‘Watch it, buddy’: Citytv legend Peter Silverman dies at 90
Posted October 7, 2021 5:31 pm.
Last Updated October 9, 2021 8:24 am.
Citytv legend Peter Silverman, the longtime host of the wildly popular Silverman Helps segment, has died at the age of 90, his family confirms.
He is survived by his wife, Dr. Chess Burton, his three daughters and three grandchildren.
“He believed in Tikkun Olam, the Jewish philosophy that you were put on earth to repair the earth and help others,” his wife, Chess, told CityNews.
“He was funny, sweet, and interesting.”
Peter started his journalism career in 1974 and joined Citytv in 1981 as a business reporter.
Eight years later he began hosting Silverman Helps, the consumer protection segment that saw Peter relentlessly go to bat for people who’d been ripped off, while fearlessly confronting a slew of scammers.
During one episode he uttered the line that would be become an iconic catchphrase in Toronto culture — “Watch it, buddy!”
Peter’s work in journalism led him to fight for people with rare illnesses and brought him to third world countries and war zones — always trying to help people who needed it most.
Watch below for a 1995 episode of ‘Silverman Helps’ that explored the legal aid system.
