Novelist, raconteur, humorist and 1985 Trent honorary degree recipient W.O. Mitchell died Feb. 25 at his home in Calgary. He was 83.

      Mitchell often visited Trent. His son, Orm, joined Trent's English Department faculty in 1971. Orm and his wife Barbara are writing a biography of Mitchell.

      Best known for his 1947 novel Who Has Seen the Wind, about growing up in the prairies, and for his popular radio series Jake and the Kid, he wrote several novels, plays, and scripts for radio, television and film. He was the subject of a National Film Board documentary. In 1973, became a member of the Officer of the Order of Canada and in 1992 was appointed to the Privy Council.

      He leaves his wife Merna, two sons Orm and Hugh, and daughter Willa.