The Jimmy Pattison Mentor & Life Coach Awards

CHAPTER 8

Jimmy Pattison

“I have met many impressive people in my lifetime but I would have to say the three most impressive were Arthur Delamont, Margaret Thatcher, (We got to know Margaret Thatcher very well) and the third would be Charles Wick, Ronald Reagan’s best friend.”

Jimmy Pattison had been a member of the band in the 1940’s. I had called his office to see if I could interview him for this book. When I got back to my office, I found a message on my machine that made me very pleased. It was from Maureen Chant, Mr. Pattison’s assistant, indicating that Mr. Pattison would be able to see me at four o’clock on Wednesday afternoon.

That was a stroke of luck, I thought! Maybe now I would be able to piece together more of Arthur and the bands activities during the forties. So, on Wednesday afternoon, I made my way over to Hastings and Burrard. Mr. Pattison’s office was high up on the eighteenth floor of a new high rise building on the downtown waterfront. Making my way inside the building, I informed security that I was there for a four o’clock appointment with Jimmy Pattison. The security guard asked me if my name was Christopher Best.

He then ushered me into one of the elevators, quickly activating the eighteenth floor for me and leaving me alone in the elevator as it ascended to the penthouse suite.

As the elevator door opened, I looked to the left and then to the right. I then made my way to the left, where I was greeted by a receptionist, who took my jacket and rain pants. The weather had been exceptionally bad for July in Vancouver. It had rained practically every day that week.

”Mr. Pattison is still in a previous meeting. He should be through soon. You’re welcome to have a seat,” the receptionist said, pointing to some comfortable looking chairs to the right.

As I looked around the large open room, which seemed to go away off to the left and away off to the right, leading to more open spaces, directly ahead, through a large picture window in someones office I could see the water in Burrard Inlet, and Stanley Park beyond. Turning around, I saw an entire wall filled with framed pictures, extending the length of the wall, both to the right and to the left. The wall was broken up by doorways every ten feet or so.

“No, I think I will just have a look at the pictures if I may?” I replied. Making my way over to the nearest collection of pictures, I could see that they were all framed ‘Life Magazine’ covers from the year 1961. In the middle, was a large picture of ‘Jimmy Pattison Buick,’ at 18th and Cambie. On each Life cover, was a full page picture of a famous movie star or public figure! Clark Gable, Grace Kelly, Kruschev, John Kennedy, Bridget Bardot, Eisenhower. On the next wall, were pictures of well known personalities from over the years either by themselves or with Mr. Pattison.

There was Nancy Reagan, Al Gore, Jean Chretien, Rudy Guliani, Bill Cosby, Tom Selleck, Steve Wynn, Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr., Prince Charles and Lady Diana and Margaret Thatcher.

Just then, I could hear some voices near the reception area, so I made my way back quickly passing Mr. Pattison on his way to another office to retrieve something. Upon seeing me he said,

“How are you?”

“Just fine,” I answered, as I continued on back to the safety of the comfortable chairs in the corner.

“Hi Chris, I am Maureen Chant,” a voice said coming out of the nearest office. I got up and went into the office, where I found Maureen sitting behind a desk.

“Mr. Pattison should not be too much longer,” she said.

“No problem,” I answered.

“What is the significance of the Life Magazine covers on the wall?” I ask.

“That was the year that Mr. Pattison started in business. We have them up on the wall, as a reminder of how far we have come. You would be surprised at how many people have never heard of some of those personalities.”

“Too young I guess,” I replied. It wasn’t long before Mr. Pattison was back, showing two or three guests his picture collection before depositing them at the elevators. Making his way back to the reception, Maureen and I came out of her office to greet him.

“Have you met Chris Best yet? said Maureen. He is writing the books on Arthur Delamont.”

“Hello Chris!” Mr. Pattison said, extending his hand and

ushering me into the room from which he had just emerged. Once inside the room, Mr. Pattison said to me,

“They were just in town from Shanghai. Sorry they took so long.”

“No problem,” I replied. “I am intruding on your daily schedule. It is kind of you to see me at all.”

“Oh no, that is fine. I wanted to talk to you.”

As I sit down on a sofa against the back wall, Mr. Pattison follows, sitting on a nearby chair at the end of the sofa. He is a well dressed man, wearing a sports jacket and dress slacks and tie. In his late seventies, he speaks with a soft voice that has been in command of boardrooms around Vancouver for nearly fifty years. At a time when most people his age, have long since retired, he is still the spark plug in the business conglomerate that he founded and forged with his own hands and which still bares his name, ‘The Jim Pattison Group’.

