Public Triumph, Private Tragedy

Public Triumph, Private Tragedy
Steve Paikin
Public Triumph, Private Tragedy is the story of a great man who lived hard, died hard, and accomplished so much in the process. John Parmenter Robarts, nicknamed 'Chairman of the Board,' became Ontario premier in 1961 and set a course to transform the largest provincial government in Canada into a modern, sophisticated operation. The Robarts years represent an impressive record with the establishment of legal aid, a huge system of community colleges and universities, law reform, GO Transit, the Ontario Science Centre, and Ontario Place, as well as a significant enhancement of individual civil rights, a reorganization of school administration, and a start on regional government, among many other things. When Robarts called an election in 1963, he won the highest percentage of the popular vote in Ontario's post-war history—48.9 percent—a record that still stands.But for all his success and triumph in the public realm, Robarts struggled with the demons that plagued his private life. The 'work hard, play hard' mentality that emerged during his university years continued through his political career. He was not unlike another charismatic political figure of the time, John F. Kennedy, in that his carousing and womanizing were legendary. Robarts's marriage began to suffer as he spent more and more time in Toronto, culminating in divorce from his wife, Norah, after his political career was over. He later married Katherine Sickafuse, almost thirty years his junior, and embarked upon what would become a stormy and controversial relationship.His world collapsed in 1977 when his son, Tim, committed suicide. Robarts never recovered from that devastating event, and in 1981, he suffered a series of debilitating strokes that contributed to the deterioration of his second marriage. Robarts had always been an active man, and when he found he could no longer socialize or go hunting, fishing, or boating—all the things that had defined him—he decided to end his life. John P. Robarts was a man of his times and for his times. His achievements were monumental, but for all his public success, his personal life and his end were ultimately tragic.