Ed Mason, 75, on Sept. 28. Mason started in radio as a host at “Club 590″ CFAR Flin Flon, MB in 1963. He quickly ascended to morning drive at CHTM Thomson, making stops at CKSA Lloydminster, CHAT Medicine Hat, CFPA Thunder Bay, and CHOV Pembroke throughout the remainder of the ’60s. In 1970, he joined CKDA Victoria where he rose to the position of news director. The CHUM newsroom in Toronto followed in 1974 where he only stayed a year before heading back west to Edmonton where he would go on to spend the remainder of his career. Mason joined the morning drive show at CHQT Edmonton in Feb. 1975, also serving as news director. After the station was acquired by Corus Entertainment, Mason eventually moved over to become the morning voice of news on sister station, 630 CHED, in 2005. Over the years, Mason earned the nickname “Uncle Eddie” or “Uncle Ed.” In addition to anchoring, he was a long-serving police reporter, known for his vast inside contacts. Notably, Mason landed an exclusive interview in 1979 that went worldwide after he was able to get through to the U.S. Embassy in Tehran where staff were being held hostage. Mason retired from Corus Radio in Aug. 2014 after nearly 50 years on-air. In 2013, he was recognized with the RTNDA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Dennis O’Neill, 63, on Sept. 24. O’Neill began his broadcast career at CKEK Cranbrook in 1977. From there he went on to hold on-air and production roles at CFJC Kamloops, CFRW Winnipeg, CHIQ-FM Winnipeg, and then CKXY, CKLG, and CKKS-FM Vancouver. He started as a part-time instructor in the radio program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) in 1994, while also working at Vancouver’s Wordnoise Studios and CFOX-FM Vancouver in production. He’d been a full-time instructor at BCIT since 2011.
