Trudeaumania
Trudeaumania was the affectionate nickname given to the great excitement generated by Pierre Trudeau's entry into Canadian politics in 1968.
Many young people in Canada at this time were influenced by the 1960s counterculture and identified with Trudeau, a young, energetic, nonconformist. Young people could identify with this man; he once sympathized with Marxists and had spent time in the democratic socialist Cooperative Commonwealth Federation. Young people were attracted to his stance on human rights, including the rights of homosexuals and women (he legalized homosexuality and created fairer divorce laws as Justice Minister under Lester B. Pearson).
Trudeau was admired by his fans for his laid-back attitude and his celebrity relationships; in that word's prevailing use at the time, describing a modern, hip and happening person, he was described as a swinger.
Many young people were dazzled by Trudeau's charm and good looks, and a large fan base was established throughout the country. He would often be stopped in the streets for his autograph or for a quick photograph with one of his fans.
Trudeaumania began to fizzle after Pierre Trudeau married Margaret Sinclair in 1971, but he is remembered to this day as one of Canada's most loved politicians and prime ministers, while at the same time, the most hated politican in the western provinces, and by conservative thinkers. He was named the Canadian Newsmaker of the 20th Century by the Canadian Press at the dawn of the year 2000. When he died later that year, there was an outpouring of public grief, and he was again named Newsmaker of the Year for 2000 itself. In 2004, he was voted the third-Greatest Canadian by CBC viewers, coming behind public health care champion Tommy Douglas and cancer activist Terry Fox.
A Canadian board game popular in the early 1980s, True Dough Mania, was titled with a pun on the phenomenon. The game was a satire on Canadian politics.
Today, Trudeaumania is fondly recalled by Central and Eastern Canadians, while almost universally reviled in Western Canada It was a phenomenon unique in Canadian politics that turned a politician into a pop culture icon.