Erin Davis
Encyclopedia
Erin Davis is a popular media figure in Toronto
, Ontario
. At present she is a co-host of 98.1 CHFI
's Morning Show along with Mike Cooper
. She also appears regularly as an MC or keynote speaker for many local organizations and events in Toronto.
, Alberta
in 1962 to Canadian Air Force officer Don Davis and his wife Maureen. Along with her 3 sisters, Davis's childhood was spent in many different cities, as is typical of an Air Force family. She was raised in Ottawa
and Trenton, Ontario
, and England
. Growing up, she was always interested in music and singing, regularly joining her grandfather's orchestra.
When she graduated from high school (Nicholson Catholic College), she decided to pursue her performing further by studying Radio Broadcasting at Loyalist College
in Belleville, Ontario
. While she was there, she also kept busy hosting a radio show on CIGL-FM
in the afternoons and playing piano at a local restaurant in the evenings.
to work at CKLW
Windsor (aka The Big Eight), where she has the distinction of being the first female co-host in the Detroit market. Davis co-hosted the morning show on CKLW during its final years as a Top 40 station, and, along with many other employees of the station, was laid off in late 1984 when the station went to a mostly-automated Music of Your Life
format. From there, she moved to Toronto, Ontario to co-host Good Morning Toronto at CKO
Toronto, the flagship station of Canada's all-news radio network. This job led to her big breakthrough, when in 1988 she was asked to join popular morning show host Don Daynard
on the CHFI
morning show.
as Davis's co-host in the mornings. Together the new duo 'Bob and Erin' continued to maintain the high ratings up until spring 2003, when CHFI station executives decided to take the station in a different direction and released Davis, moving Magee to the "afternoon drive" shift. CHFI's morning drive time was given to Mad Dog and Billie
, later called Jay and Billie, with Jay Michaels
and Billie Holiday
.
offered her a chance to create her own daily live national television talk show. That fall she starred in W Live with Erin Davis, featuring guests and viewers discussing women's lifestyle, health and wellness issues.
Also that summer, Davis was contacted by Ross Petty
, a theatrical producer who was organizing his annual Christmas family pantomime
in Toronto. He invited her to audition for and she made her live theatre debut as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella
at Toronto's Elgin Theatre
in December for a month long run, concurrent with her daily television show.
had an opening in their morning show when host Christine Cardoso left on maternity leave
. After polling their listeners for ideas, Davis was an easy choice. On EZ-Rock, she joined Mike Cooper
hosting the morning show.
Toronto) and Global. Following that, Davis wrote and performed a nightly commentary on CFTO News in 1998 and 1999 called "Just So You Know". Then for more than 200 episodes across two seasons, she hosted a nightly talk show on Rogers Television
called The Erin Davis Show. The lifestyle and wellness program received an award in its second season as Canada’s best cable talk show.
and Variety Club during the team’s pennant and World Series
runs of the early 1990s. Davis has also sung national anthems at many Blue Jays, Maple Leafs
and Argonauts
games, and boasts a winning record for the home team.
Telethon on CBC
television. She is also very active with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
and has also worked for Sheena’s Place and the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
, for which she raised over $160,000 in the summer of 1998, simply by shaving her head. Davis has been saluted by the Empire Club, Variety Club and Toastmasters International for her public service work. In 2008, she established the Erin Davis Women in Radio Award at Loyalist College.
Woman Of Influence. In 2006 she was awarded the title of Woman of the Year for the Greater Toronto Area after a public survey by the Consumers Choice Award. Later that same year, she also acted as Grand Marshal of the 2006 Toronto St. Patrick's Day Parade. And most recently, she has received the Paul Harris fellowship, a Rotary
honour recognizing the highest public service.
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. At present she is a co-host of 98.1 CHFI
CHFI-FM
CHFI-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts an adult contemporary format at 98.1 on the FM dial in Toronto, Ontario. Like most Toronto radio and TV channels, it broadcasts atop the CN Tower with and ERP of 44 kW and has a sizeable amount of American listeners...
's Morning Show along with Mike Cooper
Mike Cooper (broadcaster)
Mike S. Cooper is a Canadian radio personality in Toronto, Canada, co-hosting the 98.1 CHFI morning show with Erin Davis. Cooper was born in Hamilton, Ontario.-Career:* Announcer at 1050 CHUM in Toronto...
. She also appears regularly as an MC or keynote speaker for many local organizations and events in Toronto.
Early life
Davis was born in EdmontonEdmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
in 1962 to Canadian Air Force officer Don Davis and his wife Maureen. Along with her 3 sisters, Davis's childhood was spent in many different cities, as is typical of an Air Force family. She was raised in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and Trenton, Ontario
Trenton, Ontario
Trenton is a community in Southern Ontario in the municipality of Quinte West, Ontario, Canada. Located on the Bay of Quinte, it is the main population centre in Quinte West....
, and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Growing up, she was always interested in music and singing, regularly joining her grandfather's orchestra.
