Obituaries THE GLOBE AND MAIL - TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 2013
Frank Selke Jr. spent more than four decades supporting the Special Olympics for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Photo by John Stevenson
FRANK SELKE JR. Sports Executive, 83 Despite hockey triumphs, Special Olympics came first Born into sporting royalty, he emerged from his father's shadow to make his own place
TOM HAWTHORN welcome to one and all to Hockey Night in in Toronto, was hired by Conn Smythe of Special to The Globe and Mail Canada." the Toronto Maple Leafs on the very day April 2, 2013 of Frank's birth. ………………………………………….. He became a familiar figure in households Frank Selke was born into hockey as the across the land at a time when television The boy played midget and bantam hockey namesake son of one of the sport's greatest options were limited. He was a soft-spoken in Toronto, as well as football for St. Mi- general managers. His own brief term as a and gentlemanly broadcasting partner to chael's College School. hockey general manager was undistin- the excitable play-by-play man Danny guished, though he enjoyed success as a Gallivan and the phlegmatic colour com- Meanwhile, his father helped build the hockey broadcaster. mentator Dick Irvin, Jr. Mr. Irvin's father Toronto Maple Leafs into perennial con- had been a coach of championship teams tenders, as the club won three Stanley Mr. Selke, who has died at 83, also spent in Toronto and Montreal for which Mr. Cups and appeared in six other finals be- more than four decades supporting and Selke's father worked in the front office. fore he left the team in May, 1946. Two promoting the Special Olympics for chil- months later, he was hired by the Montreal dren and adults with intellectual disabili- Francis Donald Selke was born in Toronto Canadiens, where he would win six Cups ties. His connections ensured that many on Sept. 7, 1929, the sixth of what would as general manager. popular athletes lent their support to the be seven children. His mother, the former charity. Mary Agnes Schmidt, was born in Wis- The eastward move interrupted a young consin before moving to Ontario as a girl. man's academic and sporting careers, as Mr. Selke worked for the famed Montreal His father, Francis Joseph Selke, was born the teenager convinced his father to let him Canadiens as a publicity director before in Berlin (now Kitchener) to Polish immi- drop out of high school in favour of a job adding on-air duties as a host and between- grant parents. at the Montreal Forum. periods interviewer for Saturday night tele- casts from Montreal. The pair met when Frank Sr. came to New "Starting at the bottom," Mr. Selke once Hamburg to scout one of Mary's brothers. told hockey historian Paul Lewicki, "I "Hi, everybody," he said. "Frank Selke Jr. Mr. Selke, an electrician by trade and man- would clean the seating area and sweep the here at the Montreal Forum. A very warm ager of a minor professional hockey team (Continued on page 2) ice as a general labourer for a grand total of $28 per week."
He advanced to working with the ice crew and as an electrician's helper before becoming the team's publicity director, with duties ranging from appearing on national television broadcasts to responding to children's letters seeking autographs.
He was also responsible for negotiating deals for the objects that marked many Canadian childhoods - Parkhurst hockey cards, Ea- gle Toys table-hockey games and Bee Hive Golden Corn Syrup hockey photographs.
In 1967, the National Hockey League doubled in size by adding six franchises in the United States. Mr. Selke joined the new Oak- land Seals as president, though he thought established teams were soaking the new owners by demanding $2-million expansion fees while offering only rejects and castoffs as players.
"They're really giving away a lot," Mr. Selke told columnist Dick Beddoes of The Globe and Mail during the expansion draft. "They're giving us free elevator rides in the hotel, for example, plus all the fresh air we can breathe."
The Seals stumbled from the start, doing poorly on the ice and worse at the box office. Only 2,426 fans attended an early home game.
"Sure, the fans are not breaking down the doors to get into the place, but we didn't expect that they would," Mr. Selke told The Globe. "Things certainly aren't going as well as we thought they would, but we're not ready to push the panic button after 12 league games. It's far too early."
The owners sought to sell, or move the team. After the inaugural season, Mr. Selke was asked to become general manager, a move that came with a cut in salary. The club changed hands before reverting to the original ownership group, which at last succeeded in selling the franchise to Charles O. Finley, a flamboyant character who also owned baseball's Oakland Athletics.
Minutes after having his ownership confirmed, Mr. Finley was asked about the fate of coach Fred Glover. Mr. Finley said he would be rehired. What about Frank Selke? "Is he the manager?" Mr. Finley asked. "I don't mean that in a facetious manner. Frankly, I didn't know who the manager was." Mr. Selke resigned five months later.
Despite his brief tenure, Mr. Selke had a reputation as an astute judge of talent, according to hockey writer Ross Brewitt, who re- cently recounted Mr. Selke's assessment of a player's disappointing career: "Great legs, great hands, all adeptly guided by the heart of a mouse."
After returning to Canada, Mr. Selke took an executive position with the company responsible for producing Hockey Night in Can- ada.
After retiring in 1992, he proved to be an indefatigable supporter of the Special Olympics, for which he was named honorary coach for the Canadian team at the 2003 summer games in Dublin.
Like his father before him, Mr. Selke served on the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee.
The elder Selke is enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame and Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. The NHL awards the Frank J. Selke Trophy each year to the forward who best excels at defensive play.
The younger Selke's lifetime achievements were of a more modest nature. He was the inaugural inductee into the Special Olym- pics' Hall of Fame and last year was awarded the group's Harry (Red) Foster Award.
In 2004, Mr. Selke was inducted into the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame, of which he was one of the founding directors.
Mr. Selke died at his home in Toronto on March 18. He leaves the former Dorothy Julia Letts, known as Red, his wife of 59 years, a daughter, two sons and seven grandchildren.
As a member of the front office of the Canadiens, Mr. Selke was invited to sit for six official team portraits after seasons in which the club won the Stanley Cup. In spite of his contribution, he never had his name engraved on the storied trophy.
———————————————————————————- The above article has been downloaded from the Globe and Mail website in its entirety. Photo of Franke Selke Jr was taken after receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Rotary Club of Toronto West, Jan 30th, 2012 See www.RotaryTorontoWest.ca Rotary photos follow on next page. Rotary Club of Toronto West honours Frank D. Selke Jr with the Ro- tary Youth Impact Lifetime Achievement Award
The 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Mr Frank D. Selke, well known profes- sionally in the media and as a television personality on Hockey Night in Canada.
However, his most exemplary achievements have been with his long association with Special Olympics in Canada, having being an ardent fundraiser and ambassador to bring the Special Olym- pics to the forefront of media and public attention, and inspiring thousands of youngsters and adults to enroll in the programs.
In 1991 Frank was awarded the Canada Volunteer Award by the Minister of National Health and Welfare, the Hon. Benoit Bouchard followed a year or two later with the Canada 125 Award, in both cases for his contributions to Special Olympics across Canada. In recognition of his commit- ment to the movement Frank was inducted into the Ontario Special Olympics Hall of Fame and later named honourary coach of Special Olympics Canada’s national team for the 2003 World Sum- mer Games in Dublin, Ireland. From 1991 to 2006 Frank was a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame Selection Committee following his famous father who was a founding member of the Hockey Hall. —————————————————————————-
Photos below taken at the Rotary Youth Impact Awards Gala, The Old Mill Inn, Toronto, Jan 29th, 2012 More photos at RotaryTorontoWest.ca
Photos by Rotarian John Stevenson, 416 233 8657 www.RotaryTorontoWest.ca