Stephen Leacock was born in England, but immigrated with his family to Ontario when he was six. A highly respected professor of political science at McGill University, his writing was the basis of his great fame. SUNSHINE SKETCHES OF A LITTLE TOWN, with which the bust is finished, was his most popular book, based on his observations of Orillia, Ontario, (disguised as the fictitious village of Mariposa) where he spent his summers.