Hamilton’s former CHCH Telecentre being replaced with affordable housing

A piece of Hamilton television history is being torn down.

The former CHCH Telecentre on King Street West had been rundown for more than a decade, but will now be replaced with affordable housing.

While the building may be gone, the memories of the shows filmed there live on.

Some of this station’s most popular shows, such as “Tiny Talent Time,” were filmed at the CHCH Telecentre.

“Absolutely Tiny Talent Time with Bill Lawrence,” says CHCH Camera Operator Duane Worth. “In the old days, I didn’t work on it, but wrestlers used to work out of there and Gilbert’s Big and Tall across the street used to cater to them. That’s where they got all their clothing.”

In fact, the owners of Gilbert’s Big & Tall Clothing credit the wrestlers with helping their business thrive.

“Back in the day when Bob Hope was over there doing a little video and coming across the street to meet my parents. And of course there was all the wrestling going on at that time, Sweet Daddy Siki, Whipper Watson, and those guys were always coming into the store, getting their jackets and suits made,” said Tom Lazich, of Gilbert’s Big & Tall. “That’s how it started with the big and tall program.”

“I started in ’81, I worked with two legendary lighting guys … we used to light Tiny Talent Time, New Faces, we did the Smith & Smith show there, which was the origins of The Red Green Show,” Worth said. “It was just a wonderful building to work in. It had a state-of-the-art grid that came from England, so for its day it was really high tech.”

While it may have been amazing back in the day, for more than a decade it has been in rough shape.

“It’s a bummer, but it’s progress. The building was old, let me tell you, we had asbestos in there we had to fix it up. It had its time, it was great while it was there,” says former CHCH Camera Operator, Dave Cremasco.

“It was the old Kenmore Theatre, so it had a front marquee and it was starting to collapse and they had to chain it up to make sure it stayed. The building was in poor-repair for the last 26 years.”

Indwell bought the property this summer and, once it is fully demolished, will build 50 affordable housing units in its place.

“It’s good, Hamilton needs housing so it’s going to be put to a good use. It’s a good location right on King Street. It was a little hard for us, we never had parking while we were there,” says Worth.

“15 years it’s been kind of empty and going away. Definitely it’s going to clean up the area and it will be fantastic when this is done,” says Lazich.

“I always said all we did there at CH was have fun, then TV got in the way,” says Cremasco.

READ MORE: Former CHCH studio on King Street West being demolished