[1] In 1996, Conrad Black bought the Citizen's parent company, Southam, and shortly thereafter fired Calamai and his colleague, Jim Travers.
[1] While at the Star, he was the first science reporter invited aboard the CCGS Amundsen, where he championed the importance of observing Earth Hour[6][7] and wrote a series debunking the claims of climate change deniers.
[10] Calamai was an avid fan of Sherlock Holmes and was heavily involved with The Bootmakers of Toronto[11] and The Baker Street Irregulars,[2] literary societies devoted to the fictional character.
His other interests included conchology (with a specialization in the cowry), ornithology, astronomy, the genetic engineering of tomatoes,[10] choir, tennis, and golf.
[12] He won a Michener Award in 1987 for public interest journalism for his work overseeing a massive investigation series on adult literacy in Canada.