“People used to describe us as pot smoking hippies on welfare.” That was Paul Pope, the dean of Newfoundland TV and film production, describing his early days in an industry he helped create. I knew him for one day, but it was memorable, and he told me the secret to making Canadian television. That day
Early this year, shortly after his comedy club pals Bob Saget and Louie Anderson died, Gilbert Gottfried shared a photo on Instagram of the three of them. The shot was “very sad now,” he wrote. A few months later, they’re all gone. I mean, these guys were all still in their sixties. What the Hell.
Estelle Harris, who passed away April 2nd at 93, will always be remembered for her role as George’s mouthy and haranguing mother Estelle Costanza on Seinfeld. For many viewers, Estelle Costanza became a morbid object of fascination. People had to know: how did George Costanza turn out the way he did? Her impact was so
This Sunday, March 20, would have been Carl Reiner’s 100th birthday. Despite writing a book entitled, “How to Live Forever,” the great writer-producer-comedian double-crossed us by dying nearly two years ago at 98. To mark the occasion of Reiner’s centennial, the National Comedy Center, located in Jamestown, N.Y., will premiere a new multi-media exhibit in
Did you know that there was a Canadian Comedy Hall of Fame? Well, there was, but then there wasn’t and now there is again, except not really. An actual brick and mortar CCHofF that fans can visit does not exist, yet, but that is the goal of the committee which has pumped new life into
I’ve always been fascinated by TV’s earliest child stars, the kids who gained fame on television nearly 70 years ago as the medium began to spread to millions of homes. Among the most prominent were those associated with The Mickey Mouse Club (1954-57). That popular Disney series made instant stars of the early “Mouseketeers,” but
When film fans think of Sally Kellerman, the first image that comes to mind is generally of her screaming out of the shower in Robert Altman’s movie version of “M*A*S*H” (1970). While that part earned her an Academy Award nomination, she stood out in many other roles, big and small, over a six decade career
As expected, the Canadian women’s hockey team emerged triumphant in Beijing, with viewership spiking to 2.7 million viewers vs. Team USA Feb. 16 at 11:41 p.m. ET on CBC, TSN and Sportsnet. Still, the just-ended 2022 Olympic Winter Games did not seem to bring the same golden glow with North American viewers as they have