Ross McLean (film producer)
| John Ross McLean | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | John Ross McLean 5 July 1905 Ethelbert, Manitoba, Canada |
| Died | 26 July 1984 (aged 79) Ottawa, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Civil Servant, Journalist |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Alma mater |
University of Manitoba (M.A.) University of Oxford (B.Litt.) University of Oxford (M.Litt.) |
| Spouse | Beverley Cosh |
| Children | Digby, Yolande |
John Ross McLean, the 11th of 12 children of a Northern Manitoba minister and farmer, was born in the small prairie village of Ethelbert in 1905. He became a Canadian journalist and civil servant. In the latter role he served as the Commissioner of the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) in the 1940s, having previously been instrumental in the foundation of the Board the previous decade.
In the 1920s McLean studied at Brandon College, and then later at the University of Manitoba. After gaining his MA from Manitoba in 1927, he won a Rhodes Scholarship to Balliol College at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. After completing his academic career in 1931, he moved to work in the United States, for the Unemployment Relief Commission of Northern Illinois. In 1932 he returned to Canada, working for the Association of Canadian Clubs and also engaging in a journalistic career. He wrote for Saturday Night and Canadian Forum magazines, and in 1935 became the National Liberal Federation's editor of publications.
In 1936 he was appointed the personal secretary to the Canadian High Commissioner the United Kingdom, Vincent Massey. In 1938 Massey and McLean discussed how unimpressed they were by the standard of films produced by the Canadian Government Motion Picture Bureau. McLean had seen and admired the work of British documentary film-maker John Grierson, and suggested to Massey that he should persuade the Canadian government to allow Grierson to compile a report into its film-making activities. This report led, in 1939, to the formation of the new National Film Board, with Grierson in charge.
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