“Tell me, how you met Arthur Delamont? “ I asked.

“Al Colette went up to Kamloops. He has some land up there. He likes the outdoors. He absolutely was the best trumpet player, I have ever heard in my time. He and I use to play in the Vancouver Junior Symphony. It was Al who got me into the Kitsilano Boys’ Band. This would have been when the war was on, probably about 1943. Al was first trumpet in the symphony and I was second trumpet. He said to me one day that he was going to join the Kitsilano Boys’ Band and that I should join too, so I did. He had the most beautiful tone on his trumpet. He could have played professionally and gone right to the top of the charts in the music business but he preferred to be on the farm. That is what he enjoyed doing. His parents had a farm out in the Fraser Valley. He was raised there. Then there was Bruce Ailsbury. They were the two main players I knew, during my time in the band.

“You were involved with the pep band at UBC?”

“Oh yes, I went from the Kitsilano Boys’ Band to playing with Delamont in the UBC Pep band. It must have been after the war.”

“Any stories you can recall from those days?”

“No, I cannot remember anything much. I wish I could give you some. The only thing I remember happened at the band at General Gordon School. This was Kits band, not UBC. Delamont got mad at a fellow by the name of Bill Harvey. He was playing on my stand. There were a lot of trumpets. In the first row, there was the first stand, the second stand, and the third stand. I was playing the third stand. Then there were another three stands behind us in the second row. I was in the front row with Bill Harvey and Dr. Gripson’s son. Delamont was playing. There was a big pause. Bill Harvey played a note and Delamont went wild. He made everybody start over again. Bill was always willing to try hard but he did EXACTLY the same thing, the second time and Delamont was really burned up. We had to start over again, a third time. The third time, Bill Harvey did the same thing. Delamont went over and got an inkwell. You remember those inkwells they used to have on the desks in school?”

“Yes. I certainly do. He didn’t?”

“Oh yes, he did! He poured the ink down the guy's back he was so mad.”

“Couldn’t do that today,” I replied.

“No, he couldn’t do that today but I always remember that!”

“You obviously kept affection for Arthur over the years”.

“Oh yes.”

“Do you think he influenced your later life at all?”

“When I was just starting out in business and they had the first big reunion concert at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, I gave him a new car. That was about 1963. I was just getting going back then and it was a sacrifice but I wanted to do something for him, so we gave him a brand-new car. I did it for him on behalf of the band but that was the kind of feeling I had for him. The spark plug of that whole deal, that first reunion concert was Ray Smith, who of course was the President of MacMillan Bloedel and eventually the chairman. That is when I first met Ray Smith. They had a committee meeting at the Delamont’s house. They ask me to go on the committee for the reunion. So, Ray was the chairman of the committee. I remember I had never seen such organized notes as Ray Smith presented. To this day, I use the format that Ray Smith had at the committee meeting at Delamont’s house; on who’s responsible, by what date, and so on. I had never seen that before. To this day, in my own company, I use the format that Ray Smith had at Delamont’s house.

It was a great place to develop lifelong friendships. Al Colette, I met in the band and we have remained friends to this day. Everybody in that band developed a bond. They really did!”

“Do you feel Arthur was an influence in your later life?”

“You know, I was thinking about that the other day. If somebody asked me, who were the most impressive people I have met in my lifetime, I would say, Arthur Delamont,

Margaret Thatcher (we got to know her very well) and the other would be a fellow by the name of Charles Wick. He was the head of the United States Information Agency in Washington DC and Ronald Reagan’s best friend! For maybe thirty-five years, Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan spent Christmas with Charles Wick and his wife, who was named Mary Jane Wick. They lived in Los Angeles in Lana Turner’s house. But, those three people were the most impressive people that, individually, made an impression on my life. One of the things that impressed me most about Arthur was the integrity of the man. He had a passion for his work. He was totally honest. Today, I do not think he would do nearly as well because he couldn’t be himself. You can’t do this, you can’t do that, he did what he did! His training in the Salvation Army put him in good standing. He always played a hymn. I always liked Abide With Me!

Anything else you want to talk about?”

“No, not unless you have some more stories.”

“If I think of anything more, I will let you know but I sure always remember the Bill Harvey incident. I always remember the committee meetings, the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, and the UBC stuff!

What impressed me most was his integrity, his passion, his discipline, his commitment to the boys. He didn’t pull punches. He didn’t care if you were rich or poor or from what family you came. He treated everybody the same!”