60.

The years roll on.  Geddy Lee turns 60 today.  In tribute, here's some ancient Rush.  I doubt the Geddy who did this ever imagined he'd still be at it 40 years later. (And no, despite the title, this isn't the Glenn Miller tune.)

From The Law And Order Files IV

There's been quite a bit of press over the last few days in Saskatoon about an odd abduction. The victim is not a person but Tickles, a Royal Python owned the Saskatoon Forestry Farm Zoo. Sometime Saturday afternoon someone smashed in the lid of Tickles' cage and made off with the 5 foot long, 12 pound creature. It's quite the act of nerve when you consider that this occured during visiting hours, with perhaps one thousand visitors on hand. Although Tickles is a calm snake used to being around people and was recently fed police are asking anyone who might come across him to be cautious, as he could injure someone if provoked. Why the snake was stolen is currently unknown, although the thief or thieves might have had a buyer interested in exotic pets.

One of the most famous crimes of the 1970s is back in the news. A Spokane, Washington lawyer, Galen Cook, claims he has determined the identity of D.B. Cooper. In November of 1971 a man using that name hijacked a Boeing 727 by threatening to blow it up. He demanded 200 thousand dollars and parchute equipment. Cooper released the passengers after the money was provided during a Seattle refueling stop, and shortly after the plane took off again jumped from the rear of the 727, never to be seen again. The story generated lots of popular attention, including movies, songs, and other references in pop culture. Cook claims Cooper is actually one William "Wolfgang" Gossett, a resident of Utah. Gossett's son Kirk, currently an Arizona corrections officer, claims his father had the parachuting skills to pull off the caper. Cook also claims that the money from the heist was deposited in a Vancouver financial institution, which he declines to name.

Unfortunately there are a couple of problems with the story, most notably that Gossett died in 2003, which the cynical side of me thinks is rather convenient for Cook, who plans to release a book soon. There's also the fact that the only money found to date from the 200 grand was 6 thousand dollars in waterlogged and useless condition found along the Columbia River in 1980. None of the other bills, whose numbers are know to the authorities, have ever turned up. It seems odd that Gossett would go to the trouble of such a risky operation and then never spend any of the money that presumably is locked in a Vancouver safety deposit box. Personally I think the default position of the FBI is the correct one, that Cooper, whoever he was, didn't survive that jump.

The RCMP hasn't been having the greatest PR lately, and a news story about their activities in the 1970s isn't likely to help. Recently released documents regarding activities of the RCMP Security Service reveal that popular singer Rita MacNeil was one of dozens of women monitored in the early 1970s over concerns about Communist infiltration of the women's movement. MacNeil was part of the Toronto Women's Caucus at the time, and was described in an RCMP memo as "one who composes and sings women's lib songs." MacNeil finds the whole thing amusing, noting she nor any of the other women involved in the group ever discussed Communism. And this wasteful spying on legitimate political activity is pretty tame compared to some of the other things the RCMP Security Service got up to at the time, such as illegal seizure of documents from Quebec political groups and stealing dynamite to frame the FLQ with. Revelation of these activities eventually led to the disbandment of the Security Service and the creation of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service in January of 1984.

A "Lady" And The Law.

The Barenaked Ladies are back in the news, but not in a way that they want. Singer Steven Page was arrested last week in upstate New York on drug charges. Police officers investigating an open car door spotted Page and a woman in a nearby appartment with a white substance that a later test proved to be cocaine. Frankly Mr. Page if you were snorting up to prove that you're still hip and edgy as you approach 40 you shouldn't have bothered. No one thought the Barenaked Ladies were hip or edgy in the first place.

John Rutsey, RIP.

The original drummer for Canadian rock legends Rush has died. John Rutsey was 55. He helped found the band in 1968 along with guitarist Alex Lifeson and bassist Jeff Jones. Jones was soon replaced by Lifeson's schoolmate Geddy Lee and the trio became the core members of the group. Rutsey appeared on the group's first single, a cover of the Buddy Holly tune "Not Fade Away" backed with the Lee and Rutsey penned "You Can't Fight It" in 1973. He went on to play on the group's self titled debut, released in 1974. After the debut album Rutsey left, citing his diabetes and a lack of interest in touring. Rutsey was replaced by Neil Peart, and drifted away from music. Some might call Rutsey the Pete Best of Rush, although Rutsey left of his own free will and there was no real indication Rush would go on to be one of the most successful Canadian acts of all time.

Jeff Healey, RIP.

Toronto musician Jeff Healey passed away today at 41 after a losing battle with cancer. Healey had been affected by cancer for much of his life, losing his eyesight to retinoblastoma as a baby. Healey began playing guitar at three, holding the instrument across his lap, a style he would use throughout his life. Healey would later take up trumpet and clarinet, a reflection of his love of early jazz. Although it was as a blues rock guitarist, singer, and bandleader that he found fame Healey's devotion to jazz was obvious given his collection of more than 25 thousand jazz 78s, and he recorded several jazz albums after his fame cooled in the mid '90s. For several years he hosted the program My Kind of Jazz on CBC Radio that showcased material from his collection. He also ran a club in Toronto at which he often played with his group the Jazz Wizards. Healey found himself battling cancer once more when tumours appeared on his legs in 2005, followed by surgery to remove lung tumours in 2007.