Oh, look it’s a TV actress with a vanity project.

Edmonton-born TV star Jill Hennessy is working on an album called “Ghost in My Mind.”

“I know there’s going to be a lot of skepticism,” Hennessy to the QMI Agency, via the Toronto Star. “People will say, ‘Oh, it’s a TV actress with a vanity project.’”

Hey, how did she know we’d say that? Seriously, we love Jill’s venture back into music, and her return to Edmonton makes her our Canadian of the Week!

“Not many people know that I actually started off as a musician. I would play on the streets in Toronto for money,” she continued. “Music’s basically where my heart has always been, to be honest. I was just lucky that acting took off. Music provides me with much more profound and personal satisfaction.”

She goes on to explain that she’s been working on the album for more than four years, and started it while she was filming “Crossing Jordan.” The songs are based on experiences from her life from 2005 to 2007, including one situation “of extreme loss.”

In an ideal world, Hennessy says she’d have a full-fledged music career on her hands. But she knows acting is what puts food on the table.

She’ll be playing the Edmonton Music Festival this weekend.

Check out Jill performing “Ghost in My Head” on QTV right here:

Edmonton made a resounding comeback to not only grab a spot on the new Monopoly Canada board game, but a green property on the coveted “Boardwalk” side of the square.

We told you months ago that Edmonton and Winnipeg were among the major Canadian cities in danger of missing out on the popular vote. Well, Edmonton is in, but Winnipeg’s hopes for a spot on the board went the way of its hope for the return of an NHL team.

The Boardwalk and Park Place spots on the board went to Chatham-Kent, Ont., and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., respectively. The cheapest property on the board in Banff, Alberta.

The game hits stores on Monday, which, appropriately enough, is Canada Day.

By Gordon Holmes
Special to Canadian of the Week

From Alberta’s Hart Family to Quebec’s Rougeau Brothers to Ontario’s Edge and Christian, the tradition of Canadian wrestling is full of larger-than-life personalities and unforgettable matches. Join us every week as we count down to Wrestlemania XXVI by taking a look at the Great White North’s finest contributions to the squared circle.

Editor’s Note: The “Modern Era” is defined as the period of wrestling that exists from
SummerSlam 1988 to the present day. Why 1988? Because that’s when I started watching wrestling. I know, I’m lame.

Previous picks:
10. Andrew “Test” Martin
9. John “Earthquake” Tenta
8. Lance Storm
7. Christian

6: Chris Benoit
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 220 lbs.
Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta
Greatest Match: Benoit vs. Kurt Angle – Royal Rumble 2003

Editor’s Note: Truthfully, I wasn’t looking forward to writing this. I used to be a huge Chris Benoit fan. Now, I can’t stomach watching his work. That being said, the following article will reflect Chris Benoit’s work within the ring and not the horrific murder/suicide that occurred in June of 2007.

Chris Benoit was short, ugly, and terrible on the mic.

But when he stepped into the ring he was maybe the finest example of technical ability the industry has ever produced. There wasn’t a moment of wasted motion, every maneuver was fluid, every movement was crisp. Chris Benoit was a wrestling machine.

Even at his most popular in the winter of 2003/2004, Chris Benoit’s entrance didn’t elicit the kind of thunderous response that a Steve Austin or Shawn Michaels would receive. But once Benoit had a chance to win the crowd over during his match, he’d often receive a standing ovation – even in matches where he’d been defeated.

A perfect example of this took place on Jan. 25, 2004 at the Royal Rumble. From our seats high atop Philadelphia’s First Union Center (now the Wachovia Center) my buddy Zach and I watched as the sold-out crowd was transformed from mildly entertained by Benoit to rabidly rooting for him over the course of the one-hour Rumble match.

Of particular interest were two young fans sitting in front of us.

The two youngsters had been disappointed earlier in the evening as Rey Mysterio (the subject of their many poster board signs) had a criminally short match against Jamie Noble.

As the Rumble started and Zach and I erupted for the Canadian Crippler the two kids looked at us as if we were nuts. We chatted them up and learned that their Rumble hopes were pinned on Rob Van Dam and John Cena.

They also thought Chris Benoit was “Boring.”

However, over the course of the event their attitudes (along with the attitude of the other 17,000 in attendance) changed.

As the evening went on the 30-man Royal Rumble was eventually whittled down to a final six that consisted of Benoit, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, John Cena, Chris Jericho, and the Big Show.

