Charles Gordon (journalist)

Born in New York City while his father J. King Gordon was working in publishing there,[2] Gordon grew up in several cities around the world during his father's diplomatic career with the United Nations.[2] He is also the brother of writer Alison Gordon and the grandson of novelist Ralph Connor.[2] He studied political science at Queen's University.[2]

While completing his master's degree in political science, Gordon was hired as an editor with the Brandon Sun in 1964,[2] remaining with the paper until joining the Citizen in 1974.[2] With the Citizen, he held a variety of roles – including writing editorials, editing the local news and books sections, and writing his daily column[2] – until retiring from the paper in 2005.[1] He took a leave of absence from the paper in 2002 to serve for several months as writer-in-residence at the University of Ottawa.[3] Gordon's columns were noted for their wry and sometimes satirical humour.[2]

He published several books, both fiction and non-fiction. His first book, The Governor General's Bunny Hop, was adapted by CBC Television into the short-lived sitcom Not My Department.[4] He also wrote the afterword for the New Canadian Library edition of Paul Hiebert's influential humour novel Sarah Binks.

He was a three-time nominee for the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, garnering nods in 1986 for The Governor General's Bunny Hop,[5] in 1994 for How Not to Be Too Bad[6] and in 2002 for The Grim Pig.[7]

He was granted an honorary doctorate from Brandon University in 1994.[8]

• The Governor General's Bunny Hop (1985, ISBN 077159688X)
• At the Cottage: An Affectionate Look at Canada's Summer Obsession (1989, ISBN 0771033931)
• How to Be Not Too Bad: A Canadian Guide to Superior Behaviour (1993, ISBN 0771033923)
• The Canada Trip (1997, ISBN 0771033893)
• The Grim Pig (2001, ISBN 0771033974)
• Still at the Cottage: Or the Cabin, the Shack, the Lake, the Beach, or Camp (2006, ISBN 978-0771034145)