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Most people never stop to wonder how a news story finds its way onto the page. But for Cal Millar, former Windsor Star reporter, the path from tip-off to headline has always been a story worth telling. Now 82, Millar pulls back the curtain in his new memoir, My Life as a Reporter, offering an insider’s look at the craft, chaos, and camaraderie behind the byline.
Millar’s journalism journey began in 1965, when he made the leap from covering sports in Chatham to chasing news at the Windsor Star’s Leamington Bureau. “I like to be out and about,” he chuckles, recalling his early days. It was a strategic move – leaving the Greater Toronto Area for Essex County meant more opportunity, more action, and, as it turned out, some unforgettable stories.
He remembers the folks at the Star fondly. “The editors were phenomenal. They believed in hiring young reporters fresh out of J-School, and that meant tremendous opportunity.” He credits those early years, filled with encouragement from seasoned editors and mentorship from experienced reporters, as foundational to his career.
But it wasn’t all newsroom banter and bylines. Millar’s first real test came just before Christmas 1966, when a school bus accident near Windsor shook the community. A dump truck skidded on ice, overturned, and spilled 25 tons of sand onto a bus packed with children. Eight children were killed, and 16 others survived, rescued by determined emergency crews. This December marks the 60th anniversary of the tragedy.
“That was one of my first stories…and it was horrific,” Millar recalls. “I had no idea the extent of the situation—it was mayhem.” But amidst the chaos, he found the heart of the story: the bus driver, who, grief-stricken, shared memories of the children he’d driven for years. “He just opened his heart to me. It was Christmas. That kind of access, that trust, was something reporters were given back then.”
Another early assignment saw Millar braving a storm in Wheatley. “There was no rolling news coverage, no cell phones. I recall sitting in a local family’s kitchen, calling in my report as a wave washed the porch away.”
He remembers standing in driveways and fields, scribbling in notepads, and always racing the clock to meet deadlines. Driving around looking for a phone booth to call in a story was an everyday challenge.
Working at the Star, especially as a solo reporter in Leamington, was both challenging and rewarding. “You had to find the stories behind the stories—those hidden, human-interest angles that others might overlook. And one story always seemed to lead to another.”
After Windsor, Millar’s career took him to the Toronto Telegram—then the biggest paper in Canada. When the Telegram folded, he helped launch the Toronto Sun, and later joined the Toronto Star, where he covered some of the most consequential events of the late 20th century.
From the devastation of the 1987 Edmonton tornadoes to the tragic sinking of a schooner off Bermuda, Millar was often at the centre of breaking news. But nothing would compare to September 11, 2001. He was on his way to New York when his assignment changed, sending him to a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where United Airlines Flight 93 had crashed.
“I filed that story on a Radio Shack TRS-80 computer. It was revolutionary—an eight-inch screen, a telephone coupler, and you’d pray the connection held. Before that, you’d dictate every word over the phone to the rewrite desk.”
The business, Millar notes, has changed dramatically. “The immediacy of news sharing today is staggering. Everyone is racing to break the story faster. But the fundamentals haven’t changed—developing close sources, finding people with inside information, that’s what makes a great reporter.”
He laments what’s been lost in the digital age. “We don’t see as much local coverage. The industry is still searching for new business models. And freedom of information is harder to obtain amid growing privacy concerns.”
So, any advice for budding journalists?
“There are still opportunities out there, but you need to file convergently—one story, several media. Keep your curiosity. Ask tough questions. Don’t just accept ‘no comment’—push for answers. And know that it’s a demanding career. You miss a lot of home life. You’re never really off duty—even when you’re home, you’re finishing the story. It’s not always stable, but for me, it’s been a fascinating and remarkable career.”
At its heart, My Life as a Reporter is about more than headlines. It’s about the trust between reporter and source, the pursuit of truth, and the enduring power of storytelling. Cal Millar’s reflections remind readers that behind every byline is a reporter with a notebook, a deadline, and a passion for telling the story.
My Life as a Reporter is available on Amazon.
Cal Millar can be reached at cal.millar@sympatico.ca.
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