Toronto Prop Party

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 100 Princes' Blvd.
Date: Aug 2014
Website:  www.torontopropexpo.com

  One year at the Canadian National Exhibition we walked through the Direct Energy Centre and were soon surrounded by some familar movie faces.  That particular year there was an exhibit by Toronto Prop Party which is a group of movie fans dedicated to building replicas of props and costumes from their favourite films.

  The amount of detail and time put into these recreations would have fooled us into believing that they were the real deal.  Masks and props from the Star Wars films appear to be one of the most popular fan recreations.

  There were even some Star Wars replica lightsabers.  Our research shows that in the original film the lightsaber was quite a simple prop and was actually the handle that held the flash bulb of an old Graflex camera.  If you could locate one of those you would be 90% of the way to your own replica.

  Harrison Ford has been lucky enough to have been a big part of both the Star Wars films and the Indiana Jones movies.  Above he is frozen in carbonite as Han Solo and below is his famous Indiana Jones fedora.  Again these are replicas made by fans.  We expect that more time was spent creating Han's carbonite prison.

  There were a couple of Transformers.  A huge Optimus Prime towered over anyone who stopped for a photo opportunity.  He stands nearly 23 feet tall and weighs about 2 tonnes. 

  There was also Bumblebee who is one of the Autobots and transforms into a Volkswagen Beetle.  We could tell that this robot was a replica as the real Bumblebee does not have "Please Do Not Touch" signs on his knees. 

  We never determined if these robot replicas actually had the ability to transform.

  Another movie from the 80s that has fans honouring it with replica props is Back To The Future.  There was a gravestone from Back To The Future Part III as well as the licence plate from the DeLorean time travelling car.  We were impressed with the dedication that went into recreating these movie props from these beloved films.

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Map of Our World
Direct Energy Centre

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Post # 130

The Princes' Gates

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  210 Princes' Blvd.
Date: May 2014
Website:  theex.com

  The Exhibition or C.N.E. has been a part of summer in Toronto for almost 120 years.  The eastern entrance to the Canadian National Exhibition has become an instantly recognizable symbol of the annual fair.  It is known to many people as the Princess Gates, but that is due to confusion when hearing its true name of the Princes' Gates.

   The inscription on the front of the gates reads Canadian National Exhibition 1897 to 1927.  It was during the C.N.E. in 1927 that the gates were officially opened by Prince Edward and Prince George.  The gates were named as belonging to the two princes.

  Another reason for the Princess confusion is due to the winged woman who stands atop the gates.  She is meant to be a copy of the Winged Victory of Samothrace which can be found in the Louvre in Paris.  We visited her headless, armless body during our trip to Paris and took this wonderfully blurry photo (above).

   At each end of the gates is a fountain.  That would be one for each Prince.

  Above is a photo from inside the gates with Victory looking away towards the rest of Toronto.  Below is a paper version of the gates which was on display one year during The Exhibition.

The C.N.E. runs for about two weeks at the end of August and ends on Labour Day which is the first Monday in September.

  During the Canadian National Exhibition the area behind the Princes' Gates is filled with pedestrians, midway rides and strange food combinations.  During the rest of the year, you are free to walk or even drive through the gates and head down Princes' Blvd.  That's Prince's Boulevard, not Princess.

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Map of Our World
Canadian National Exhibition , Louvre Museum
Princes' Gates

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Post # 129

The Tragically Hip

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 50 Bay Street
Date: Aug 2016
Website:  www.thehip.com

  The core members of The Tragically Hip have been making music together since 1986.  Recently, the Canadian band announced a farewell tour due to lead singer Gord Downie's health.  We were lucky enough to see them during one of their 3 nights in Toronto.  Today they will play their final concert in their hometown of Kingston, Ontario. We started off trying to compile a top ten Hip song list, but could not do it.  We finally managed to narrow down the list of songs that follows to include just twenty of our all time favourites.

1    38 Years Old
2    Ahead By A Century

And that's when the hornet stung me and I had a feverish dream

3    Blow At High Dough
4    Bobcaygeon

A mural outside the Air Canada Centre pays tribute to a famous line from this song.

5    Boots Or Hearts
6    Courage

Courage, it couldn't come at a worse time.

7    Fifty Mission Cap
8    Gift Shop

A machine inside a trailer makes more Hip T-Shirts for sale.  

9    Grace, Too

The Hip have a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in downtown Toronto.

10    Greasy Jungle
11    Little Bones

Baby eat this chicken slow.  It's full of all them little bones.

12    Locked In The Trunk Of A Car
13    Long Time Running
 

The Tragically Hip was formed in 1984.

14    Love Is A First
15    Nautical Disaster
16    New Orleans Is Sinking

I had my hands in the river, my feet back up on the banks.

17    Poets
18    Scared

A room in Toronto's Masonic Temple (The Concert Hall) is dedicated to The Tragically Hip.

19    At The Hundredth Meridian
20    Wheat Kings

   Long after the sound of their last concert stops ringing in our ears, The Tragically Hip's music will continue to be played across Canada and hold a special place in our hearts.

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Map of Our World
Air Canada Centre , Canada's Walk Of Fame

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Post # 128