MARGARET (PEGGY) JOHNSON
Margaret Eleanor “Peggy” Neville Johnson
1942 - August 9, 2009
Margaret Peggy Johnson, of Sauble Beach,
after a valiant battle with cancer at Grey
Bruce Health Services Wiarton on Sunday,
August 9, 2009.
The former Margaret Eleanor Peggy Neville
at the age of 67 years, loving wife and
best friend of Don for over 39 years;
cherished mother of Anesie Johnson-Smith
and her husband Aaron, of Oakville and
Terry Johnson, of Winnipeg; devoted
Grandma to Sydney and Parker; sister of
Kenneth Neville and his wife Judy, of
Winnipeg and Dr. Barbara Yunker and her
husband Dr. Gary Yunker, of Tennessee.
Peggy will be missed by her niece and
nephew Raegan Neville, and Ryan Neville
and his wife Rhea.
Peggy was a consummate entertainer,
beginning her career on the Red River
Jamboree, on CBC. As her popularity
climbed, CBC introduced the Peggy Neville
Show. This was the very first attempt at a
colour television program broadcasting in
Canada.
Friends are invited to gather with the
family at the Thomas C. Whitcroft Funeral
Home and Chapel, 814 Bruce Road 8, Sauble
Beach (519) 422-0041 on Wednesday from
12:00 to 1:00 p.m., where a service
celebrating Peggy's life will be conducted
in the chapel at 1:00 p.m. There will be a
private family interment in Zion Cemetery,
Hepworth.
Donations to the GBHS Oncology Dept. or to
Wiarton Hospital Palliative Care would be
greatly appreciated. Condolences may be
expressed on-line at
www.whitcroftfuneralhome.com
As
published in Winnipeg Free Press on
August 11, 2009
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’60S WINNIPEG TV STAR LOSES
STRUGGLE WITH CANCER
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
A pioneer of Canadian television who
starred in two programs produced in
Winnipeg has died.
Peggy Johnson, known by Canadian
television viewers in the 1960s as Peggy
Neville, died from cancer last Sunday.
Johnson, who had been singing with her
sister Barbara as one half of the Neville
Sisters, successfully auditioned for and
joined the CBC television program Red
River Jamboree in 1960. The show ran
until 1965.
 Because of her
growing fame, CBC made her the star of her
own musical variety show, the Peggy
Neville Show, a 15-minute show which
ran from 1966 to 1967. Guest stars on the
show included Rich Little, Ray St.
Germain, and Lenny Breau.
The show was also notable as being
Canada’s first show produced in colour.
St. Germain, who at the time was married
to Johnson’s sister, said "she was a
really great entertainer.
"She was the kind of entertainer who as
soon as you saw her you were awestruck by
her beauty," he said.
"No one commented on her singing — she was
a really good singer — they always talked
about her beauty."
St. Germain said the Peggy Neville
Show was quite a coup at the time
for both Johnson and local television.
"It was a big deal — to be a national show
in Winnipeg and being sponsored by
Kellogg’s," he said.
"The female stars at that time were
Juliette, Marg Osborne, and Peggy Neville.
They were all household names back then."
Ken Neville, her brother, said he
remembers being outside playing when his
mother called for him to come inside to
see his sister.
"I was thinking, I just saw her this
morning, but then I went inside and she
was on TV," he said.
"It was pretty fantastic in hindsight. I
was younger than her, but I’ve watched her
TV shows in recent years and she was very
good.
"But she was so young. She was 18 or 19
when she started on Red River Jamboree and
she was 23 when she had her own show. Then
at 25 she was heading to Toronto to
further her career."
Johnson’s daughter, Anesie Johnson-Smith,
said that after her mother’s television
career ended she went on to sing with a
band which included Anesie’s
trumpet-playing father.
Johnson-Smith said her mother later taught
voice at Humber College in Ontario.
Gene Walz, who teaches film and film
history at the University of Manitoba,
said Johnson’s fame occurred in a
different era for Canadian television.
"It was an era when local programming was
there and Winnipeg had a strong reputation
for local programming," Walz said.
"It’s a shame that with the centralization
that has taken over, the ability of local
talent to have a career and a following
are gone."
Johnson is survived by her husband, Don, a
daughter and a son.
A service for Johnson was held on
Wednesday in Sauble Beach, Ont., with a
private burial today.
Kevin Rollason 2009
As
published in Winnipeg Free Press on
August 13, 2009
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