Frankie MacDonald

Frankie MacDonald (born April 24, 1984) is a Canadian amateur meteorologist from the Whitney Pier[2] area of Sydney, Nova Scotia.[3][4][5] MacDonald, who has autism,[3][6] is known for his boisterous online weather forecasts.[7] Frankie records meteorologist reports then he posts the videos to his YouTube channel (dogsandwolves),[6] where they have received more than 32 million views.[2][7] He also maintains a Twitter account and blog.[8] Weather reports MacDonald has produced include warnings for his home province of Nova Scotia, a snowstorm in Winnipeg, heavy rainfall in Vancouver,[9] a storm in Minnesota,[10] New York, Australia,[8] and Bermuda during Hurricane Gonzalo of 2014.[11]

Frankie MacDonald
Born (1984-04-24) April 24, 1984[1]
Sydney, Nova Scotia
NationalityCanadian
Known forInternet weather forecasts

Videos
People of Toronto, be prepared. Order your pizzas and order your Chinese food and five cases of pop because it's going to be a terrible snowstorm to hit Toronto, Ontario... have your iPads and your iPhones charged just in case the power goes out... do your grocery shopping right now. Don't wait for the last minute. Do it right now!"

--A sample of a forecast by Frankie MacDonald.[6]

MacDonald has published over 1,200 videos on YouTube, mostly weather forecasts, but also competitive eating, and how to properly shovel snow.

As a child, MacDonald wanted to be a weather forecaster.[12][13] He made his first scenery video on December 27, 2007.[2] On December 16, 2009, he made his first YouTube video.[2] MacDonald gained recognition in Canada for his posts to the Weather Network's website.[2]

His forecast predicting a Vancouver earthquake was featured on the program Tosh.0,[9][14] and BuzzFeed called his Hurricane Isaac forecast, "the only forecast you need for Hurricane Isaac."[15]

MacDonald's videos have turned him into an "internet weather-broadcasting sensation", with several hundreds of thousands of views for some videos;[16] his Minnesota forecast video reached over 150,000 views.[10] His forecasts have been picked up by media throughout the world,[17] and he has given weather forecasts for the Nova radio network in Australia.[18] MacDonald has presented the weather on the CBC[19] and has been featured in an online video series for Nova Scotia Power.[20]

In February 2017, MacDonald received a silver YouTube Play Button to commemorate the achievement of 100,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel.[21]

Reaction

MacDonald was included in CBC News's "Top 10 Newsmaking Stories of 2013 in Nova Scotia."[22] Additionally, MacDonald was awarded the Vital Cape Breton Excellence Award which honours Cape Breton islanders who have made significant contributions in the community.[2] He was also recognized for his work by Member of Parliament Mark Eyking in the House of Commons on February 4, 2015, during the Statements by Members session.[23][24] MacDonald has had his likeness made into a bobblehead and had his "be prepared" catchphrase featured on clothing.[25]

The videos have received both positive (including people thanking him for weather warnings) and negative feedback on YouTube; MacDonald tries to "ignore" the latter, insisting they are "rude and disrespectful."[6] The hosts of The Roz & Mocha Show on Toronto's Kiss 92.5 have been accused of being disrespectful when interviewing MacDonald,[7] but they deny this, claiming they are fans of MacDonald.[26] In 2013, false rumours of his death circulated online.[27]

Book

A book authored by and featuring MacDonald was published by Nimbus Publishing Limited of Halifax, Nova Scotia on 15 June 2018.[28] The book is titled Be Prepared: The Frankie MacDonald Guide to Life, the Weather, and Everything (ISBN 9781771085755) and lists both Frankie MacDonald and Sarah Sawler as authors, with Sawler also credited as contributor. It is intended for a juvenile to teen audience. The book is in part a biography, and covers a range of subjects including science & nature, earth sciences, autism, and weather. During the process Sawler consulted with Autism Nova Scotia and with MacDonald and his family to ensure she got everything right and presented it fairly.[28][29][30]

Parody

On January 30, 2015, the Halifax daily newspaper The Chronicle Herald published an editorial cartoon by their staff cartoonist Bruce MacKinnon, which featured Frankie MacDonald giving a forecast of the "Massive Boondoggle" of the overbudget reconstruction of the schooner Bluenose II.[31]

On September 14, 2019, The Chronicle Herald again featured Frankie in another editorial cartoon by Bruce MacKinnon which featured Frankie MacDonald giving a 'Be Prepared' warning for hurricane preparation that included the advice that construction sites lower their cranes, related to a recent incident in Halifax where a construction crane collapsed during Hurricane Dorian.[32]

