John Edward Macfarlane (born March 28, 1942) was the editor of the Canadian magazine The Walrus from 2008 to 2014. He previously served as editor of Toronto Life from 1992 to 2007. Born in Montreal, Quebec, he attended the University of Toronto Schools and Western Canada High School. He studied at the University of Calgary, where in his second year he became editor of The Gauntlet. In 1965, he started as an editorial writer at The Globe and Mail becoming an entertainment editor in 1967. In 1968, he became an entertainment editor at the Toronto Star and became an associate editor at Maclean's in 1970. From 1972 to 1974, he was the editor of Toronto Life, leaving in 1974 as president of Analytical Communications Incorporated, a public relations company. From 1975 to 1976, he was executive ed