When she graduated from high school (Nicholson Catholic College), she decided to pursue her performing further by studying Radio Broadcasting at Loyalist College
Loyalist College
Loyalist College is an English-language community college in Belleville, Ontario, Canada.- History :...
in Belleville, Ontario
Belleville, Ontario
Belleville is a city located at the mouth of the Moira River on the Bay of Quinte in Southern Ontario, Canada, in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. It is the seat of Hastings County, but is politically independent of it. and the centre of the Bay of Quinte Region...
. While she was there, she also kept busy hosting a radio show on CIGL-FM
CIGL-FM
CIGL-FM is a hot adult contemporary radio station broadcasting at 97.1 FM in Belleville, Ontario with the on-air branding "MIX 97 Quinte's Best Variety".-History:...
in the afternoons and playing piano at a local restaurant in the evenings.
Early work
After graduating from Loyalist College, was immediately hired by CIGL-FM. Six months later, she moved to Windsor, OntarioWindsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
to work at CKLW
CKLW
CKLW is a 50,000 watt AM radio station broadcasting on 800 kHz and located in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and serving Windsor and Detroit. Additionally, its signal can be heard as far west as Belding, Michigan; as far east as Batavia, New York; as far south as Edgewood, Kentucky; and as far...
Windsor (aka The Big Eight), where she has the distinction of being the first female co-host in the Detroit market. Davis co-hosted the morning show on CKLW during its final years as a Top 40 station, and, along with many other employees of the station, was laid off in late 1984 when the station went to a mostly-automated Music of Your Life
Music of Your Life
Music of Your Life is a satellite-delivered radio network featuring the Adult Standards music format. Created by record executive and jingle writer Al Ham, and now under the direction of Marc Angell, Music of Your Life has more than 50 AM, FM and HD-2 radio station affiliates, and has been in...
format. From there, she moved to Toronto, Ontario to co-host Good Morning Toronto at CKO
CKO
CKO was a Canadian radio news network which operated from 1977 to 1989. The CKO call sign was shared by twelve network-owned stations, as listed below....
Toronto, the flagship station of Canada's all-news radio network. This job led to her big breakthrough, when in 1988 she was asked to join popular morning show host Don Daynard
Don Daynard
Don Daynard, also billed as Dazzling Don, is a Canadian radio personality and a former television film critic.Daynard hosted CHFI-FM's morning drive time show from 1987 to 1999, for much of that time with co-host Erin Davis. Daynard continued to host Saturday Night Oldies for the station until his...
on the CHFI
CHFI-FM
CHFI-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts an adult contemporary format at 98.1 on the FM dial in Toronto, Ontario. Like most Toronto radio and TV channels, it broadcasts atop the CN Tower with and ERP of 44 kW and has a sizeable amount of American listeners...
morning show.
Working at CHFI
Shortly after Davis joined Daynard, 'Don and Erin' became the top rated morning show in the market. In March 1991, Davis gave birth to her daughter Lauren Davis. Thanks to the station setting up a temporary studio in her home, Davis was able to return to the air only one week later and broadcast the show from home for the next three months. Together, Don and Erin maintained high ratings through 1999, when Don Daynard retired and was replaced by Bob MageeBob Magee
Bob Magee is the professional name of Denny O'Neil, a Canadian radio personality. Formerly, he was co-host of the morning show on CING-FM in Toronto. Previously to that, he hosted the afternoon drive time show on Toronto's CHFI-FM from 2003 until 2009...
as Davis's co-host in the mornings. Together the new duo 'Bob and Erin' continued to maintain the high ratings up until spring 2003, when CHFI station executives decided to take the station in a different direction and released Davis, moving Magee to the "afternoon drive" shift. CHFI's morning drive time was given to Mad Dog and Billie
Mad Dog and Billie
Canadian broadcasters Jay "Mad Dog" Michaels and Billie Holiday hosted a succession of prominent morning drive time shows in the Toronto, Ontario radio market as Mad Dog and Billie, later Jay and Billie and then Mad Dog and Billie again.After CISS 92.5 FM Toronto, was acquired by Rogers...
, later called Jay and Billie, with Jay Michaels
Jay Michaels
Jay "Mad Dog" Michaels is a Canadian broadcaster who co-hosts The Breakfast Show with Mad Dog and Billie on Virgin Radio 999 in Toronto....
and Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (broadcaster)
Billie Holiday is the professional name of Canadian radio and television personality Amanda Dunn.The daughter of a retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, Holiday first became involved in radio at the age of 15....
.
Released from CHFI
After her sudden departure from radio, since the non-compete clause in her contract forbade her from being hired by another radio station for a year, Davis used her time to pursue other dreams. In the summer of 2003, the W NetworkW Network
W Network is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Corus Entertainment. W Network broadcasts lifestyle and entertainment programming aimed at women....
offered her a chance to create her own daily live national television talk show. That fall she starred in W Live with Erin Davis, featuring guests and viewers discussing women's lifestyle, health and wellness issues.
