Rachel McAdams, Hayley Wickenheiser to get stars on Canada’s Walk of Fame

By Laura Kane, The Canadian Press

TORONTO – Olympic hockey star Hayley Wickenheiser, actors Rachel McAdams and Ryan Reynolds, and former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour are among the latest inductees to Canada’s Walk of Fame.

Canadian-American innovators the Band will also get a star, as will Jeff Healey, the blind blues-rock guitarist who died in 2008.

Arbour, an internationally acclaimed lawyer known for her human rights achievements, said Tuesday that she felt “terrifically honoured” to be recognized alongside so many famous faces.

“I have to say I was a little taken aback,” she said with a laugh. “I haven’t worked in a profession that generates this kind of star status.

“To the extent that anything I’ve done in my work can serve to encourage young lawyers, but also the public generally to have confidence in its legal system … then I’m very happy on top of being very honoured.”

Canada’s Walk of Fame celebrates Canadians who have achieved excellence in a variety of areas, ranging from music, television and film to sports, science, innovation and literature.

Honorees’ names are engraved on stars, which are then displayed on the sidewalks of King Street West and Simcoe Street in the downtown Entertainment District.

Wickenheiser tweeted Tuesday that she felt “very honoured and in great class of other recipients from so many walks of life.”

“Feel proud to represent women’s hockey,” added the Saskatchewan-born forward, who has helped lead Canada’s team to Olympic gold four times.

Arbour, 67, was born in Montreal and her extraordinary career has taken her all over the globe. In 1996, she was appointed by the UN Security Council as chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.

She made history with the indictment of a sitting head of state, Yugoslavian president Slobodan Milosevic, in May 1999.

Arbour recalled in an interview that she brought down the indictment at the height of the NATO airstrikes in Kosovo, while Milosevic was still immensely popular in his own country.

“It was very challenging to ensure we had a solid case,” she said. “He died in the course of his trial so there was never closure, but I remain convinced that we brought charges that were very solid and well-documented.”

She sat on the Supreme Court of Canada between 1999 and 2004. She then joined the United Nations, where she served as High Commissioner for Human Rights until 2008.

When she reflects on her storied career, Arbour, who is now in private practice, said the best advice she can give aspiring lawyers is to be adventurous.

“Judging from my own career, there’s no point planning anything,” she said. “You should have your metaphorical suitcase always packed and ready to go, if you have that kind of spirit of adventure and innovation that obviously I had. This only comes with hindsight.”

Melanie Hurley, chief executive officer of Canada’s Walk of Fame, said this year’s “really good” list of inductees was selected from more than 50,000 nominations from across Canada and around the world.

“I think we have phenomenal talent in Canada that is very diverse,” she said. “When you read the quotes from some of the stars who have been inducted, what is so important to them is that they are being recognized at home.”

She praised all the inductees, calling Wickenheiser a “Canadian hero.”

“She’s somebody that we really should celebrate. She represents Canada and success. She’s well known on an international scale and (she’s) an amazing human being as well,” said Hurley.

Reynolds and McAdams have both achieved success in Hollywood but have strong Canadian roots.

McAdams was born in London, Ont., and studied theatre at York University before her breakout roles in 2004’s “Mean Girls” and “The Notebook.” She went on to play Irene Adler in Guy Ritchie’s “Sherlock Holmes” and appear in Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris.”

Reynolds, 37, hails from Vancouver and most recently played a distraught father in Atom Egoyan’s kidnapping thriller “The Captive.” He’s also known for starring roles in “Green Lantern” and “Buried.”

Being inducted posthumously is Healey, the jazz and blues-rock singer and guitarist whose heyday was in the 1980s and 1990s. Born in Toronto, he lost his sight as an infant to a rare eye cancer.

“We really do miss him,” said Hurley. “What can you say? He’s phenomenal. … He’s a musician that everyone admires.”

As for the Band, whose iconic song “The Weight” was a 1960s anthem, Hurley said “who knows” why they haven’t been inducted until now.

“It’s because we have so much great talent!” she exclaimed. “Songs like ‘The Weight,’ and ‘Up on Cripple Creek,’ they are a shoe-in to me. It’s going to be pretty exciting to have Robbie Robertson and Garth Hudson here.”

The inductees will be celebrated at an awards show at Toronto’s Sony Centre for the Performing Arts on Oct. 18. The televised special will air on Global and Slice on Dec. 19 at 8 p.m.

It was announced Monday that alternative R&B singer the Weeknd would receive the Allan Slaight Award at the event.

The annual award recognizes “young, inspirational Canadians who have achieved international success” and comes with a $100,000 honorarium.

In August, 21-year-old singer-songwriter Sarah Felker, known by the stage name NEFE, won the RBC Emerging Artist Music Prize. She will receive $25,000 along with opportunities to perform at Walk of Fame events.

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