# How well-known is Terry Fox outside of Canada? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 16, 2012, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917 "2012-09-16T22:24:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/41 "2012-09-17T13:00:52Z")
I only know him because my kids live in Canada and my son dis some class project on him. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/42 "2012-09-17T15:06:50Z")
> [@FloatyGimpy](#): > > Really? You aren’t even able to figure out that he’s talking about a person?? I kind of inferred that all on my own, thanks. The personal pronouns were kind of a tipoff. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/43 "2012-09-17T15:13:51Z")
I’m afraid I’m one of the “who?” respondents. Having googled him, I’m now in the “aaaaah” field, and reasonably sure I’d never heard of the gentleman before this thread. Spaniard, '68 vintage. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/44 "2012-09-17T15:16:37Z")
I’m a Canadaphile, but I pay no attention to sports news, and I had no television throughout the 1980s. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/45 "2012-09-17T16:28:25Z")
American. I had heard of him, but only knew that he had something to do with running, no details. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/46 "2012-09-17T16:35:19Z")
US, 53 years old.I guessed some sort of hockey star, then googled. ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/47 "2012-09-17T16:40:05Z")
Californian, 42 years old, I know about him but I’m a long-distance runner - if I wasn’t I have a feeling I wouldn’t know about him. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/48 "2012-09-17T16:46:48Z")
Also grew up with HBO in the early 80’s, so yep. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/49 "2012-09-17T18:00:55Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > I didn’t recognize the name, but when I saw that you referred to his story being sad I had a feeling that he was “That Guy” who I remember reading about. > I googled to confirm, and yes, that’s the guy I was thinking you probably meant. I do remember hearing about his story before even though his name is not well known. Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/50 "2012-09-17T18:12:24Z")
I voted “other”, because I considered him “well known” at the time of his run, but that was many years ago, and I haven’t heard anything about him lately. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/51 "2012-09-17T18:28:17Z")
US, 57, think I’ve heard the name but since I could summon up zero info other than “think I’ve heard the name” I voted “Who?” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/52 "2012-09-17T18:29:35Z")
55, in Arizona. All I know about him is that he has never been in my kitchen. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/53 "2012-09-17T18:31:36Z")
Hmmm…when I heard the name I thought "either he’s the guy that ran across the country for cancer, or he’s the guy that murdered the prostitutes and fed them to the hogs. " Now off to find the hog farmer… StG ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/54 "2012-09-17T18:54:06Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > US, 42 hrs old. Very famous. I think most Americans who are unaware if him, are so because of their age (too young), not because of their not being Canadian. (In other words, his fame as a household name was rather fleeting, at least in the US.) I’m 45. Before I looked if up if you put a gun to my head I wouldn’t have been able to remember who he was by his name. After looking him up I remembered the story. But its been 20 something years since I heard the name. > [@Shakes](#): > > On Google I had to type all the way to Terry F… before Google brought up his name. And even then he was the fifth one down the list. Peope who beat him were: > > Terry Fator > Terry Francona > Terry funk (I wanna know who Terry Funk is.) > Terry Farrell Now Terry Funk I know right away. Old time hard nosed wrestler. Sometime actor. He was one of the bad guys in _Roadhouse_. See, my brain knows how to prioritize. ---
**Author:** ![phreesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@phreesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phreesh)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/55 "2012-09-17T18:55:59Z")
The OP didn’t provide any context, so, FYI, he tried to run across Canada with one leg to raise money for cancer research (cancer claimed his one leg). Unfortunately, he relapsed during the run and soon died. He became a national symbol for fortitude and is considered one of our greatest citizens. There are annual runs across the country - Terry Fox Runs - that continue to raise money for cancer research. Another one-legged cancer survivor - Steve Fonyo - repeated his feat and successfully ran across the country. Unfortunatley, he was something of a drunken loser and is one of the few people to have ever received the Order of Canada (pretty much our highest citizen honour) and then had it stripped for being an embarrassment to the honour. Terry died several decades ago, but pretty much every Canadian knows who he is/was. ---
**Author:** ![PandaBear77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@PandaBear77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PandaBear77)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/56 "2012-09-17T19:42:23Z")
I read about him in one of my trivia books. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/57 "2012-09-17T19:43:34Z")
> [@phreesh](#): > > The OP didn’t provide any context, so, FYI, he tried to run across Canada with one leg to raise money for cancer research (cancer claimed his one leg). Unfortunately, he relapsed during the run and soon died. > > He became a national symbol for fortitude and is considered one of our greatest citizens. There are annual runs across the country - Terry Fox Runs - that continue to raise money for cancer research. > > Another one-legged cancer survivor - Steve Fonyo - repeated his feat and successfully ran across the country. Unfortunatley, he was something of a drunken loser and is one of the few people to have ever received the Order of Canada (pretty much our highest citizen honour) and then had it stripped for being an embarrassment to the honour. > > Terry died several decades ago, but pretty much every Canadian knows who he is/was. So you’re saying that the answer to “How well known is Terry Fox outside of Canada” is he is well-known in Canada? ---
**Author:** ![Monstera\_deliciosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monstera_deliciosa/32/109_2.png) [@Monstera\_deliciosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstera_deliciosa)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/58 "2012-09-17T19:56:04Z")
From the US, in my early 50s. Yes, I heard about him at the time of his run, and remembered his name. But I’m not surprised that so many people, including folks in my age group, haven’t heard of him. So I voted the second option. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/59 "2012-09-17T20:41:48Z")
American here. I was in high school when he made his run, and probably at least heard a little about it then. I do know more about him now, but that’s almost entirely because I’m now a runner myself, and see him described from time to time in running magazines and web sites. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917/60 "2012-09-17T20:46:49Z")
Early 40s, American. I know who he is although I’m not super familiar with all the details. This thread proves my vote that “I know him but he’s not well-known” (outside of Canada). The main reasons I know who he was is that 1) my wife is half Canadian and 2) I saw a big monument to him on a trip to Canada once, but I don’t remember where. Probably wherever he started his run - Halifax maybe? ETA: Ah, he started in Newfoundland, so it wasn’t there. Hmm. Where is that statue? ETA2: Thunder Bay! Where he stopped. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-well-known-is-terry-fox-outside-of-canada/634917.md?page=4)