Paul Quarrington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Paul Quarrington
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| Born | July 22, 1953 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | January 21, 2010 (aged 56) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Novelist, playwright, screenwriter, filmmaker, musician, educator |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Genre | Humour |
| Notable works | Whale Music, King Leary, The Ravine |
| Notable awards | 1989 Governor General's Award for Fiction for Whale Music and winner of the 1988 Stephen Leacock Award for King Leary |
Paul Lewis Quarrington (July 22, 1953 – January 21, 2010) was a talented Canadian writer, filmmaker, and musician. He wrote many novels, plays, and screenplays. Paul was also a musician and a teacher. He was known for his funny stories that often had serious messages.
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Paul Quarrington's Early Life and Career
Paul Quarrington was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He grew up in the Don Mills area. He went to the University of Toronto but left after less than two years.
Paul started writing novels while playing bass for a band called Joe Hall and the Continental Drift. He also played guitar for Canadian singer Cathy Stewart. One magazine even called his book Whale Music "the greatest rock'n'roll novel ever written." He won many awards for his magazine articles too.
Paul's closest musical friend was Martin Worthy. They became friends in high school. He also reconnected with his high school friend, songwriter Dan Hill, later in life. Paul loved working with other artists. He collaborated with many famous people in different fields.
Between his first two novels, Paul took part in the 1981 Three-Day Novel Contest. In this contest, writers try to finish a whole novel in just three days!
Paul Quarrington's Novels
Paul Quarrington's novels are famous for their humor. For example, his book King Leary won the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour in 1988. Even though his books are funny, they also talk about serious topics. Critics often said his books mixed both sad and funny parts. His editor, Anne Collins, once said that Paul used a funny way to deal with "incredibly sad and troubling" subjects.
His main characters are often former famous people. They might be athletes, musicians, or movie stars. These characters often face tough personal challenges and sometimes keep to themselves. In Paul's stories, something usually happens to challenge them. This could be a young woman, ghosts, a hurricane, or a hockey game. These events help the characters find a better path in life.
His novel The Ravine came out in 2008. Paul later made a short film from this book called Pavane. He was also working on a TV show based on The Ravine. He said the book was partly about his own life.
Who Influenced Paul Quarrington?
Paul Quarrington was a very important person in Canadian literature. He was not only a writer but also a teacher. He taught at Humber College and the University of Toronto. He also worked with publishing groups and events. He became good friends with many Canadian writers, including Timothy Findley. They both admired each other's work.
Paul grew up in a very musical family. This love for music often showed up in his writing. Even though he was most successful as a writer, he thought of himself as a musician who also wrote.
He admired the "poetic craftsmanship" of Leonard Cohen's books. Paul also once joked that he liked authors named John, like John Fowles, John Gardner, and John Irving. He said John Gardner was his favorite.
Paul Quarrington's Work in Film and Television
Paul Quarrington helped write the movie version of his novel Whale Music. This film was nominated for many Genie Awards in 1994. These awards are like Canada's Oscars. Actor Maury Chaykin won Best Actor for his role in the movie.
Paul won a Genie Award in 1991 for his original screenplay Perfectly Normal. This was a comedy that mixed ice hockey and grand opera. Perfectly Normal was the opening film at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1990.
Paul also worked in television. He wrote and produced shows like Due South, Power Play, and Moose TV. Moose TV won an award for Best Comedy in 2008.
Paul Quarrington's Stage Plays
Paul Quarrington wrote several plays for the stage. Some of his plays include Dying is Easy, The Invention of Poetry, Three Ways from Sunday, and Checkout Time. He was also a long-time board member for the Toronto Fringe Festival.
Paul Quarrington's Music Career
When they were teenagers, Paul and Dan Hill sometimes performed together as a folk music duo. They called themselves Quarrington/Hill.
Paul also had a duo with Martin Worthy called Quarrington/Worthy. Their song "Baby and the Blues" was a number one hit on the Adult Contemporary charts in 1980.
Paul worked with the band Rheostatics on the Whale Music movie soundtrack. He helped write their hit song "Claire."
Paul was also the lead singer and guitarist for a blues and country band called Porkbelly Futures. Their first CD, Way Past Midnight, was released in 2005. It stayed on the "Americana" music charts for six months. Their second CD, Porkbelly Futures, came out in 2008. It included many of Paul's own songs. His songwriting was also on their last CD, The Crooked Road, which came out after he passed away. Paul's solo CD, The Songs, was recorded just before he died and was released in 2010.
In 2008, he went on a "Canadian Songbook" tour. He performed with other Canadian musicians like Murray McLauchlan, Stephen Fearing, and Catherine MacLellan.
Paul Quarrington's Final Months
In May 2009, Paul Quarrington was diagnosed with lung cancer. Even so, he kept working on many projects. He went on concert tours with Porkbelly Futures. He also finished his solo CD and the band's third album. He completed his non-fiction book, Cigar Box Banjo: Notes on Life and Music, which came out in 2010. He also wrote screenplays for a TV series and starred in a documentary film about his life and music.
The band Rheostatics, who had broken up, reunited for a special tribute show for Paul. Many other artists also performed to celebrate his work. A new group called the Quarrington Arts Society was also started. It aims to support artists who work in many different creative areas.
Paul's last song, "Are You Ready," was about his journey with cancer. He finished it just ten days before he passed away. He wrote many other songs during this time, including "All the Stars" and "Wherever You Go." These songs are on his CD that was released after his death.
Paul Quarrington passed away from lung cancer in Toronto on January 21, 2010. He was 56 years old. His last book, Cigar Box Banjo: Notes on Music and Life, was published later that year. He also wrote a short story called "The Conversion." He recited it with music, and it was played on the CBC Radio show Tapestry.
Paul Quarrington's Awards and Recognition
Paul Quarrington won many awards for his writing.
- His novel King Leary won the Stephen Leacock Award in 1988.
- Whale Music won the 1989 Governor General's Award for Fiction in 1989.
- He was also nominated for the Leacock Award several other times.
His book Galveston was nominated for the important Giller Prize. He lost to Alice Munro, but Paul said he didn't mind. He compared it to losing to a great writer like Chekhov.
In 2008, King Leary was chosen for CBC Radio's Canada Reads competition. This show picks one book that everyone in Canada should read. King Leary was named the winning book!
His short film Pavane won a Remi Platinum Award at Houston's WorldFest. It was also shown on Canadian TV. He and his team also won an award for their TV series Moose TV.
In 2009, the Writers' Trust of Canada gave Paul Quarrington the Matt Cohen Prize. This award celebrates a writer's amazing lifetime contribution to Canadian literature.
After his death, in June 2010, Nipissing University gave Paul an honorary Doctorate of Letters. His daughter, Carson, accepted the award for him.
Paul Quarrington's Film and TV Projects
Short Films
- A Man's Life
- Mann Over Moon
- Mump and Smoot in the Princess Who Wouldn't Smile
- Angel Takes All: No Limit Texas Hold 'Em (2006)
- Pavane (2008)
- Seventh Seal (2010)
Feature Film Screenplays
- Perfectly Normal (1990)
- Giant Steps (1992)
- Whale Music (1994)
- Camilla (1994)
- Men with Brooms (2002)
- Vulnerable (2010)
Television Writing
- Due South
- John Woo's Once a Thief
- Power Play
- Tom Stone
- Chilly Beach
- 1-800-MISSING
- Moose TV
- Men with Brooms
- The Don Cherry Story
- Puck Hogs