What it boiled down to was each of the other five competitors trying to eliminate the enormous Big Show. They tried as a unit. No luck. They tried one by one and had even less luck. Eventually, Show started to toss them out. First Cena, then Van Dam, then Jericho, then Angle. Finally we were left with only Benoit and Show.

How on Earth was Benoit going to get the better of Show after he’d just man-handled four other top names?

It looked like he wasn’t going to. When the Big Show pressed Benoit over his head and made his way toward the ropes, the crowd in Philly (and our two new friends) stopped breathing. Benoit managed to weasel his way around to catch Show in a front facelook. As Benoit used his weight to gain leverage the crowd picked up on what he was attempting and started to buzz. When Show’s feet left the mat and he teetered on the top rope the noise built. And when Benoit finally managed to dump his gigantic opponent to the floor the place collectively lost their minds.

Perhaps Benoit’s ultimate in-ring legacy is that of a man who was born a few decades too late. Benoit simply wasn’t made for today’s quip-laden promos and four-minute television matches.

Even the World Championship that Benoit would go on to claim after winning the Royal Rumble was seen as more of a career achievement award than an effort to push him as a top name. During his reign he’d constantly play second fiddle to the Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels feud. Eventually he dropped the title to up-and-comer Randy Orton and was shuffled back down the card.

But, that doesn’t take away from what the man could do from bell to bell.
Just ask two Mysterio fans I know.

Gordon Holmes is the wrestling correspondent for Comcast.net’s SlamCast wrestling coverage and the “Survivor” correspondent for Fancast.com. He was also trained to take a beating by WWE Hall of Famer Afa “The Wild Samoan” Anoa’i. You can follow Gordon on Twitter at twitter.com/gordonholmes.

Maybe not quite everything is better in Canada.

Bad hotels are bound to be found anywhere, and TripAdvisor.com’s new 2010 Dirtiest Hotels list tells you exactly where. The site put together a Dirtiest Hotels list for the fifth year, but it’s the first time that it included a Top 10 (er, Bottom 10) specifically for Canada, and two of the worst places — according to TripAdvisor user ratings — are located at Niagara Falls.

The popular tourist site is home to the worst spot on the list, a motel which customers have called “the worst of the worst,” and an “embarrassing dump.” One user reported “Blood in the bedding, spatter across the walls, carpet saturated with black filth, empty beer bottles piled outside the door, discarded rotting furniture at the bottom of the stairs, disgusting odour.”

To see the complete list of TripAdvisor’s Dirtiest Hotels in Canada, click here.

After a week of voting, a handful of Canada’s largest and well-known cities are in danger of not even making it on the board in a new version of Monopoly Canada.

Hasbro, the company that makes the game, has opened a public vote to decide which cities will occupy the 22 spaces on the board that were originally named for streets and areas in Atlantic City, N.J. (a la, Boardwalk, Park Place, St. Charles Place, etc.).

With 65 cities in the running for 20 of the spaces, Winnipeg and Edmonton aren’t making the cut, and Toronto is barely hanging on in 20th place.

The final two spaces — the “low-rent” spots occupied by Mediterranean and Baltic avenues in the original game — will be decided by a separate wild-card vote based on nominations of any and all cities in Canada.

People can vote for three cities each day until the vote closes on Feb. 7, 2010. The city that receives the most votes will be placed on the highest rent property traditionally held by Boardwalk.

The wild card vote for the two low-rent spaces will take place from February 8, 2010 until February 21, 2010.

Canadian of the Week thinks that in addition to the great cities that will occupy the spaces on the board, some uniquely named bergs might qualify as game pieces to go along with what’s sure to include a hockey player, a maple leaf and a totem pole:

Medicine Hat
Red Deer
Wood Buffalo
Whitehorse
Yellowknife
Moose Jaw
White Rock

Here’s a look at the current leading cities and their percentages of the vote, as of midnight Wednesday:

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que. 5.4

Calgary 4.7

Chatham-Kent, Ont. 3.7

Quebec City 3.4

Trois-Rivieres, Que. 2.9

St. John’s, N.L. 2,8

Kawartha Lakes, Ont. 2.7

Medicine Hat, Alta. 2.7

Montreal 2.6

Victoria 2.5

Windsor, Ont. 2.4

Shawinigan, Que. 2.3

Kelowna, B.C. 2.3

Sarnia, Ont. 2.3

North Bay, Ont. 2.1

Vancouver 2.1

Ottawa 2.1

Gastineau 2.0

London, Ont. 2.0

Toronto 2.0

Through rain, sleet, snow, or storage facility for 16 years.

