Georgina
July 21, 2008 02:35 PM
By: By John Slykhuis, Staff Writer
Although he officially has a Toronto address, Georgina can lay claim to one of Canadian Idol's top prospects tonight on CTV.
Mookie Morris, 18, who has won acclaim from the judges for his unique performances, spends a lot of time at his family's other home in Island Grove.
The family is pretty excited about Mookie's rise to fame in the popular show, Mookie's uncle, Neil Morris, who lives in Keswick, said.
He is among the nine finalists, but will need a big push of fan phone votes to keep going.
"I didn't actually watch the show, but now that he's on, we're all watching."
Last week, despite praise from the judges, Toronto voters didn't come up to the plate and Mookie landed in the bottom three.
They better this time or Mookie might be headed up to Georgina to enjoy the lake sooner than he'd like.
"Straight up, Toronto's gotta get out and vote," Canadian Idol judge Farley Flex said.
His uncle hopes Georgina residents will do their best to call in those votes, in anticipation Mookie just might make a surprise appearance at this year's Georgina Idol competition at the Sutton Fair Aug. 7.
So how did he end up with the name "Mookie"? (His real name is Peter).
"His father, John, told me that he was at a (Toronto) Blue Jays game and he left to be with his wife who was giving birth to Mookie."
As he was being born, Blue Jays favourite Mookie Wilson made —as Mookie Morris himself tells it — the game-winning hit.
Due to the timing, Peter became Mookie and the handle has stuck ever since.
Mookie has since become so popular, he has his own rapidly growing fan club The Mooksters.
Neil said if Mookie makes it, the Orchard Beach Tavern in Keswick will host a Mookie Night next Monday.
The show starts at 9 p.m. and the phone lines will be open for two hours after the show ends.