ReLit Awards
2 appearances
-
Edition 4 (2004) Winner
-
Edition 11 (2011) Winner
Tony Burgess
トニー・バージェス
Tonī Bājesu
Aliases:
Tony Blue
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1959-09-07 （Toronto, Ontario）
- Nationality
- Canada
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Toronto, Ontario → Mississauga, Ontario → Parkdale, Toronto → Wasaga Beach, Ontario → Clearview, Ontario (Stayner area)
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Screenwriter, Poet, Painter, Actor, Musician
- Active Years
- 1997-2024
- Influenced By
- H. P. Lovecraft, Stephen Leacock, Alfred Jarry, Comte de Lautréamont, Guillaume Apollinaire, Jean Genet, Alain Robbe-Grillet, André Gide, Charlotte Brontë
- Nominations
- Nominated, Best Adapted Screenplay, 2010 Genie Award (Pontypool), Nominated, 2012 Ontario Trillium Award (Idaho Winter), Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Original Song, 2023
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applewood Heights Secondary School | — | — | High School Diploma | — | Canada |
| University of Toronto | — | Semiotics | 学士（記号論） | 1989-1995 | Canada |
Applewood Heights Secondary School
Degree:
High School Diploma
Year of Graduation:
1978
Country:
Canada
Graduated using day passes from a medium security facility
University of Toronto
Semiotics
Degree:
学士（記号論）
Period:
1989-1995
Year of Graduation:
1995
Country:
Canada
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Best Book of 1998 by NOW magazine | Pontypool Changes Everything | — | NOW magazine | winner |
| 2011 | ReLit Award, Short Fiction Category | Ravenna Gets | Short Fiction | ReLit | winner |
Best Book of 1998 by NOW magazine
1998
Work:
Pontypool Changes Everything
Organization:
NOW magazine
Result:
winner
ReLit Award, Short Fiction Category
2011
Work:
Ravenna Gets
Category:
Short Fiction
Organization:
ReLit
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Pontypool Changes Everything
1998 Horror/Suspense/Literary fictionA virus transmitted through language causes aphasia and zombie-like cannibalism in Ontario. Communication is banned to stop it, in a metaphysical narrative.
Language as infectionZombie apocalypseSmall-town collapseSemiotics
Adaptations
- [Film] Pontypool / Bruce McDonald (2008)
The Hellmouths of Bewdley
1997 Short story collection/Horror16 short stories set in Bewdley, Ontario, featuring insane doctors, supernatural dogs, dead men, and a ninja turtle.
Small-town OntarioSupernatural horrorAbsurdity
Ravenna Gets
2010 Short story collection/HorrorWheeled stories where Ravenna residents decide to kill Collingwood's population, each a unique homicide.
Mass homicideSudden violenceSmall-town conflict
Bibliography
- The Hellmouths of Bewdley
- Pontypool Changes Everything
- Caesarea
- Fiction for Lovers: A Small Bouquet of Flesh, Fear, Larvae, and Love
- Ravenna Gets
- People Live Still in Cashtown Corners
- Idaho Winter
- The n-Body Problem
Adaptations
- Pontypool (film, 2008)
- Septic Man (film, 2013)
- Hellmouth (film, 2014)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- literary horror fictionblended ultra-violent horror and absurdist humournightmarish narratives
- Recurring Motifs
- rural Southern Ontario townsoutbreaks of sudden violencepeople suddenly being not what they seemabsurdity and horror
Legacy
Renowned Canadian literary horror author for blending ultra-violent horror, absurdist humour in small-town Ontario tales, especially Pontypool trilogy. Also successful screenwriter.
Trivia
- Robbed a convenience store wearing his mother's blouse, spent 3 months in a medium security facility
- Banned from Toronto's Hotel Isabella for trying to burn tables with lit paper while drunk
- Active in Toronto's Queen Street West art and music scene as Tony Blue
- Worked as a telephone psychic and vinegar factory worker
- Married to crown attorney Rachel Jones, two children, lives in a reputedly haunted former funeral home