We’re pretty sure Canada’s national postal service doesn’t actually share the U.S. Postal Service’s slogan, but its commitment to delivering the mail despite any obstacles is on display this week as Canada Post is vowing to deliver thousands of pieces of mail that have been stored illegal in a mail carrier’s storage facility for as many as 16 years.

Police didn’t discuss any motive as to why John Kobitowich, 39, formerly of St. Albert and now of no fixed address, is believed to have stolen all of the mail and stored it for so long, according to the Edmonton Sun.

Kobitowich is charged with theft of mail, possession of mail that is known to be stolen, uttering a forged document, personation with criminal intent and one count of criminal breach of trust.

“A number of people in the Edmonton area will receive mail dating back, in some instances, as far as 1993,” reads a statement issued by Canada Post on Thursday. “The mail will be sent with a letter of apology from Canada Post.”

Maurizio Terrigno, the owner of an upscale Calgary restaurant who told a few news outlets that members of the Edmonton Oilers refused to pay their full bill of nearly $18,000 on New Year’s Eve, now says he’s reached an agreement with the team, according to the Edmonton Sun.

“I have come to an agreement with the Edmonton Oilers,” he told the Sun. “I am very ecstatic with the agreement.”

Allan Watt, a spokesman for the team, didn’t confirm or deny any agreement, but clearly wanted to move on from the entire ordeal.

“The Edmonton Oilers has nothing more to say about this issue,” he told the Sun just before the team’s game in San Jose, Calif., against the Sharks. “I have nothing more to say on this issue … we consider the incident done with we have nothing more to add.”

The 2008 Winter Classic in Buffalo, N.Y.

With excitement building for the NHL’s annual outdoor Winter Classic, guest blogger Perry Espardinez takes us on a little trip down an icy memory lane:

This New Year’s Day, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Boston Bruins will square off in the Winter Classic, an NHL annual event that brings ice hockey out of the arenas and into the cold of winter. This regular season match tries to bring the sport back to its roots, plus gives sports fans something to watch aside from the usual New Years hangover helpers of parades and college bowl games.

Now, the NHL is considering a Canadian outdoor game each season, which should make us wonder why the Winter Classic isn’t already played in Canada.

In fact, it was … on a technicality.

The Heritage Classic, as it was billed in 2003, was the NHLs first regular season game to be played outdoors.

Hosted by the Edmonton Oilers, it was held on a rink set up at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton. The Montreal Canadians beat the home team 4-3 with 57,000 in attendance.

Keeping with tradition, the NHL plans to feature Canadian teams in an outdoor Canadian venue in the new annual outdoor game, which would start. All six Canadian NHL teams have expressed interest, but there’s been no announcement on when or where the game would be played.

Photo: CTV.ca

Choreographer Stacey Tookey didn’t have any routines in the finale, but the Edmonton native is nonetheless our choice for Canadian of the Week as she continued to break into the American version of the show this season after two seasons as one of the top choreographers on “So You Think You Can Dance Canada.”

After a promising start to this season, Stacey wasn’t available to choreograph for much of the season, but if the folks at Fox are reading this, here’s a message: More Stacey Tookey, please!

Stacey took some time last week to talk to me about being an inspiration to young Canadians, and being labeled by some as “the next Mia Michaels.” She also talked about why the judges on the American version of the show make her nervous.

Check it out:

Victor Balta: So, you don’t have any pieces in the finale. How do they even decide which choreographers they’re going to use from week to week?
Stacey Tookey: I don’t know, actually. A lot has to do with availability, I think. They’re constantly changing who they bring on and in what order. It’s just what they are feeling for that week, kind of.

VB: What has the transition from the Canadian show to the American one been like for you?
ST: it’s been definitely great for me. I was quite a smooth transition. I was surprised, myself, when they called me last season. I stepped in and got really good comments right off the bat, so it kind of shocked me a little bit. This season was great, and after (the first three episodes) I wasn’t available for the rest of the season. I’ve been conducting the “So You Think You Can Dance Canada” tour, so I’ve kind of been bouncing back and forth. I feel very blessed in how great I’ve been received here in the American show after the Canadian one.

