Hugo McPherson

Hugo McPherson (born August 28, 1921) is a Canadian professor, who served as Canada's Government Film Commissioner from 1967 until 1970. In this position he was the Chairman of the National Film Board of Canada.

McPherson was born in Sioux Lookout, Ontario. He was educated at the Provincial Normal School in Edmonton, Alberta, and later at the University of Manitoba, The University of Western Ontario and the University of Toronto.

McPherson was a lecturer at several academic institutions: McGill University, the University of Manitoba, the University of British Columbia, the University of Toronto, Yale University and the University of Western Ontario. He also worked in radio, hosting the programme CJBC Views the Shows on the Toronto-based Canadian Broadcasting Corporation station CJBC.

When he was working at the University of Toronto he had an office near Phyllis Grosskurth, who later remembered McPherson and recommended him to Secretary of State for Canada Judy LaMarsh when LaMarsh was selecting a new Government Film Commissioner in 1967. McPherson was an admirer of the media theory of Marshall McLuhan, whose work he praised during his interview for the National Film Board (NFB) role. McPherson was offered and accepted the role, although some staff at the NFB were suspicious of their new Chairman, thinking that he had only been appointed due to political connections.

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