Ron MacLean, host of the country’s national hockey telecasts and well-recognized figure even when he isn’t standing next to Don Cherry and his various visually paralyzing suits, admitted in his book to owing the start of his broadcasting career to his good friend, the late Bernie Roth of St. Albert.
“I had no ambition to get into the broadcasting industry. It wasn’t something that I chose to go after. It found me,” the TV personality writes in his 2011 autobiography, Cornered.
The year was 1976 and MacLean was 16, a student at a Catholic high school in Red Deer. Roth and MacLean were friends, and Roth, heavily involved in the school’s radio club, persuaded MacLean to join up too. Roth was also working at a local station, trying to build up his experience toward a radio career by taking a Sunday shift.
“Bernie literally never got sick; he would never miss work for anything. This particular day, he was sick,” recalled Roth’s wife, the painter Memory Roth. “He had been working part-time at the radio station and loved it. He told the manager, ‘I have a buddy who’s in the club. You can call him.’ Of course he did and Ron came on and the rest is history. MacLean just excelled at it.”
In Cornered, MacLean continues that Martin Smith, the program director for CKRD radio in Red Deer, called to tell him that Roth recommended him as his replacement for three distinct reasons: because he’d done some high school radio club work, because he was the president of the students’ union, and because he was the class clown.
Who would have thought of MacLean – the straight man to Don Cherry’s wild zinger slinger with the never-ending variety of visually arresting attire – was considered his high school class clown?
Memory remembers Ron even though they went to different high schools.
“He was really funny. He was the valedictorian for their grad and he was hilarious! (Bernie and Ron) didn’t hang around all the time … but the school was so small that everybody was buddies.”
Besides being in radio, Bernie was also involved with local hockey. He managed to convince MacLean to get involved as a referee there too.
Bernie’s time in radio ended because he also had a job with a lumber company and the opportunities there were greater. He continued there and made building materials his life’s career. The two remained friends over the years and would meet up when MacLean was passing through town on his many travels.
“Bernie was very proud of Ron. Everyone loved Ron. He’s a very genuine, nice guy!” Memory ended.
