A powerful biography of John P. Robarts, one of Ontario’s most popular premiers

John Parmenter Robarts was a man who lived hard, died hard, and accomplished much in the process. Chosen premier of Ontario in 1961, Robarts transformed Canada’s largest provincial government into a modern, sophisticated operation. When he called an election in 1963, he won the highest percentage of the popular vote in Ontario’s post-war history—48.9 percent—a record that still stands.

But for all his public success, Robarts struggled with the demons that plagued his private life. Like John F. Kennedy, his carousing and womanizing were legendary. After divorcing his first wife, he married a woman almost thirty years his junior, embarking upon a stormy relationship.

His world collapsed in 1977 when his son, Tim, committed suicide. In 1981, Robarts suffered a series of debilitating strokes, and in despair, he ended his own life. The achievements of John P. Robarts were monumental, but for all his public triumph, his personal life was ultimately tragic.

Steve Paikin is anchor and senior editor of The Agenda with Steve Paikin, TVO’s flagship current affairs program since 2006. He has written three previous books on politics, including Paikin and the Premiers, and one on hockey. Paikin has spent thirty years in journalism, twenty of them at Ontario’s provincial broadcaster. He lives in Toronto.

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