Connie Connor, the woman on the receiving end in the notorious face-slapping incident that sullied Canada's diplomatic reputation in Washington, was fired yesterday after more than two decades of service to the embassy.
The slap, by Sondra Gotlieb, wife of then Canadian ambassador Alan Gotlieb, reverberated through Washington society, damaging Ms. Gotlieb's expensively built reputation as one of the capital's premier hostesses.
It was delivered March 19, 1986, just before a huge dinner party where then prime minister Brian Mulroney and then vice-president George Bush were the guests of honour, and it aroused a diplomatic brouhaha.
The morning after, Mrs. Gotlieb said she "felt devastated," while headlines ricocheted on both sides of the border.
Ms. Connor, who was the ambassador's social secretary and a key player in the Gotliebs' until then successful efforts to make the long-dull Canadian ambassadorial residence a glittering star in Washington's top-ranked social constellation, said nothing.
She was known for her white convertible, her citizens band handle, Sunshine, and her impeccable social knowledge.
"She absolutely knew who was who in the Reagan administration and was tireless in getting people" to come to embassy parties, said Patrick Gossage, the embassy's press secretary when Ms. Connor was hired in 1982.
"She would do it all. She had a little office, and she had her huge lists. She would look after the protocol, because who sits with who is a really big deal in Washington."
After the slap, Ms. Connor never again served as social secretary. She was quickly moved to the embassy's commercial section, where she worked, mainly maintaining contacts with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, until yesterday.
Ms. Connor was one of four Washington staff members told yesterday that their positions were being eliminated as part of a plan that involves cutting 20 positions at Canada's 10 diplomatic posts in the United States so several new missions can be set up.
"It's always unfortunate when reductions must be made, but every effort is being made to provide affected employees with all possible short-term and long-term severance benefits," said Kimberly Phillips, a spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa.
Officials in Washington said Ms. Connor was past retirement age, but in the United States there is no mandatory retirement age. She was unavailable for comment.