Obituary of Martin Myers

 

Martin Myers

Onward.

 

To suggest this notice may be just a rumour, a subterfuge, a yet-again caper perpetrated by the most secretive of secretives, the Secret Viking himself, would be misleading the reader.

 

But, as with much of the lore of the Secret Viking, there is… ambiguity. Notably, is Martin Myers a) the author of The Secret Viking Trilogy (over-simply explained as the tales of an undying Viking who, trading sword for pen, proceeds to scribe his way through time under many noms and using many plumes), or is Martin Myers b) the 2024 manifestation of said Secret Viking himself?

 

As if to help us wrestle with the conundrum of who created whom, Marty, sadly, has put an end to speculation.

 

At 96-and-a-bit, on March 28, 2024, Marty died.

 

Colleen, Lori, Brad, Jane, Graeme, Matt, Zoë, and Sarah were all there to say goodbye the night that Marty lost his fight with ninety-six-itis. For those not familiar, it’s a Whac-A- Mole of a condition in which only the battles, but never the war, can be won.

 

Cook on cruise ship. Car wash proprietor. Pancake House owner. Radio DJ. Puppeteer. Stand-up. Decorated ad guy/writer/creative director/agency owner. Author. U of T Writer in Residence. Et cetera.

 

His first job, as a delivery boy for Ball’s Pharmacy, in Toronto, where the delivery bike he rode bore a sign that promised, “Ball’s to you in 15 minutes” was where we suspect Marty first realized that the world needs more writers.

 

A two-finger typist, Marty tap-tapped thousands of slogans, headlines, scripts, billboards, radio and TV spots, articles, and so on. And with the same two digits he became Martin Myers, Author, and created The Assignment, Frigate, Izzy Manheim’s Reunion, The Urban Loft, The NeverMind of Brian Hildebrand, and The Secret Viking (a trilogy).

 

He made us laugh. And think. And marvel at his amazing and strikingly singular perspective on, well, pretty much everything.

 

At the recent 90 th birthday of Colleen, to whom Marty has been married for just shy of 69 years, his off-the-cuff outpouring of his love and appreciation for their adventure together had us all in tears. But considering all the laughs over all the years, a few tears were fair enough.

 

One might think that the death of a 96-year-old, in and out of the hospital of late, would not come as a shock. But with every birthday Marty enjoyed, the more it seemed like the birthdays would just keep coming, and to the end, Marty maintained a remarkable enthusiasm to just keep up the momentum on his latest novel.

 

So, it pleases us to no end to share that, in the coming weeks, Marty will be remembered at the launch of Return of The Secret Viking. And it’s not lost on us that this will only add fuel to the who-created-whom dispute.

 

We miss you, Marty. All your family. Your many good friends. We all miss you.

 

If you would care to offer a donation in Marty’s honour, The Toronto Western Hospital’s Family Health Team promises to put your kind offering to good work.  http://support.uhnfoundation.ca/goto/martymyers