The Folk Fight Back: Protesting the Cancellation of Don Messer’s Jubilee in 1969

Abstract

This article examines part of the reaction to the 1969 cancellation of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (cbc) television’s Don Messer’s Jubilee , one of the most popular Canadian-produced programs of the era. In addition to an exploration of television history and popular culture, it is also a look at the neglected topic of “square” Canada in the 1960s. Messer began fiddling at dances in rural New Brunswick in the 1920s and moved to radio and recording prior to becoming an unlikely national television star by 1961. After exploring possible classifications of the show’s music, the article examines themes in protest letters and petitions sent to the cbc. These include Canadian nationalism in opposition to American mass culture, Canadian folk culture, cbc elitism, Maritime regionalism, nostalgia, and the related themes of the generation gap and permissive society. The article concludes that fans viewed Messer as a custodian of Canadian folk culture that was being erased by the national broadcaster at a time of heightened nationalism.