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References
  1. "Security Check Required".
  2. Jala, David. "Frankie MacDonald, Cape Breton's weatherman extraordinaire". Cape Breton Post. Archived from the original on 13 December 2014.
  3. Edwards, Rob (28 February 2014). "Canadian Weather Enthusiast Really, Really Wants Missouri to Prepare for Winter Weather [VIDEO]". KSIS Radio. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  4. Garrison, Chad (28 February 2014). "Weather Amateur Weatherman's Warning for Missouri Is Kinda Spectacular". Riverfront Times. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015.
  5. Bartholomew, Dustin (4 December 2013). "Internet sensation Frankie MacDonald posts weather warning for Arkansas". Fayetteville Flyer. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018.
  6. Curtis, Rush (26 February 2013). "Weather reports cause storm: Autistic Frankie MacDonald tells critics "I have a good heart"". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  7. Goodyear, Sheena (27 February 2013). "T.O. DJ slammed for treatment of autistic Cape Breton YouTube star". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  8. "Edmonton Snowstorm: Frankie MacDonald Warns Of Winter Weather (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. 1 November 2013. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  9. Ferreras, Jesse (15 November 2014). "Frankie MacDonald Weather Warning For Vancouver (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  10. "Frankie MacDonald, amateur forecaster, busy with winter storms". CBC News. 20 December 2013. Archived from the original on 7 October 2014.
  11. "YouTube Star warns Bermuda about Gonzalo". bernews. 16 October 2014. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014.
  12. "Frankie MacDonald, amateur weatherman, makes international news". CBC.ca. Jan 29, 2015. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015.
  13. Pottie, Erin (28 January 2015). "Whitney Pier's top weatherman 'a national treasure'". The Chronicle Herald. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015.
  14. "Tosh.0 Tuesday, Jun 29, 2010". Tosh.0. Comedy Central. Jun 29, 2010.
  15. Laessig, Gavon. "The Only Forecast You Need For Hurricane Isaac". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015.
  16. "Cape Breton amateur weather man is a viral video star". CBC News. 25 February 2013. Archived from the original on 7 October 2014.
  17. "So, what does Frankie have to say about all this?". Cumberland News Now. 26 March 2014. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  18. "Frankie McDonald doing the Nova weather". Nova 96.9 Radio. 27 June 2013. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Popular Youtube user Frankie McDonald was kind enough to record a weather report for Kate Ritchie and Sam Mac on Wednesday the 26th of June!
  19. Barrell, Ryan (29 January 2015). "Autistic Weather Enthusiast Frankie MacDonald Given His Own Segment On Cape Breton News Show". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 2 February 2015.
  20. "Frankie MacDonald makes cameo in Nova Scotia Power online videos". 31 December 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  21. Jala, David (11 February 2017). "Frankie MacDonald recognized for online popularity". Cape BretonPost. Archived from the original on 10 February 2017.
  22. "Top 10 newsmaking stories of 2013 in Nova Scotia". CBC News. 1 January 2014. Archived from the original on 7 October 2014.
  23. "Recognizing Frankie MacDonald". Archived from the original on 9 March 2016.
  24. "Whitney Pier Youtube sensation's star on the rise". Cape Breton Post. 5 February 2015. Archived from the original on 6 February 2015.
  25. "The forecast calls for Frankie MacDonald bobbleheads!". The Chronicle Herald. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05.
  26. "The Roz & Mocha Show LOVE Youtube Weather Icon Frankie MacDonald... CBC Nova Scotia Says Otherwise". Kiss 92.5. Archived from the original on 2014-10-13.
  27. Lomax, John Nova (30 October 2013). "Bad Weather For HOUSTON TEXAS". Houstonia. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
  28. "Be Prepared". Nimbus Publishing. 15 June 2018. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018.
  29. "Be prepared: Frankie MacDonald's book hits Maritime stores". CTV News. 15 June 2018. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018.
  30. "New book tells the singular story of YouTube weather sensation Frankie MacDonald". thestar.com. 20 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018.
  31. "2015-01-30 - Editorial Cartoon". Chronicle Herald. 30 January 2015. Archived from the original on 11 August 2018.
  32. "BRUCE MacKINNON CARTOON: Sept. 14, 2019". Chronicle Herald. 14 September 2019. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019.
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