James Rodney Winter Sykes (born May 19, 1929) is a Canadian politician from Alberta. He served as the 30th Mayor of Calgary from 1969 to 1977 and as leader of the Alberta Social Credit Party from 1980 to 1982. He ran as a Liberal candidate in the 1984 federal election. Early life Sykes was born in May 19, 1929 in Montreal, Quebec, to Leslie Sykes an electrical engineer, and Muriel, a stay-at-home mother. The Sykes family moved shortly after his birth to Sooke, British Columbia. Sykes father was largely absent from the home, working out of the community, and Sykes did not attend a formal school until the family moved to Kent at the age of 8 in 1937. Instead Sykes learned to read and write from his mother. The Sykes family returned to Victoria, British Columbia a year later after the death of his grandfather James Sykes to live in his inherited home. After returning to Victoria, Sykes father enlisted in the Canadian Scottish Reserves and served overseas for six years in the Second World War. The family faced financial insecurity, and his mother spent time in a nursing home due to mental health issues, while Sykes and his sister were put into foster care. Sykes lashed out during his time at school and was often in trouble. Sykes later attended Oak Bay High School, which he saw as a turning point in his life, and was able to catch up with his education in what he described as a positive environment. Sykes also credits T.W.S. Parsons, the Commissioner of the British Columbia Provincial Police, and father of a school friend for being a positive father figure in his formative years. Sykes father returned from the Second World War when he was 17, and Rod soon moved out of the family home due to animosity with his father. Sykes considered a career in law, but attended Sprott Shaw College to take classes in business, and began working in an apprenticeship at a small accounting firm. At 19, Sykes reported the principal of the firm to the Institute of Chartered Accountants after he was forced to present falsified figures for a client to a bank, the Institute arranged for Sykes to continue his career at Price Waterhouse. With Price Waterhouse, Sykes lived in Montreal for 8 years from 1954–1962, and in Zürich, Switzerland for a short period of time. After