Johnny Canuck is a Canadian cartoon hero and superhero who was created as a political cartoon in 1869 and was later re-invented as a Second World War action hero in 1942. The Vancouver Canucks, a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL), currently use a hockey playing "Johnny Canuck" logo as one of their team logos. In addition, the Vancouver Canucks' American Hockey League affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks, use it as their main logo.
Johnny Canuck is a fictional lumberjack and a national personification of Canada. [1] He first appeared in early political cartoons dating to 1869 where he was portrayed as a younger cousin of the United States' Uncle Sam and Britain's John Bull. Dressed as a habitant, farmer, logger, rancher or soldier, he was characterized as wholesome and simple-minded and was often depicted resisting the bullying of John Bull or Uncle Sam. He appeared regularly in editorial cartoons for 30 years before declining in usage in the early twentieth century. [2]
The character re-emerged during World War II in the February 1942 issue of Bell Features' Dime Comics #1. [2] Cartoonist Leo Bachle created the character as a teenager, apparently on a challenge from a Bell executive. Initially, Johnny Canuck had no superpowers. Johnny Canuck's cartoon exploits helped Canada fight against Nazism. Like Captain America, he met Adolf Hitler and almost single-handedly ended the war.
The use of such stock figures diminished in popularity after World War II, but in 1975, a new comic book character, Captain Canuck, emerged. Created by Richard Comely (who at the time was unaware of the earlier Johnny Canuck character), Captain Canuck was a costumed superhero rather than just a hero, and he wore red and white tights and bore a red maple leaf emblazoned on the forehead of his mask.
In 1995, Canada Post issued a series of Canadian postage stamps celebrating Canada's comic-book superheroes. [3] Johnny Canuck is depicted as he appeared in the comic books, dressed in flight jacket, goggles, leather headgear and boots. Johnny Canuck is linked to a tradition of stalwart, honest, upstanding Canadian heroes.
Ty Templeton and Moonstone Books resurrected the character in a comic originally called Johnny Canuck and the Guardians of the Northern Lights and then re-titled The Northern Guard, which published two issues in December 2010 and March 2011. [4]
In the mid-20th century, the Vancouver Canucks, a major professional ice hockey team of the Pacific Coast Hockey League and later Western Hockey League, used a lumberjack character inspired by a Dawson Creek BC senior hockey teams logo. [5] When the Canucks moved to the National Hockey League in 1970, they discontinued the lumberjack logo, in favour of the "Stick-in-Rink" logo.
In the mid-1990s, Harold Berndt, the former director of marketing and assistant general manager for the major junior Western Hockey League's New Westminster Bruins, [6] [7] visited the BC Sports Hall of Fame. He obtained a photo of the vintage 1950s logo, originally inspired by a Dawson Creek BC team, [5] and by the 1960s had begun to be referred to by fans as "Johnny Canuck". He created the first major redesign and a campaign for "Johnny Canuck" to become the Vancouver Canucks' new logo, [8] Berndt released his logo redesign to the internet by December 1996 [9] advocating that "Johnny Canuck" would make the best new logo for the Vancouver Canucks. [10]
In October 1999, Kevin Sander applied for a "Johnny Canuck" logo as a trademark and subsequently sold a similar modified version to the Canucks. [11]
In 2006, a vintage-inspired goaltender mask worn by Canucks' goaltender Roberto Luongo featured the older style "Johnny Canuck" logo. [12] The following season, Luongo's new mask once again featured a "Johnny Canuck", but more prominently than his previous design. [13] Beginning in 2008–09, the Canucks introduced "Johnny Canuck" on the shoulder patch of their third jersey. [14] The full body Johnny Canuck logo was then recreated by graphic designer Evan Biswanger in 2009.
In 2021, "Johnny Canuck" logo became the logo for new AHL farm team, the Abbotsford Canucks, in Abbotsford, British Columbia. [15]
In October 2022, the Canucks revealed their reverse retro jersey which featured Johnny Canuck as the logo. [16]
In 1974, Toronto's Factory Theatre staged a play based on the Johnny Canuck character, written by Ken Gass and entitled "Hurray for Johnny Canuck". [17]
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Rick Tocchet is the head coach, Jim Rutherford serves as the president of hockey operations, and Patrik Allvin serves as the general manager.
Canuck is a slang term for a Canadian, though its semantic nuances are manifold. A variety of theories have been postulated for the etymological origins of the term. The term Kanuck is first recorded in 1835 as an Americanism, originally referring to Dutch Canadians or French Canadians. By the 1850s, the spelling with a "C" became predominant. Today, many Canadians and others use Canuck as a mostly affectionate term for any Canadian.
Roberto Luongo is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, and Vancouver Canucks. In 2022, Luongo was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Luongo is a two-time NHL All-Star and winner of the William M. Jennings Trophy for backstopping his team to the lowest goals against average in the league. He was a finalist for several awards, including the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender, the Lester B. Pearson Award as the top player voted by his peers, and the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player (2007). Luongo is second all time in games played as an NHL goaltender (1,044) and fourth all time in wins (489). He employed the butterfly style of goaltending.
The Vancouver Millionaires were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the Western Canada Hockey League between 1911 and 1926. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, they played in Denman Arena, the first artificial ice surface in Canada and the largest indoor ice rink in the world at the time it opened.
Kirk Alan McLean is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New Jersey Devils, Vancouver Canucks, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers and New York Rangers. He played in the style of a stand-up goaltender.
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Cory Franklin Schneider is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played for the Vancouver Canucks, New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL).
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Michael David Gillis is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former president and general manager of the Vancouver Canucks. He was born in Sudbury, Ontario.
Leo Henry Bachle, a.k.a. Les Barker, was a Canadian comic book artist in the era of the Canadian Whites, and later became a comedian.
The 2008–09 Vancouver Canucks season was the 39th season in the National Hockey League.
The West Coast Express was an ice hockey line that played for the National Hockey League's (NHL) Vancouver Canucks from 2002 to 2006. Named after Vancouver's commuter rail service, the line consisted of captain Markus Näslund at left-wing, Brendan Morrison at centre, and Todd Bertuzzi playing right-wing. The West Coast Express was a high scoring line that was considered to be one of the best lines in hockey during its tenure.
The 2012–13 Vancouver Canucks season was the team's 43rd season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Canucks won their fifth-straight Northwest Division title and finished third in the Western Conference. In the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs, Vancouver was swept by the San Jose Sharks in the first round. Shortly after the Canucks' playoff elimination, head coach Alain Vigneault was fired.
Bell Features, also known as Commercial Signs of Canada, was a Canadian comic book publisher during the World War II era. They were the most successful of the publishers of "Canadian Whites", and published comics such as Adrian Dingle's Nelvana of the Northern Lights.
The 2013–14 Vancouver Canucks season was the franchise's 44th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Canucks missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2007–08 season, ending their five-year playoff streak. In addition, the team recorded its worst regular season since the 1999–2000 season. Head coach John Tortorella, who had been hired in the pre-season, was fired.
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Canuck is a slang term meaning Canadian.
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By the turn of the century Johnny Canuck was being used to personify Canada in the same way that John Bull personifies England and Uncle Sam the United States.
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