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I Remember Anne Meara
So there I was in June 1975 having breakfast in the Polo Lounge of the Beverly Wilshire hotel with Anne Meara.The talented comedy actress died last week aged 85 but as she told me and several other TV...
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Fall On Canadian TV: Where's The Canadian Content?
It's still spring but Global and City are already announcing their prime time American acquisitions for the fall.Fans of Canadian content are apt to be disappointed at the wall-to-wall U.S....
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Why CTV Is Too Successful To Make Big Changes
That was quite a shindig Bell Media put on at the Sony Center which was overflowing with thousands of giddy media advertising buyers.And why shouldn't CTV give itself a big party I ask you.The network...
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THe Strange Death Of Canadian TV
At first I thought incoming Bell Media president Mary Ann Turcke was jesting when she described her outrage when she discovered her teenaged daughter directly tuning in to the U.S. version of...
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Degrassi Lives! Again!
"Are you aware of the series Degrassi?" a mom down the street asked me.She'd just heard the joyous news Degrassi which was facing cancellation has been saved yet again-- this by Netflicks --a decision...
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Canadian TV: Going South
I've been reporting for decades on the phenomenon of American telefilms and series moving north to shoot just because it's cheaper.But how often has a Canadian series moved south?Well, three...
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Smart TV: Rise Of The Machines
"I wasn't so sure this series could ever be made," chuckles executive producer Carlo Massarella who helped create the gigantic Rise Of The Machines.Part One of this seven part hour series revs up on...
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I Remember Patrick Macnee
"Excuse me, old chap, mind if I sit beside you?"Did I mind!The speaker was the great British actor Patrick Macnee--yes, that's right John Steed of TV's Avengers.And the occasion was a lavish 1989 NBC...
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Welcome To Discovery's Shark Week
I always thought I knew quite a lot about sharks.But it turns out after watching the first two hour long episodes of the new BBC miniseries Shark I obviously was very ill informed indeed.To coincide...
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I Remember Dick Van Patten
So there I was in the dentist's chair when my favorite dentist stopped buzz sawing for a minute to whisper these words:"What was Dick Van Patten really like?"The question is not as far fetched as...
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Where Are The Canadian TV Talk Shows?
So there I was the other day lunching with two of the most powerful Canadian TV producers in the business.And as usual these days the talk started with an assessment of the departure of Jon Stewart...
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Discovery Canada's Fool's Gold Is Sheer Fun
I have this thing for Canadian TV reality shows.Which is why I was excited to chat on the phone with Atikokan's Todd Ryznar who leads a rag tag bunch of prospectors in the often funny reality series...
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Introducing Mitchell Kummen
It was sheer coincidence but there I was just sitting down to watch vimeos of the new CBC-TV series When Calls The Heart and the opportunity came to interview the young co-star of the show Mitchell...
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Gotham Is Back For Season 2
Big news Monday night is the return of Gotham for its second season.You can catch all the action on CTV Monday September 21 at 8 p.m. Got that?Whether Gotham is better than season one is another...
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Up In Arms: A Gem Of A Documentary
When a copy of a new TVO documentary was sent to me in late August I somehow found reasons not to watch it.Then I noticed the name of the film maker --Nadine Pequeneza (15 To Life, Bomb Hunters) --and...
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Article 1
Last season's finale on CTV's Saving Hope literally ended with a bang --and the death of one of the stars Dr. Joel Goran played by charismatic actor Daniel Gillies.On Thursday September 23 at 9 p.m....
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Great News: Sunnyside Is Back
Best news of the new season is the return to form of the often brilliant Canadian sketch comedy show Sunnyside which revs up Sunday September 6 on City-tv at 8 p.m.City is using a technique...
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Susan Fleming And Her Moose Fixation
"Next I'll be doing a film about moose."Respected filmmaker Susan Fleming told me this startling news more than two years ago and I kept wondering what had happened to her latest project.You can...
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Chris Haddock Returns To CBC-TV
We've met before!" I warn executive producer of CBC-TV's new drama section The Romeo Section which debuts Wednesday night at 89 p.m. on CBC-TV.And Chris Haddock sighs mightily.He's been down this long,...
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War Story: Afghanistan Celebrates Our Military
I'm always writing about the most disturbing trend on Canadian TV these days.Simply stated it's the lack of Canadian stories.Producers only want to make series they can sell to U.S. TV. That means...
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