Milton William Ryan Dunnell (December 24, 1905 – January 3, 2008) was a Canadian sportswriter, known chiefly for his work at the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

''.

Early life

Dunnell was born in St. Marys, Ontario, Canada on December 24, 1905 and attended St. Marys Collegiate Institute.

Career

After graduating he worked part-time for the post office and a sales representative for a fruit company. Dunnell became a full-time local correspondent for the

Stratford Beacon Herald Stratford may refer to: Places Australia * Stratford, Queensland, a suburb of Cairns * Stratford, Victoria, a town in the state district of Gippsland East ** Stratford railway station, Victoria, a railway station on the Bairnsdale railway line ...

in 1929 and stayed as a sports editor until 1942. During his time in Stratford, Dunnell met his future wife Dorothy Theresa Pigeon and they married in the rectory, not a church, due to their mixed religions. Dunnell eventually became the sports editor for the

where he wrote on almost all sports during his career, including the Olympic Games, Stanley and

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

events, and the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

. During his sports reporting career, Dunnell placed his wallet in his righthand hip pocket, which caused him to be repeatedly pickpocketed. Despite urges to move his wallet, he refused, and fellow reporter Jim Coleman would walk paces behind him to ensure there were no thieves.

Awards

By the end of his career, he was awarded the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award and Jack Graney Award. He was also inducted into the

Canadian Football Hall of Fame The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about t ...

, Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, Ontario Sports Hall of Fame, and Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. On June 10, 2006, the city of Toronto named a baseball diamond after Dunnell. Dunnell died on January 3, 2008, at the age of 102 at North York General Hospital of pneumonia.

References

Canadian sportswriters Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees Elmer Ferguson Award winners People from St. Mary's, Ontario Canadian centenarians Men centenarians 1905 births 2008 deaths Toronto Star people Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees {{Canada-journalist-stub