September 1971. Angry teammates trashed their dressing room in response. Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager. This browser does not support getting your location. [30] Even before his death, there had been battles between his children, Bill Ballard, Harold Ballard Jr., and Mary Elizabeth Flynn, and his longtime companion, Yolanda Ballard. Find the obituary of Rev. However, this was largely because Ballard was unwilling to increase the payroll in order to improve the on-ice product, despite playing in the fourth-largest market. 3 talking about this. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. In fact, for a short while, he stood in for him. Ballard refused, citing it as a threat to program sales. Harold met the love of his life, Anne Louise Dufek during his junior year. She claimed to have been with Ballard for eight years at the time of his death. But Mr. Ballard became ill, called off the wedding and entered the hospital. Indeed, the one story about Mr. Ballard's excitable metabolism that has been recycled more than the others over the years involves a visit to New York, where a stunned matre d' witnessed the man's gustatory feats. Luckily, the singer's slightly wounded father made to his seat in time for his spotlight moment. Harold Ballard Jr., son of the late owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, is very self-deprecating, but that doesn't mean he isn't astute or insightful. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. A system error has occurred. Ballard used the opportunity to name himself acting general manager and hold talks with Sittler, and the two agreed that Sittler would return to the team for the 198081 season. Make a life-giving gesture He trained at the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD) in fine arts. About a month later, Ballard and two friends from the Yacht club were hurled from a boat into a frigid Lake Ontario. Ammon Harold Ballard (1928-2006) - Find a Grave Memorial After his playing days were over, Mr. Ballard quipped, "You didn't have to think too much to be the [football] centre. Add to your scrapbook. ABBOTT, Harold M; 85; Indianapolis IN; 2007-May-6; Harold Abbott . However, he insisted on receiving compensation for Keon, and set the price so high that potential suitors shied away, in effect preventing Keon from joining another NHL team. In 1977, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and into the Canadian Football hall of Fame in 1987. Try again later. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? In the West, CFL teams had come under significant pressure resulting from the introduction of WHA franchises in the four largest Western markets, therefore Western Football Conference teams were generally supportive of Ballard's efforts to become a CFL owner. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. A member of the Leafs organization from 1940 and a senior executive from 1957, he became part-owner of the team in 1961 and was majority owner from February 1972 until his death. Robert A. Ballard | Obituaries | lancasteronline.com All Work and All Play: A Life in the Outrageous Sport, p. 124, John Wiley and Sons Canada Ltd., Mississauga, ON, 2005. He removed the Queen's picture to make room for more seats. Ex-Leaf Doug Gilmour looks back at the Wayne Gretzky high stick in 1993 and sees the worst officiated game you can imagine, Inside the trade of Blue Jays batting champion John Olerud, a deal former GM Gord Ash would like to have back, The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star He participated in the 133-mile Albany, New York-New York City marathon in April 1930, finishing second in his class. Leave your condolences to the family on this memorial page or send flowers to show you care. He floated the idea of bringing in the NHL's California Golden Seals into the Toronto area and much later was a failed bidder for the expansion NBA Raptors.). Although she and Harold never married, Yolanda had her name legally changed. "Look at what he did in that year he and Peter Larsen ran Maple Leaf Gardens," says Michael Cohl, the legendary concert promoter, who with Mr. Ballard and David Wolinsky formed Concert Productions International in 1973. The executors of Ballard's will were Steve Stavro, Don Giffin and Don Crump. The only available refreshments were large soft drinks from the concession stands.[5]. There was an error deleting this problem. Sittler himself ripped the captain's C off his sweater, later commenting that a captain had to be the go-between with players and management, and he no longer had any communication with management. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the. He could not get enough of his grandma's cooking. 00:02:34 Harold Ballard is very self-deprecating, but that doesn't mean he isn't astute or insightful. What if John Bassett had been able to buy Harold Ballards shares in the Maple Leafs? Diamond Dreams: 20 Years of Blue Jays Baseball, Stephen Brunt, p.33, Penguin Books. His death set off a feeding frenzy that had already been begun over the iconic properties he controlled: the Toronto Maple Leafs and the building the team played in, Maple Leaf Gardens. Try again later. Edwin Harold Ballard was born on July 30, 1903, the only child of Sidney Eustace Ballard and the former Mary Garner. They nearly duplicated that dubious achievement in 198788. All told, the Leafs only had six winning seasons in Ballard's 18-plus seasons as majority owner, and never finished higher than third in their division in any format. Harold Otto Hallberg, age 89, of Jordan, MN, formerly of St. Paul, MN, passed peacefully on Friday, July 31, 2020, at Oak Terrace Senior Living, in Jordan. One particular weekend, he said, Michigan beat rival Michigan State and the local students were going wild, which stalled traffic. [28] However, in the end, it was a partnership of the Labatt Brewing Company, Howard Webster, and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) that brought baseball to Toronto, as they were awarded an expansion team in the American League for $7 million that became the Toronto Blue Jays, who began play in 1977. In 1934, Ballard became manager of the West Toronto Nationals OHA junior team and hired Leaf captain Hap Day as coach. Bill Ballard - Wikipedia If you do not yet have a Torstar account, you can create one now (it is free), Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. Obituaries In Virginia Beach - Virginia - Facebook Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Within three years under the new owners, profits at the Gardens had tripled to just under $1 million. A social media post showed video of what appears to be the shooting. On the personal side, Mr. Ballard was known as a lover of good friends and high times. When Day was busy with the Leafs and unavailable for games, Ballard would step behind the bench as acting coach. She fought with Ballard's family and partners over Ballard's estate following his death. "He would eat enough fried calamari for four people, and then order something else.". [25] After the Tiger Cats beat the Toronto Argonauts in the 1986 Eastern Final, Ballard said "You guys may still be overpaid, but after today, no one can call you losers.