Roughnecks, Wildcats and
Doodlebugs
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A unique feature of the website is the inclusion of
CKUA Radio Network Inc.'s 24-part documentary and 60
minute video entitled
Roughnecks, Wildcats and Doodlebugs
Part 16: Promoters and
Pitchmen
Petroleum stock buyers beware!
During the early years of oil and gas exploration in
Alberta there were a lot of fly-by-night stock
sellers. Some stock was sold for wells that did not
exist, with drilling sometimes undertaken as a means
for selling shares, rather than for geological
research. One company even drilled two holes about a
half mile apart, with the second hole angling
towards the first. By pumping oil into the second
hole, it seemed as if the first hole was producing
oil. The company then sold a pile of stock for the
“producing” well. In many cases, people were very
gullible and a lot of money was handed over and
lost.
Here then, are the schemes and scams of those
silver tongued pitchmen who made deals that were too
often too good to be true.
This episode features the voices of
Geoff
Andrews ,
John Ballem , Tiny Bevans,
Thelma Cameron ,
Charles Hetherington,
Aubrey Kerr ,
Eddie Laborde ,
Fin Lineham ,
Mary Macrae , D.P. McDonald,
Archie
Miller ,
Carl Nickle ,
Lauder Nowers ,
Jack Pettinger ,
Jack Porter, Bruce Watson
Part 17: Scribes in the
Field - the Journalists
As the oil
industry in Alberta came into its own, there were
those whose job it was to record the events as they
happened. Thus, a new style of business reporting
known as "petroleum journalism" was born.
In 1937,
radio reporter Carl Nickle started an industry
newsletter known as ""The Daily Oil Bulletin"". Ten
years later, with the discovery at Leduc No. 1, many
new trade magazines blossomed. In 1948, ""Oil In
Canada"" magazine made its debut. In 1952, a new
magazine called ""Roughneck"" entered the scene,
focusing on the more social aspects of the industry,
rather than the technical.. Two years later, in
1954, Vern Myers entered the fray with his
publication ""Oil Week"", a magazine that explored
the more political side of petroleum production.
Pioneers of the petroleum reporting industry such
as reporter Les Rowland, and cartoonist Yardley
Jones, discuss the growth of such reporting as it
took place alongside the evolution of the oil patch
in Alberta.
This episode features the voices of
Thelma
Cameron , Frank Dabbs, Charles Hetherington, Lloyd
Gilmour, Yardley Jones,
Aubrey Kerr ,
Eddie Laborde ,
Carl Nickle , Les Rowland, Hal Yurksa.
Part 18: Million Dollar
Deals on a Handshake: Executive Etiquette
When Alberta petroleum production was young, the oil
industry was a tight-knit community where a man’s
word was his bond and a handshake sealed the deal.
At the executive level, one was allowed to be
ruthless in negotiating a deal, but was also
expected to honour that deal once the handshake was
made. On the front lines, honour could take many
forms, from the "toolpush" - the field manager - who
gained the respect of his men by not sending them
into a task he wasn't willing to do himself, to the
workers in general, who gave their company absolute
loyalty, and who expected such loyalty from their
company in return.
Find out more about the traditional honour and
etiquette of the oil industry, virtues some pioneers
in the field say is lacking in the contemporary
world of oil production.
This episode features the voices of
Bill Allen ,
Jean Angus,
John Ballachey ,
John Ballem ,
Thelma
Cameron ,
Gorden Connell , Frank Dabbs,
Garnet
Edwards ,
Aubrey Kerr ,
Eddie Laborde ,
Doug Layer ,
Archie Miller ,
Scov Murray ,
Lauder Nowers , Ed
Phillips, Les Rowland,
Tom Wark .