CTV's Katie Kelly solves decades old mystery involving 'anchor' tattoo

Investigating the fate of a CTV 'anchor' tattoo Katie Kelly finds out what happened to a man who got a tattoo of CTV’s Bruce Frisko 20 years ago.

It’s been almost two decades since a 21-year-old man from New Glasgow, N.S., got a tattoo of CTV’s Bruce Frisko, but it’s a piece of Maritime history that hasn’t been forgotten.

“Every time I post a video of Bruce or say something about Bruce there is at least one comment that says, ‘whatever happened to the guy that got the Bruce Frisko tattoo?’” said Greg Yorke, the man who got the Halifamous tattoo back in 2007.

“I did eventually get it covered up,” Yorke said.

Yorke has grown up since starting the Facebook campaign that would give him his “anchor” tattoo. He said he has a good career, loving partner and beautiful son today, but in 2007 he was inside Peddler’s Pub, a Halifax bar that has since closed, surrounded by people, including Frisko himself, watching while he got the newsman’s mug inked into his arm – live on air.

It all started with a little company called Facebook.

“Facebook was a new thing,” Yorke said, “and we were kind of one of the first to be viral.”

Yorke launched a Facebook group called “If 25,000 people join I’ll get a tattoo of Bruce Frisko’s face.”

“He was a good sport about it,” Yorke said, referring the news man he admires enough to honour in ink. “I mean, yeah, nightly Institution, right? So, yeah, I mean, absolutely a fan.”

Yorke said he’s still a fan and has no regrets. When he got Bruce’s face covered it was for practical reasons.

“It made dating hard,” Yorke said.

His new tattoo is a clock face with wings.

“It’s a time flies motif,” Yorke said.

It certainly does. Bruce Frisko will celebrate 30 years with CTV in March.