William Burrill, Dead at 71

You likely know the name William Burrill best from Eye Weekly, the magazine he helped create. I'd read his writing there, but he is also a world famous biographer of Ernest Hemingway’s Toronto years.

William Burrill also ran for mayor in 1997, the first megacity election, finishing fifth.

News of his passing comes from a reddit post made by his nephew. My condolences to William's family. He was a Toronto fixture and a local legend.

Here's something William Burrill wrote about himself in 2010.

I, William (Billy, Liam) Trudeau Burrill am a 30-year-veteran writer/editor/columnist at The Toronto Star and the founding Managing Editor and later lead columnist of eye Weekly Magazine which is still alive after 20 years (Proud to say I gave a first break to many great writers and also to you Donna Lypchuk -- honored to have written foreword to Donna's first "Necrofiles" book;) I am the author of several books most notably "Hemingway: The Toronto Years" (Doubleday, 1994) which is both a collection of 30 lost Hemingway stories I discovered in 1992 to big international fuss and media feeding frenzy (you could look it up) but more importantly "Hem in T.O." was also the first critical award-winning bio of Hemingway's four-year connection to Toronto and The Toronto Star; One unexpected perk was that Michael Palin of Monty Python called out of the blue and asked me to help him with his Hemingway's Adventures book/TV series (you can imagine THAT first cold phone call -- yeah right yank my other one) After much phone and email Palin came to Toronto and a lasting friendship and many good times and pints ensued (as you'll see as soon as I figure out how to post hard copy photos); other William Burrill books of note include "Naked eye" (Insomniac Press, 1998) which is the first book-form collected works of 74 of my 500 columns for eye Weekly (1991-1998). Other book stuff ranges from chapters in histories of Toronto Island to eye-Dentical Twins (Gutter press) clever Spy rip-off to -- hell, even a chapter on Virtual Reality in a high school text book which is a joke since I got kicked out of high school; I’ve authored, edited, or contributed to a dozen books (many of which have actually been published) and have a BIG Novel in the works. Also did a lot of freelancing for international magazines and much radio and TV work; have been on and off the D.L. at the Toronto Star since 2006 after a 2001 ambush by unfriendly natives in the deepest jungles of Panama (which lead to four months in Toronto General death ward, a brief flat-line Near Death Experience in the O.R, a difficult-to-kick morphine addiction, a Post Traumatic Stress diagnosis and some cool bullet shaped scars which really impress street gangs and friends unlucky enough to see them) after on and off entertainment column gigs through the last decade. So I've been to hell and back again, as Steve Earle would say, but I feel all right! in a non-disability deal breaking way.

Yeah so I play guitar and have performed with several early garage bands most notably in the infamous Capt'n Acne & The Clearisil Pimp Band -- the only band to get thrown out of St. Paul's Coffee House in mid-set. Where are you Steve Ridgley? And where are the tapes? I later played solo, fuelled by beer and sheer gall, and hosted Burrillapallozza charity concerts at El Mocambo (1996-1998); played hockey and lacrosse including many years in Brampton Excelsior organization as goaltender for Midget Ontario champs. Highlight was in 1972 when I played Juvie, Junior B and Junior A in same year (much to my dentist's delight); love travelling, from Europe, North Africa, Middle East to Japan, Caribbean to Central and Southern America –- including a year living in Mexico -- and many cross-North America trips by various convertible sports cars, by rail, bus and by thumb (sometimes all in same trip); believe age is a state of mind -- am mid-50s going on 19 --and am still a long-haired git who plays his rock music waaaaay too loud which may account for fact that I am suddenly single and an eligible bachelor after 20 years of marriage; have house in Leslieville, Toronto and grew up on Toronto Islands until The City tore down all three of my familiy's houses; love animals to a fault, have had many cats and dogs and have even become an expert at live-trapping and live-releasing mice; for more, Google William Burrill. Details all over 'Net from Canadian Who's Who to anything about journalism, authors, writers or Mayors of Toronto -- finished 4th out of 21 candidates in massive six-city bonding Toronto Mega City Mayoralty election in 1997; drive silver Millenium limited edition Mazda Miata which I love better than my silver Prosche 914 and my MGB; Have 10 guitars including Martin D-35, Fender Wayne's World Strat, Taurus 5-string bass and my new fav traveller, an Ovation Advent semi-electric black beauty. Am blessed to have been all over the place and behind the scenes and met many famous people due to 36 years as entertainment journalist and find some of my best friends are folks who seconds ago were strangers -- some stranger than others. Also love to be reunited with old friends so if your'e out there say Hello; we'll have a beer and tell some lies.

P.S. My mom just died so please see the video tribute in my "links' section (only four minutes). If you find any typos in this twisted screed you can keep them. I mean, what am I supposed to do -- PROOF READ? I have been on Facebook for roughly one day now and have no clue how to work stuff or who is over-hearing me but I promise some interesting posts once I learn my way (advice welcome). So please bear with me....or not. Getting to blow off people is a Facebook tradition, is it not? Just love those Suggested Friend Request e-mails that bounce back like a nuclear pin-ball with a curt "DO I KNOW YOU?" like you're something they just scraped off their shoe. Ahahahaha! Yeah right, Here's deleting YOU schweetheart.(Somewhere Orwell is smiling)

And so am I....so join me. (Or not.) I'm easy either way.

As it should be.

Love, William Trudeau Burrill, July 6, 2010

William Trudeau Burrill, May 25, 1954 - April 1, 2026