Also that summer, Davis was contacted by Ross Petty
Ross Petty
Ross Petty is a Canadian actor and theatre producer. He is best known for his eponymous production company, which stages family theatre productions in Toronto every holiday season.- Early career :...
, a theatrical producer who was organizing his annual Christmas family pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
in Toronto. He invited her to audition for and she made her live theatre debut as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
at Toronto's Elgin Theatre
Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres
The Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres are a pair of stacked theatres in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Winter Garden theatre is seven stories above the Elgin Theatre....
in December for a month long run, concurrent with her daily television show.
Working at EZ-Rock
On September 7, 2004, about 14 months after her abrupt departure from CHFI, Davis returned to Toronto radio. CHFI competitor EZ-RockCJEZ-FM
CHBM-FM is a radio station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada owned by Astral Media. It broadcasts an adult hits format at 97.3 FM and is branded as boom 97.3 - 70's, 80's, 90's, and is also the only adult hits station owned by Astral...
had an opening in their morning show when host Christine Cardoso left on maternity leave
Parental leave
Parental leave is an employee benefit that provides paid or unpaid time off work to care for a child or make arrangements for the child's welfare. Often, the term parental leave includes maternity, paternity, and adoption leave...
. After polling their listeners for ideas, Davis was an easy choice. On EZ-Rock, she joined Mike Cooper
Mike Cooper (broadcaster)
Mike S. Cooper is a Canadian radio personality in Toronto, Canada, co-hosting the 98.1 CHFI morning show with Erin Davis. Cooper was born in Hamilton, Ontario.-Career:* Announcer at 1050 CHUM in Toronto...
hosting the morning show.
Return to CHFI
Davis's stint with EZ-Rock ended earlier than expected in April 2005, when it became known that she had agreed to return to CHFI the following September. In addition, it was learned that Mike Cooper would be leaving EZ-Rock and joining her as co-host on the morning show at CHFI once his 6-month non-compete clause expired in late October. Together the two reunited at CHFI and continued to go strong there, putting CHFI back at the top of the Toronto ratings and holding it there.Off-air work
While still doing the morning show with Don, and later Bob, Davis also had several appearances on TV. She made a number of guest host appearances at CFTO (now CTVCTV television network
CTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
Toronto) and Global. Following that, Davis wrote and performed a nightly commentary on CFTO News in 1998 and 1999 called "Just So You Know". Then for more than 200 episodes across two seasons, she hosted a nightly talk show on Rogers Television
Rogers Television
Rogers TV, are community channels owned by Rogers Communications Inc. Many of these channels share common programs. Rogers TV broadcasts into the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and Ontario. Rogers TV is available only in communities served by Rogers' cable and...
called The Erin Davis Show. The lifestyle and wellness program received an award in its second season as Canada’s best cable talk show.
Public Appearances
While not on the radio doing the morning show, Davis regularly appears at various public events as both M.C. and Keynote Speaker. She is also an accomplished vocalist and fronted an oldies band for over 10 years. She was featured on three CDs for the Toronto Blue JaysToronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
and Variety Club during the team’s pennant and World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
runs of the early 1990s. Davis has also sung national anthems at many Blue Jays, Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
games, and boasts a winning record for the home team.
Charity work
Davis has participated in numerous charitable causes. Nearly every year she is one of the co-hosts on the Easter SealsEaster Seals
Easter Seals is an international charitable organization devoted to providing opportunities for children with physical disabilities. See*Easter Seals *Easter Seals *Easter Seals...
Telethon on CBC
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
television. She is also very active with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation is a charitable organization which raises money to advance research, education, diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Established in 1986, it works to fund, support, and advocate for education and awareness programs, early diagnosis and treatment of breast...
and has also worked for Sheena’s Place and the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada is a Canadian charitable organization whose mission is to fulfill the wishes of children diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses. Founded in 1983, the foundation has chapters in every province and territory of Canada. As of 2010 has granted over 16,000...
, for which she raised over $160,000 in the summer of 1998, simply by shaving her head. Davis has been saluted by the Empire Club, Variety Club and Toastmasters International for her public service work. In 2008, she established the Erin Davis Women in Radio Award at Loyalist College.
Honours and awards
For all of her work in the Toronto media, as well as her public speaking and charity work, Davis has been honoured by many different public organizations. In 2002, she was named ChatelaineChatelaine (magazine)
Chatelaine is an English-language Canadian magazine of women's lifestyles. Both Chatelaine and its French-language version, Châtelaine, are published monthly by Rogers Media, Inc., a division of Rogers Communications, Inc...
Woman Of Influence. In 2006 she was awarded the title of Woman of the Year for the Greater Toronto Area after a public survey by the Consumers Choice Award. Later that same year, she also acted as Grand Marshal of the 2006 Toronto St. Patrick's Day Parade. And most recently, she has received the Paul Harris fellowship, a Rotary
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
honour recognizing the highest public service.
External links
- Official website, where she writes a daily journal