After a battle with pancreatic cancer, beloved Canadian broadcaster and humorist writer Arthur Black died Wednesday at the age of 74. Black’s death is confirmed on his website, with a statement saying he died peacefully surrounded by loved ones at Lady Minto Hospital on Salt Spring Island. Black is known for his morning radio program “Basic Black”, which ran on CBC for nearly 20 years until his retirement in 2002. Black was with CBC for three decades.He was also a popular writer, with funny pieces of work that earned Black the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for humour on three occasions. The first of those came in 1997 for the book “Black in the Saddle Again” followed by awards for “Black Tie and Tales” in 2000 and “Pitch Black” in 2006. Black, who lived on Salt Spring Island, also authored a syndicated newspaper column. His family said on Black’s website they are “very grateful for the overwhelming messages of support and good wishes received during his struggle with pancreatic cancer.” The family says Black dealt with it with “his own unique combination of defiance and good humour.”