Yes, it’s the most wonderful time of the year again, according to the Hallmark calendar. A week before Halloween, the Crown Media company has scheduled 41 new Christmas-themed movies as part of their annual “Countdown to Christmas.” Many will have been shot in Canada, including “You, Me and the Christmas Trees,” airing tonight on W
Happy to be in The Globe and Mail this weekend thanks to an assignment from The Canadian Press. I’m in with a story on one of the biggest employers of Canadian TV talent across the country — Hallmark. The family friendly American cable brand, owned by Crown Media, spends millions annually north of the border
There are so many Canadians at the annual Crown Media/Hallmark Channel TCA press tour dinner it should be held at a hockey rink. Instead, the venue for the Saturday night event was at the Wrigley Mansion/Tournament House in Pasadena, which is basically stately Wayne manor with trophies. This is a late and lavish Christmas party
UPDATED: See bottom of this post. Quick–is anybody looking? CTV has waited until the dead of summer to sneak Spun Out back onto its schedule. The Toronto-based sitcom, featuring Paul Campbell and Dave Foley, was supposed to return last February in the coveted post-Super Bowl slot. CTV was amping up the launch until, five days before the
PASADENA, Calif.–The folks at the Hallmark Channel are always gracious and generous hosts during TCA press tours. Thursday night was no exception as reporters and Hallmark channel talent and executives enjoyed an evening at the stately Tournament of Roses House. Guests entered to the strains of romantic music played by beautiful young violinists. Rose pedals
Canadians. They’re sneaking into TV shows again. Sunday, for the second week in a row, a Canuck was stealing scenes on Mad Men. That was JAG lead David James Elliott as David Wooster, Don Draper’s luncheon date near the beginning of the episode. Elliott was disguised behind those horn rims, unlike Neve Campbell, who was
Spun Out‘s Foley and Campbell What’s the secret of comedy?The answer is “Timing!”, and to make the joke work, you have to blurt it between “of” and “comedy.”Several Canadian shows are hoping to solve the secret of comedy this season. While the private network swing towards funny has been encouraging, ratings, so far, have not
Paul Campbell plays office newbie Beckett Ryan in the new CTV comedy Spun Out (Fridays at 8 p.m.ET). I spoke with the Vancouver native a week ago and we talked about how he was kind of playing the calm-at-the-centre-of-the-crazy the way Bob Newhart used to play it on his ’70s and ’80s sitcoms. Since Campbell,