Goodbye Honest Ed's

Honest Ed's was a landmark discount store located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was named for its proprietor, Ed Mirvish, who opened the store in 1948 and oversaw its operations for almost 60 years, until his death in 2007. The store continued in operation until it was permanently closed on December 31, 2016. Honest Ed's was an iconic store.
The exterior was covered with huge red and yellow signs advertising the name of the store, lit up like a theatre marquee. The store sign used 23,000 light bulbs.The outside facade is covered with puns and slogans such as "Come in and get lost!" and "Only the floors are crooked!"

Wandering around the kitschy store was like falling into a completely different world. The interior was modest - simple displays of low-priced merchandise, ranging from vacuum cleaners and winter coats to kitchenware, toys and grocery items. Much of the store's decor consisted of posters and photos from old films and stage productions from Mirvish's theatres in Toronto and London, England, and of actors and musicians who performed in them (many of these inscribed to Ed Mirvish himself). Every piece of store signage was hand-painted. The site where Honest Ed's has stood for so many years, in fact the whole of Mirvish Village, has been sold and is going to become condos. Another Toronto icon gives way to a condo development. It's likely the sign will be saved, however the corner of Bathurst and Bloor will never be quite the same.

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