VB: When Mia Michaels announced she wasn’t going to be on the show this season, a lot of people were call you “The Next Mia Michaels.” Did you hear any of that, and what do you think of the comparison?
ST: I have heard bits and pieces of it. It is crazy and, of course, super flattering. I’ve known her for several years, and I used to dance for her, so she is really close to my heart. So it’s such a compliment. I would love to step in to her shoes, and maybe go a different way, or a similar way. I feel like I’m inspired by all the people that I’ve worked with or trained under, or choreographed beside, so if people are seeing that inspiration, that’s really flattering.

VB: How are the judges different between the American and Canadian versions of the show? Who’s more likely to criticize the choreography?
ST: I haven’t had too much critique of my choreography by the Canadian or American judges, but I know that I’m more nervous sitting in the crowd at the American show, because they have been known to take down a choreographer or two. They’ll just say if they don’t like the routine, or say it’s the reason why (the dancers) are in the bottom. They can be a little more harsh, which I don’t think is a bad thing, to be honest, because it keeps the standards of the show up. Sometimes the way they say it is a little tough, but anything goes.

VB: And we can expect to see you back on the American version next season, right?
ST: I hope so. I haven’t heard otherwise.

VB: Now, you spent quite a while working with another prominent Canadian, Celine Dion, right?
ST: Yes, in Vegas. I was with her show the whole five years, from the creation of the show all the way to the closing day of the show and it was an amazing experience.

VB: Since you’ve moved to Los Angeles, what do you miss most about Canada?
ST: Oh, Canada! Well, I’m married to an American, but I miss being around Canadians. Canadians have this reputation of being really super nice people, genuine people, and it’s really true. There’s just this sense of community, I guess because there’s less people in Canada. But what I miss most is my family in Edmonton. I have a little sister who’s 17 years younger than me, and I miss her a lot. I don’t miss the snow in Edmonton, that’s for sure, although I’m going home for Christmas.

VB: What does it mean to you be recognized as a Canadian dancer?
ST: I’m so proud to be acknowledged as a Canadian dancer and choreographer, especially in the business here in the States, just because I’d like to inspire any young dancers in Canada and let them know they can do it. I think back to my youth and I couldn’t wait to get out of Canada and go to New York or L.A., you know, the grass is always greener. It was a hard climb for me, getting my visa, getting my green card, fighting against all kinds of dancers. But now to go back home and have young dancers come to me and say, “You paved the way and I believe I can do this now because you showed me how,” it just makes me proud.

VB: What’s one thing Americans should know about Canada or Canadians?
ST: That we don’t live in an igloo. That we don’t say “eh” after everything. That’s a really tough one, because there’s all these stereotypes. Oh, they need to know what a tuque is, first and foremost. Nobody knows what a tuque is in America.

Let’s see, I’m trying to think about the things that make me react the most, when people go, “That’s so Canadian.” I think we could get over the reputation of being passive and really sweet. We’ll fight hard for things we want, too. We’ll stand up and do what we’re proud of, for sure. But it’s mostly the little things — the “eh,” and people actually asking me if I live in an igloo.

Oh, one other thing: Americans should take one look at a map and learn all the provinces and the capitals. People always tell me, “Oh, I know the provinces. There’s Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver…” And I’m, like, “No, no, and no.” We share a border, and there are only 13 (provinces and territories).

VB: Last question, Molson or Labatts?
ST: Molson, hands down.

It is freakin’ cold in Canada.

“Edmonton International Airport was the coldest place in Canada,” Peter Spyker, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, told the CBC on Sunday. “It was -46.1 [Celsius] without the wind chill. I believe at one point it got to -58 with the wind chill.”

Our handy Celsius-to-Fahrenheit conversion tells us that was 51-below-zero without the wind chill, and 72.4-below-zero with the wind chill.

Nonetheless, the Canadian spirit isn’t broken. Here’s a passage from the CBC report, which can be seen in its entirety here:

On Saturday, Calgary police duty Insp. Rob Williams was travelling on the northbound Macleod Trail near the 22X overpass when he spotted what appeared to be a large, multi-vehicle collision.

In fact, several cars had screeched to a halt when a tiny kitten, searching for a place to get out of the cold, had wandered onto the busy road, which has a 80 km/h speed limit.

The scared kitten climbed up into the engine compartment of one of the stopped cars, Williams said in a news release, and several drivers tried to retrieve the kitten with no luck.

Working together after nearly 30 minutes in 25 C conditions, one man jacked up the front of the small car while another crawled underneath.

Williams pushed the kitten down through a tiny opening to the undercarriage where it was safely retrieved.

Photo credit: