BriouxTV: The Podcast

This 200th episode of brioux.tv: the podcast features a SCTV original who remains one of my favourite people to interview -- Dave Thomas. On this, our third podcast conversation, Thomas talks about his recent trip to Kyiv, a city where drone strikes and missle attacks from Russia have created a living hell for Ukrainians at war. Thomas talks all about his decision to fly to Ukraine and answer a friend's call to help raise awareness and money for the cause. He was accompanied by a small film crew and ventured into territories invaded and claimed by Russia. On one mission the soldiers he was with helped bring Ukrainian infants and elderly citizens back from enemy hands. Thomas even found time to check out a Ukrainian comedy club. There were no photos of Yakoff Smirnov on the wall. Thomas is planning a documentary about his 10-day, first hand account.This is about as far removed as you can get from Thomas' old days spoofing Russian television on SCTV's hilarious "CCCP1" episode. Thomas's goal is to help raise donations for Ukrainian's under fire. Money goes to provide medical aid, training and vehicles for defence. Give now and qualify for a charitable tax receipt. Donate to the Ukrainian Freedom Fund at ukrfreedomfund.org.

People who work television's morning shift could be forgiven for being a tad grumpy. That's never the case with Tim Bolen, who recently made the leap from co-hosting Morning Live on Hamilton's CHCH to pairing with Dina Pugliese on Citytv's national franchise Breakfast Television.Add living in Toronto when he was on TV in Hamilton and now living in Hamilton and inching through traffic hell in Toronto and you have basically the seven tasks of Hercules. Or is it a genius move since he's basically commuting to work in the dead of night? In any event, Bolen seems to bound into work, throwing himself into community events coverage and apron-ing up for hours of egg scrambling. Start your day with Tim and Dina and listen now as he wakes things up as my guest on brioux.tv: the podcast.

My guest this episode is an executive producer who helped guide Schitt's Creek to a canoe full of Emmy and CSA awards. He's currently one of the executive producers on another wonderful sitcom, Son of a Critch, shockingly ignored -- nomination wise -- at this year's Canadian Screen Awards.Yes, it is Andrew Barnsley and he's just back from France where he attended Series Mania, an industry marketplace where stakeholders gather to discuss where this crazy business is all heading. These are challenging times not just for Canadian media companies but also studios trying to sell shows. Are half hours dead? Does Rogers have any money for scripted fare after that $11 billion NHL deal; and will a wall be built around the US market in this scary new age of tariffs? As Andrew said just before we started recording, “It's a great time to be alive, right?” As president of the Toronto Film School, Barnsley also talks about the challenges facing students keen on becoming the next generation of Canadian storytellers. Listen and learn!

Bummed your invitation to Martin Short's cottage in the Muskokas was evidently lost in the mail? Save yourself the long drive and listen to this week's episode of brioux.tv: the podcast. One of my favourite guests, filmmaker Mitch Azaria, is back with his sixth in an annual series exploring the province of Ontario: Tripping The Muskoka Lakes. We talk all about the new documentary, premiering April 20 on TV Ontario and also streaming (even earlier) on TVOdocs.org and at TVO's YouTube channel.This latest three hour, immersive, real-time documentary invites viewers to cruise along in a made-in-Muskoka Duke runabout, a mahogany classic converted to electric power. From the passenger seat you'll cruise past incredible boat houses along "Millionaires" and "Billionaires" row. Reel in a boatload of pop up info bites and dive under the water to visit an actual shipwreck. Travel tariff free from your own living room. All aboard!

Jay Leno is Jay-walking his way back to Canada. The former Tonight Show host, who turns 75 in May, will join fellow late night rival Arsenio Hall as comedy headliners May 2 at Casino Rama near Orillia, Ont.In an exclusive brioux.tv: the podcast interview, presented in partnership with latenighter.com, Leno says he was hesitant about accepting the booking given all the "51st State" and Tariff talk emanating from the White House."I almost wasn't going to do these dates," Leno says, "because I didn't want to be the ugly American coming in." Don't worry about it I tell Leno -- we can use the jokes. The comedy road warrior has had to tweak his act just to straddle divided states audiences. That is working for him so far. "Ever since I took politics out of my act, ticket sales are up 20 or 30 per cent."Leno also talks about how, back in the war for late night days,  things  weren't always so cozy between him and Arsenio. We touch on those nasty accidents Leno suffered these past few years, including a serious car fire which forced him to seek "a face guy." There is plenty of car talk (he's still hosting Jay's Garage on MSNBC) and we find out his take on the current late night landscape.

People of Comedy: Celebrating 30 Years of the Nubian Show starts streaming April 9 on Crave. It features this week's guest on brioux.tv: the podcast and one of the true iron men of the Toronto comedy club scene: Kenny Robinson. Since 1983, he's been performing at YukYuks as well as at Just For Laughs and other Canadian comedy venues. Close to 30 years ago, he launched The Nubian Comedy Revue, a showcase for BIPOC entertainers which is performed on the last Sunday of every month at YukYuks in Toronto.The documentary features several performers who see The Nubian Show as the Def Jam of Canadian comedy. Among them are Russell Peters (the "Brown Sinatra," as Robinson calls him), Hassan Phills, Crystal Ferrier, Marito Lopez and Zambrina Douglas. Listen as Robinson, who is also the president of the Canadian Comedy Hall of Fame, reminisces about some of his comedy heroes and others he met along the way.

These days it is not unusual for fans to wait over a year for a second season of their favourite series. But five years??That is the situation for When Hope Calls, the spinoff to the popular period piece drama When Calls the Heart. The shot in Ontario series returns April 6 on Super Channel Heart & Home in Canada and on Great American Family in the United States.A lot has changed in five years including the casting of the two leads. The two Canadians at the heart of the series now are Cindy Busby (best known for several seasons of Heartland) and Christopher Russell, my guests this week on brioux.tv: the podcast. Busby plays Nora, a lawyer who travels by stage coach to the western Canadian town of Brookfield. Russell plays the new mountie in town, Michael "Fearless" Fletcher.Before you can say "1916," a pioneer romance ensues.Returning to the series is Wendy Crewson as no-nonsense lady rancher Tess Stewart.  The first new episode will also feature Morgan Kohan -- who has moved on to Sullivan's Crossing -- as Lillian Walsh. Busby and Russell, who first met a decade ago on the set of one of their many Christmas TV-movies, explain how they both got called to When Hope Calls.

 For this episode we go back into the vault for an interview conducted ten years ago with Joe Clokey. He was the son of the man who created and animated Gumby, the most bendable children's TV character ever. Joe grew up in California as "Gumby's little brother," watching his dad and mom stamp out dozens of brightly coloured characters out of plastercine in creating a unique world of stop-animation wonder.TV audiences first saw Gumby on a short film tested during a broadcast of NBC's The Howdy Doody Show in 1955. That led to a full season order the next year, extended about once a decade on various networks into the '60s, '70s and '80s. Clokey tells story after story about how the character evolved, who did the voices and even details about the theme song. It was his big sister and a friend singing, "He was once a little green slab of clay..." to a tune composed by a prominant jazz musician. The music played millions of times for a paltry one-time fee. Even Clokey lost out when a spinoff merchandising deal made a fortune -- not for him, but for the toy company. We also talk about Clokey's other famous series, Davey and Goliath, a collection of suburban kiddie parables bankrolled by the Lutheren church. I saw both shows daily as a lad while watching Rocketship 7 and Commander Tom as they beamed across Lake Ontario from Buffalo, N.Y., on WKBW. 

Ali Weinstein is the writer/producer/director behind "Your Tomorrow," a look at Ontario Place the summer before it was shut down after 52 years. For over five decades a 155-acre Toronto waterfront sanctuary, it is being radically redeveloped. Gone are 850 West Island trees. Instead we get a spa with a killer view of Cinesphere.In a moving, observational documentary,Weinstein captures the place in its final days as a full-on family retreat. Even after falling into disrepair, it was still treasured as a bird sanctuary and even a beach.The documentary is rather personal for me. As a student, I worked there as a bus boy for three summers, 1972, '73 and '74. Out the front door of the West Island's Blockhouse restaurant, between shifts clearing tables for two dollars an hour, I watched the CN Tower rise above the Toronto skyline.It never seemed possible back in those halcyon days of summer that Ontario Place would wind up, fifty years later, looking like an abandoned mall. Weinstein's documentary, shot mainly during the park's last active summer of 2023, throws a bright light on that reality. Was Ontario Place purposefully left to rot? Hear Weinstein on that and the making of this doc, which premieres on TVO March 23 and streams on TVODoc starting March 21.

Podcasts were invented for guests such as Malcolm McDowell. He is a smart, funny, generous man and as terrific as ever as Pop on CBC's Son of a Critch.This conversation took place last summer in St. John's, Nfld., in McDowell's trailer which was parked outside the Bella Vista banquet hall. It had been an exciting 24 hours with the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau -- who was down the street trying in vain to save his job at the annual Regatta --  stopping by to say hello to the cast and crew.Back in August, few suspected how Trudeau's fortunes might change in six months. Wait till you hear McDowell's take on Trudeau as well as the PM's mother Margaret whom McDowell first met 50 years earlier in London.We touch on some of the actor's past performances in films such as “Clockwork Orange,"  “Caligula” and too many others to mention. We start off talking about a few of his past podcast hosts, one he loved and another not so much. McDowell made sure I was offered a cup of English breakfast tea (milk; no sugar) and we were off to the races. Pour yourself one now and listen in. 

 Two of the four Baroness Von Sketch Show players, Jennifer Whalen and Meredith MacNeill, are back with a new CBC series -- and it's a period piece!The series is called Small Achievable Goals and it is about two women in midlife encountering all of the joys of menopause. Hot flashes, mood swings, homicidal trendencies and more.Now, you can't swing a tampon in daytime TV without Drew Barrymore or Oprah menopausing for station identification. Even in primetime this has come up before. Remember that episode of The Golden Girls? Where Blanche thought she might be pregnant? That episode was called, "End of the Curse."Well, Whalen and MacNeill wage war on the curse. Helping is a top Canadian comedy cast including Jon Dore (The Lake), Peter McKeleghan (Workin' Moms),  Tricia Black (Pretty Hard Cases) and Paul Braunstein (Shelved). The two main characters are podcasters, so right there, I have a rooting interest. The eight episode series airs Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. ET on CBC and CBCGem. 

 Claire Rankin says she's waited "a really long time...to land something like this."The PEI native is talking about her role as Mary on Son of a Critch. How she landed the role -- after one of those remote zoom call auditions -- is just one of the stories she shares on this hour-long podcast.Season Four finds Mary -- and Rankin -- out of the kitchen and in the thick of it. On this Tuesday's episode (CBC, CBCGem), Mary has a mid-life crisis. In a few weeks, she's going back to school. Later, she'll be getting back in touch with her beauty pageant roots.The challenges are all welcome for this versatile actress who began her stage career at Stratford performing in Shakespean classics such as Love's Labour's Lost, Romeo and Juliet and The Tempest.During her Hollwood years, Rankin found gest starring roles in everything from House, Monk and Ally McBeal to The Drew Carey Show.Those shows were all more fun and less stressful than one of her first LA jobs opposite a Hollywood legend, a "Wish" she wishes she had never made.Way more fun was working opposite Dick Van Dyke on Diagnosis Murder, especially getting a chance to sing with the TV legend between takes.Get to know Claire Rankin, this week on brioux.tv: the podcast. 

Saturday Night Live is celebrating the big 5-0. Who better to put it in perspective than the Canadian writer who was there at the start.On this special presentation from brioux.tv: the podcast and LateNighter, Rosie Shuster tells how it all began. She was born with a funny bone as the daughter of Frank Shuster (half of the comedy team of Wayne & Shuster). She meets Lorne Michaels at junior high, he falls for Rosie, and Lorne then soaks up every showbiz lesson he can from her dad.  Together with their Toronto school chum Howard Shore, all three land at 30 Rock in New York, assemble the Not Ready for Prime Time Players, put together the next generation of comedy writers (including Rosie) and create the greatest live TV comedy-music showcase ever. Shuster talks about the show that came before, CBC's Hart & Lorne Terrific Hour; writing for Gilda Radner (a joy) and John Belushi (a struggle), getting props from her proud poppa, and her on-again, off-again marriage to Michaels. But will she get a dress in time for two galas in New York, including the three hour SNL50: The Anniversary Special as well as the hour-long red carpet show? Tune in Sunday, Feb. 16, on NBC and Global to find out.

OK, Hearties, here he is, Jack Wagner who plays Bill Avery on When Calls the Heart. The former soap star has played the sheriff-turned-judge character for 12 seasons on the Langley, BC-based Hallmark and Super Channel series.As viewers will see on the Saturday, Feb. 8 episode, Avery will be re-introduced to Georgie McGill, played by special guest star Melissa Gilbert whose credits date all the way back to her child star days on Little House on the Prairie. 'Bout time Avery got in on the romance on this series, says Wagner, a veteran of several soaps, including General Hospital, The Bold and The Beautiful and Santa Barbara. He also played a romantic lead on Aaron Spelling's frothy primetime serial Melrose Place.All this and the guy is a scratch golfer, the only non-professional athlete winner of a major pro-am tournament. Listen for his story about golfing with Sean Connery. We also talk about his chart-topping mid-'80s hit "All I Need," his previous encounter with Gilbert (both were on Dancing with the Stars) and his theory as to why When Calls the Heart is the perfect show for 2025.

 If ever we needed some candid talk from Rick Mercer, we need it now. The CBC Hall of Famer didn't hold back when I spoke with him last summer in St. John's on the set of Son of a Critch. The native son plays Mark Sr.'s new VOCM radio station boss on the CBC sitcom. Catch the episode this Tuesday (also on CBCGem).Mercer was delighted to be back before many familiar faces among the crew. He is, of course, an original alumni of Mark Critch's other series, This Hour Has 22 Minutes. After traveling across Canada last year doing stand up shows with his friend Jann Arden, Mercer questions whether the public broadcaster has lost its way at the worst possible time. He notes how Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre's oft-stated goal to cut the CBC appropriation now draws applause breaks even on the East Coast.Hear more frank talk from one of Canada's most popular entertainers as he returns to brioux.tv: the podcast.SPECIAL ALERT: That bearded guy glimpsed in the background Tuesday in the bar scene with Critch and Mercer? The guy trying hard not to act? Yup, guilty as charged. Don't blink. 

This episode is the second to feature a cast member from Season 4 of Son of a Critch: none other than the son himself, Benjamin Evan Ainsworth. Ainsworth, of course, plays young Mark Critch, circa 1990, on the CBC sitcom. The episode was recorded last summer on location in St. John's, Nfld. Ainsworth was shooting a scene on a residential street closed off for the production. Also there was Sophia Powers, who plays Mark's girlfriend Fox.The two are trying to navigate high school this season, with scenes shot right in series' co-creator Mark Critch's old high school in St. John's.It is fun to hear Ainsworth speak in his own lilting Liverpudlian tongue during this interview. He and his famous co-star, the great Malcolm McDowell, are often at the Duke of Duckworth, cheering on their favourite football club.Ainsworth also talks about his upcoming feature film "Everything's Going to Be Great" which costars Bryan Cranston and Allison Janney.Special note: at the end of this episode, listen for a tribute to one of my high school pals, Stephen Dudley. I recently learned that this brilliant pianist, whose music can be heard on most of these episodes, passed away late last December. Here, in a cassette recording made exactly 50 years ago, he gifts a folk night crowd with one of his own compositions. Stephen was 67.

Monday January 20 is inauguration day in the US. So everybody raise your right hand, and for those listening here at home, hang onto those Canadian passports.A dozen years ago The Donald was just another tanned game show host when I interviewed him in his 26th floor office at Trump Tower in New York. Now I've reached into the vault and fired up the time machine to bring you a conversation about TV, the world in general and why he feels both always need a bad guy.The Apprentice host went directly into his signature charm offensive, saying he had checked me out with his friends at NBC who allegedly told him if he spoke with one reporter from Canada, I was “the guy.” (The same line he used on Elon Musk.)Being played like this was a ton of fun, but that was then. Who could have known that this former real estate hustler would be a two-term US president and be seen by some as one of the most dangerous men on the planet?Tune in to hear about The Apprentice, the late Joan Rivers (“she's tough”), David Letterman (“great guy”), the Canadian economy at the time ("your banks were smart") and the war in Afghanistan (“a mess”).

The second season of the slick crime series Allegiance begins January 15 on CBC and CBC Gem. The shot-in-Surrey, B.C., drama stars Supinder Wraich (Sort Of), Enrico Colantoni and Samer Salem. I spoke with all three in Toronto at the CBC Winter Media Launch in December. Wraich plays Sabrina Sohal, a promising rookie police officer who fights to serve her hometown. Rico is the seasoned cop who mentors her past the hurdles of a flawed justice system. In Season Two, Sohal graduates to the Serious Crimes Unit and has six months to prove she's got what it takes to be a detective. She's paired in that task with a more experienced detective, played by series newcomer Salem. All three take part in this chatty podcast episode, taped live at CBC's Broadcast Centre in downtown Toronto. The discussion ranges from immigration and cultural clashes, fellow co-star David Cubitt (whom they all praise) and even which cast member caused the most outtakes. 

 No man is an island. Allan Hawco's new series, however, is shot and set on an archipelago of eight islands represented by the French government off the coast of Newfoundland.Hawco, who played a detective on Republic of Doyle and was also on Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, plays Donny "Fitz" Fitzpatrick. He's a cop who gets too nosy about police secrets and is therefore banished to Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. There he is paired with local police officer Geneviève "Arch" Archambault (Joséphine Jobert from Death in Paradise). Sparks fly and plot lines ensue.Hawco talks about creating the series with Robina Lord-Stafford and Perry Chaffe, and starting a TV production base pretty much from scratch with Saint-Pierre -- an even bigger challenge than getting Doyle off the ground years ago in Newfoundland. James Purefoy also stars in Saint-Pierre, which airs Monday nights after Murdoch Mysteries on CBC and CBC Gem. 

This Hour has, well, not just 22 Minutes but a full hour as I catch up with Mark Critch, this week's guest on brioux.tv: the podcast. The conversation was taped last summer in St. John's, Nfld., during production on the fourth season of Son of a Critch (returning Tuesday, Jan. 7 on CBC and CBC Gem). What a trip that was, including a visit from a guy who was once Critch's snowboard instructor -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Now both men are going downhill this winter!Speaking of which, we also talk about Critch and the 22 Minutes cast tackling an hour-long New Year's Eve special this Tuesday, Dec. 31, at 8 p.m. ET on CBC. As for Son of a Critch, look for it to be an emotional season. Young Mark (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) is off to high school, with scenes shot right in Critch's old alma mater. In fact, so much of Season Four is pulled from Critch's past, he was literally able to show the other actors video he shot in 1990 before certain scenes were shot.All this and the latest Malcolm McDowell stories in a sweet and fun, on-location episode.

Genevieve Mushaluk, a 33-year-old corporate lawyer from Winnipeg, Manitoba, had her torch snuffed on last week's two-hour, second-last episode of Survivor. Picked as the final member of the jury, she'll be in LA watching the finale with the rest of the castaways when the season ends December 18 on CBS and Global.Did she see her elimination coming? Does she have any regrets? Will she ever eat rice again? And what about all those snakes and spiders??Mushaluk tells all in this shorter than usual episode of brioux.tv the podcast. Here she is, a true Canadian Survivor.

My guest this week has made over three dozen made for television movies, She also headlined Hallmark's Aurora Teagarden series. Before that, as a child star, she was part of the long-running TGIF family series, Full House, as well as its streaming sequel, Fuller House.Of course I'm talking about Candace Cameron Bure. In 2022, she broke away from Hallmark and joined the Great American Family network. There she is not just one of its busiest stars, she is also a very hands-on Chief Content Officer, making surethese films touch on issues of faith and belief as well as on romance.Many of these films are shot in Canada, including two premiering this month on Super Channel Heart & Home. “A Christmas Less Traveled” (Tuesday, Dec. 17) pairs her with Edmonton-born Eric Johnson, while another Canadian, Cameron Mathison, stars with Cameron Bure in "Home Sweet Christmas” (Monday, Dec. 23).If all that isn't Canadian enough, the California native is also married to a hockey player: former Canadiens and Flames sniper Valerie Bure. Hear her on all this and more this week on Brioux.tv: the podcast.

If you work in this industry you know how hard it is to keep ahead in a world that always seems to be pivoting. Streaming, fast channels, multi-platform media brands – who can keep up?Well, one fella is Jamie Schouela, President, Global Channels and Media at Blue Ant Media. I caught up with Jamie a few weeks ago in Toronto when I was asked to moderate a CTAM panel on the future of the industry from a cable perspective. He leads the strategic direction and operations for the company's streaming and linear networks, as well as digital, print and consumer event properties. The companies' brands include Love Nature, BBC Earth, T+E, Makeful, HauntTV, Cottage Life and many more.He's also busy spreading Blue Ant content around the world. Here he is, one of the good guys, Jamie Schouela.

As we head into another frigid  Canadian winter we bring you a podcast about a series that is set and shot in the hottest part of Australia. The series is called Troppo, a term used in north Queensland that means going mad from the heat. Troppo is based on the best selling novel from Candice Fox titled Crimson Lake and it is about a disgraced American ex-cop played by Thomas Jane (HBO's Hung) hired to help an Australian  private investigator. They are teamed together on murder cases in far north Queensland.The actress playing the PI is Nicole Chamoun and we reached her half way around the world this week in Australia via a zoom call.  Seasons One and Two of Troppo are streaming now in Canada on Super Channel. 

 After 31 years as host of The Fifth Estate, plus another decade winning Emmys for CBS and NBC News, award-winning investigative journalist Bob McKeown is ready to retire.The Ottawa native never shied away from his assignments, especially when it came to reporting on football and head injuries. Back in the '70s, he was a CFL all-star centre for the Ottawa Rough Riders. He is without a doubt the only three-time recipient of the Edward R. Murrow Award to have also won a Grey Cup.On this episode of brioux.tv: the podcast, the 74-year-old talks about how he lined up opposite the best the CFL and American college football had to offer. That he later went head-to-head with Bill O'Reilly, Ann Coulter and even Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom host Marlin Perkins only added to his legend.Then there's the time he got bitten by a shark! Sink your teeth into the whole story on this story-packed podcast episode. Then see the highlights as part of The Fifth Estate: 50 Years of Truth, premiering Friday, November 29 on CBC and CBC Gem.  

Tyler and Jordie Schwartz started their business of selling retro toys and gifts in 2007 as the Canadian Leg Lamp Company. The idea came after shooting their fan film “Road Trip for Ralphie,” an homage to the kid from the 1983 classic, “A Christmas Story.”Next they introduced Moose Mugs from “National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation” (1989). Seventeen years later, they've branched out to all kinds of retro goodies, including toys, candy, books, games, ugly sweaters and much more.You'll find them all packed inside their Oakville store, or on-line at retrofestive.ca. Thanks to the Schwartz's, you'll also find these nostalgic Christmas treats at the TV on Film Party screenings I've been hosting at The Westdale theatre in Hamilton. Awarded as TV trivia prizes, they make the perfect treats for fans who know all about A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Grinch and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer.Tyler talks about how these retro reminders bring us back to an innocent time spent growing up in front of the TV. Hear him this week on brioux.tv: the podcast.

When Jess Salgueiro auditioned in person for the role of Eve on Frasier, she had to do it in front of a pair of sitcom legends: Kelsey Grammer and director Jim Burrows.Pressure? Yes and no says the actress, who was born in Winnipeg, Man.  She figured there must be hundreds of others lining up to try and win a role on this reboot of a TV classic. With nothing to lose by trying, she told herself, just have fun and see if you can make them laugh.She did, and got the part.Now after two seasons streaming on demand at Paramount+, Salgueiro feels right at home on the famed Paramount Studios lot in Hollywood. This past September she and Grammer were in Toronto attending a public screening of the series. She was blown away when Grammer, speaking to the crowd beforehand, got emotional about having her as part of the cast.Hear all about her climb up the TV ladder as this week's guest on brioux.tv: the podcast.

 Stop me if you've seen this kind of Hallmark series before: an enterprising and attractive single woman (Sarah Drew from Grey's Anatomy) owns a Christmas store on the main street of a picturesque small town. She crosses paths with a handsome, newly single-police officer (Peter Mooney from Burden of Truth). Before you can say, "witness tampering," holiday sparks ensue.Mistletoe Murders, already launched in the US on Hallmark Channel and premiering Nov. 18 om W Network and STACKTV, does stick to a familiar tinsel template. The murder mystery angle, however, raises the stakes. Shot mainly in Pickering, Ont., the six-episode series is part of Hallmark's annual Countdown to Christmas. Every year, the production of dozens of festive flicks is an early Christmas present for many Canadian actors and even more local crew members. They shoot these films -- often in warm spring and summer months -- for November and December viewing. Find out if Drew and Mooney like eggnog, real Christmas trees and which holiday film is must see in their respective homes. 

 If only The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was still around to help us through another turbulent US Presidential election. Pat Paulsen -- where are you when we need you?A key writer/producer back on that 1967-69 comedy variety show was a Canadian -- Allan Byle. Before the Smothers, he worked for Fred Rogers as well as CBC songbird Juliette. Tommy Smothers, who has a knack for spotting talent, insisted that Blye, then in his twenties, be part of the Comedy Hour writing staff. The series became a mid-season, Sunday night hit. While tame by today's standards, controversial jokes, edgy guest stars and political pressure led to CBS firing the Smothers early in 1969.Blye carried on as a writer/producer. He went on to bring out the best in David Steinberg, Sonny & Cher, Dick Van Dyke, John Byner and Super Dave himself, Bob Einstein.The Winnipeg-born Emmy winner passed away in October at 87. On this episode of brioux.tv: the podcast, I welcome his younger brother Garry who also worked on many of those landmark shows.Garry's showbusiness credits are worthy of their own salute. He started as a talent agent, representing a couple of pretty good clients -- Elvis Presley and Col. Tom Parker. Garry's stories range from that 1968 Elvis Comeback Special to later on working with the likes of Redd Foxx, Cher, John Candy and more. Join us for an hour-plus of amazing showbiz memories that will fly Blye. 

 In Part 2 of my conversation with Ken Levine, more evidence that the Emmy-winner is one of TV's top storytellers.One of my favourite episodes from his excellent podcast, Hollywood & Levine, is the one where he told listeners exactly what he thought of the recent reboot of Frasier. Some might see this as sour grapes from one of the authors of the original series, but I for one was keenly interested in Levine's unvarnished take. He didn't hold back, and repeats what Fresh Hell he sees in the Paramount+ series.He also talks about a sitcom he co-created over 30 years ago with writing partner David Issacs: Big Wave Dave's. The cast was outstanding, but the network ditched it after six episodes. Hear why, and also which episode from that series Levine feels is the funniest thing he and his partner ever wrote.Also in Pt. 2: hear which episode from a classic TV sitcom from the '50s  made Levine laugh the most as a youngster -- and also inspired an episode with a similar one-big-joke premise 30 years later on Cheers. 

What hasn't Ken Levine done? He's an Emmy-winning screenwriter who has -- with writing partner David Issacs -- written for some of television's best comedies. You may have heard of M*A*S*H, Cheers and Frasier. In his spare time (!) he has also been a disc jockey, a major league baseball play-by-play announcer, a cartoonist, a playwright, a director, a travel writer, an executive producer, a blogger and a podcaster.His weekly podcast, Hollywood & Levine, helped make trips to the cottage fly by for me these past eight years. Recently, however, Levine stepped away from the mic. So I emailed him and asked: would he guest on my podcast?Here is the answer. a very entertaining two-parter, with great stories about all of these amazing things he's done. Part One starts with his start in the baseball broadcast booth, calling his very first big league game at Exhibition Stadium, the not so fondly remembered early home of the Toronto Blue Jays. From there Ken chronicles his path to success in the big leagues of writing for network sitcoms. If you love television you'll want to listen. If you want to write for television, you have to listen.

This past spring, the CBS action-drama Tracker became an instant hit, emerging as the No. 1 US network series of the season. On this episode, I speak with the tracker himself, Justin Hartley, who was in Toronto last June promoting the series at the CTV upfront. After a career in soaps (Passions; The Young and the Restless) as well as in primetime (Smallville; Emily Owens, MD), Hartley hit the TV jackpot as Kevin Pearson in This Is Us (2016-22). That led to the 47-year-old actor landing the lead as skilled survivalist Colter Shaw who helps others for money in Tracker. In this shorter-than-usual episode, the Illinois native talks about his love of baseball (he enjoyed a Blue Jays game while in Toronto), finding  success later in life, and about what to expect in Season Two. The Vancouver based series is back now on Sunday nights on CBS and CTV.

When you've been busy creating, writing and starring in TV shows and films for a couple of decades, who has time for a hobby?That's been the case for Mark McKinney. This son of a diplomat moved around a lot as a lad and says comedy has always been his hobby. Together with Dave Foley, Kevin McDonald, Bruce McCullough and Scott Thompson, he's been performing on stage, film and television as one of the Kids in the Hall since the late 1980s. McKinney also spent a couple of seasons as a writer-performer on Saturday Night Live, helped create, write and act in Slings & Arrows, and appeared in shows such as Man Seeking Woman and Son of a Critch. He also was the showrunner on Less Than Kind and for six seasons co-starred as manager Glen Sturgis on the NBC sitcom Superstore.That didn't leave much room for stamp collecting or skeet shooting. On Mark McKinney Needs a Hobby (Wednesdays on CTV and streaming on Crave), McKinney tries birding, fly fishing, puppetry and even tackled hockey playing robots. He's joined by guests such as comedians Margaret Cho and Deb DiGiovanni, singer Billy Newton-Davis, Superstore co-star Ben Feldman, food critic James Chatto and Muppet puppeteer Trish Leeper.As you'll see in episode one, however, he drew the line when it came to tattooing. Hear all about McKinney's hobby search adventures on this week's episode of brioux.tv the podcast.

The first scene of the new Fox and Global series Murder in a Small Town is set at that most sacred of Canadian television landmarks: the diner from The Beachcombers, Mollys Reach. Seated inside, shooting a first date scene, are two actors representing several generations of Canadian acting royalty: Kristin Kreuk, the Vancouver lass who went from Edgemont to Smallville to Beauty and the Beast to Burden of Truth to starring in this fifth network series, Opposite her is Rossif Sutherland. The late, great Donald was his dad; Kiefer his half brother. No pressure.Series creator and writer Ian Weir (also Canadian) screwed up and made Rossif a Chief of Police, not a Mountie. Kristin plays a librarian/muse, not Anne of Green Gables. Otherwise, almost everything else about this series is so Canadian it apologises. Sorry.Even one of our greatest homegrown actors, R.H. Thomson, plays a dead body in the pilot. That is so Canadian.Kreuk, one of the most popular guests ever at brioux.tv: the podcast, talks about all of this and more. Get comfy on a chesterfield, open a bag of ketchup chips, and join us.

 Ever wonder what it was like to be in Studio 8H opening night in 1975 on Saturday Night Live?Director Jason Reitman wondered and his new movie, "Saturday Night," is a recreation of the hours leading up to airtime on that historic night. Somebody who was there, however, is my guest this week on brioux.tv the podcast: Lorraine Santoli.No, she was never one of the "Not Ready from Prime Time Players." Lorraine, who worked at NBC, was on the floor, pulling cables for the camera operators during the broadcast. Lorraine went on to a spectacular career in entertainment. When we met 40 years ago in California, she was the main Disneyland publicist. Thanks to Lorraine, I had a backstage pass to a time when it was still possible to interview Roy Disney, animators Ward Kimball, Ken Anderson and Bill Justice and voice artists such as Jimmy Macdonald.Meanwhile, Lorraine became close friends with original Mouseketeers Annette Funicello and Bobby Burgess, among others. She later climbed the corporate ladder and became Head of Corporate Synergy at Disney, managing up to 60 companies during the Michael Eisney era.And wait till you hear her story about Pam Grier! Spend an hour with my friend Lorraine Santoli, this week at brioux.tv: the podcast. 

TV schedules and programs are like the places where we live. Sometimes they need somebody to come in a do a thorough de-cluttering.As CBC's Dragon's Den heads into a 19th season, who better to join the series as the latest investing entrepreneur than Brian Scudamore? He's the founder and CEO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK. You know their slogan: "We make junk disapear. All you have to do is point!"As a pack rat who moved in the past year I know all about clinging to too much stuff. Scudamore tells me on this podcast episode how he came up with the idea of decluttering for others when, as a student, he was stuck in a fast food drive-through lineup. Since 1998, the business has spread to three countries and over 250 franchises. Now this author and podcaster is tackling all the other jobs we don't want to do with Shack Shine, WOW 1 Day Painting and You Move Me.Look for Scudamore to point and make other people's business dreams happen this season on Dragon's Den. The series returns Thursday, Sept. 26 on CBC and CBC Gem. 

After a two year wait, our long national farmhouse facelift crisis is over! Designer/contractor siblings Carolyn Wilbrink and Billy Pearson are back with a new, third season of HGTV's Farmhouse Facelift. The stylin' siblings--featured twice before on brioux.tv: the podcast--once again barnstorm through Southern Ontario, taking grim-looking concrete block bunkers and turning them, in Episode One for example, into custom country cottages. The eight new episodes also include a makeover of a cordwood farmhouse and a converted, one-roon school house. Plus hear what else Carolyn and Billy got up to during the two years between TV seasons. The new episodes are premiering weekly now on HGTV Canada and will also be streaming on Stack TV.

About two hours northeast of Toronto stands The Highlands Cinemas, a hand made movie palace carved out of cedars and mosquitoes. Every summer for 40 years, families from neighbouring towns and villages in Ontario's cottage country have braved bear cubs in the parking lot to see everything from “Barbie” to the latest “Despicable Me” flick.It is entirely the vision of one of Kinmount, Ont.'s native sons, Keith Stata. “The Movie Man,” a documentary about this remarkable entrepreneur's Don Quixote-like obsession with showing movies the way God intended — with an audience — is streaming now exclusively at Hollywood Suite.On this shorter-than-usual summer episode, we hear from Stata as well as director and photographer Matt Finlin, plus one of the executive producers of the documentary, Barenaked Ladies' frontman Ed Robertson. Finlin, Robertson and others came for the movies but kept cominng back for the incredible museum of movie projectors, film stills, drive-in speakers and other artifacts Stata has collected and displays in hallways that snake around the cinemas. This episode best enjoyed with popcorn.

Hugh Wilson talked his way into a job at MTM Enterprises at just the right time. When he arrived in the early '70s, they were busy making sitcom history with The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Bob Newhart Show. Wilson, who had no prior TV experience, could often be found up in the rafters, taking a crash course in Funny 101.The result was his first series as a creator and executive producer, WKRP in Cincinnati (1978-82).In this "From the Vault" conversation from 2014, Wilson -- who passed away in 2018 at 74 -- talks about what it was like to strike gold with just the right cast at just the right time -- even if his rock 'n' roll radio station sitcom was never a big hit in the States.Among the surprising things he reveals:"When the show first went on, it was struggling in the ratings in the U.S. But the ratings in Canada were great right from the beginning," says Wilson, who used the Canadian response to successfully argue that the series needed time to find its audience. "I've never understood that but I've always been super grateful for it."

The death of comedy legend Bob Newhart July 18 had me scrambling for this "From the Vault" conversation with Bill Daily. Daily was one of Newhart's oldest friends from their Chicago days in the late '50s when Daily was directing and performing in television and Newhart was exploding onto the scene with, at the time, the biggest-selling comedy LP ever, "The Button-down Mind of Bob Newhart."The two reunited on The Bob Newhart Show (1972-78), a perfectly cast, well-written gem from the glory days of the MTM Studios. Daily praises, among other writers, Glen and Les Charles who went on to create Taxi and Cheers. He also talks about  how they all adored Suzanne Pleschette, as well as the incredible cast of zanies who stole scenes as Dr. Bob Hartley's group therapy patients. Then there's the story about how Newhart had to fire his best friend for getting the studio audience too heated in the warm-up  -- Don Rickles."I was so grateful to have that show," says Daily, previously best known for I Dream of Jeannie. In this conversation from 2014 -- four years before he died at 91 -- Daily saves his most heartfelt praise for Newhart. "He was the nicest man I've ever met."He also tells three of the funniest jokes I've ever heard. 

Welcome to a faster, higher, stronger podcast episode This week's guest, Scott Russell, has medalled for years in Olympic Games coverage. He's off to France for the Olympic Games Paris 2024, which runs July 26 through August 11. Russell will host the afternoon show, Bell Paris Prime, and he will remain host for CBC's coverage of the Paralympic Games, which follows August 28 to September 8.And then he will leave the podium. The Canadian Screen Award and Gemini Award-winning broadcaster has already announced that this will be his last Games as CBC's host.Russell has covered 16 Olympics for CBC, including six as host. He has also led the network's coverage of the Pan Am Games, six Commonwealth Games, two FIFA World Cups and two FIFA Women's World Cups. He's also been a host and rinkside reporter for 14 years on Hockey Night in Canada.After the games, he leaves to become the fifth chancellor of Nipissing University in North Bay, Ontario, where he holds an honorary doctorate.

In a spectacular career that's gone everywhere from The Streets of San Francisco to "Wall Street" and beyond, two-time Oscar winner Michael Douglas currently stars in the epic, eight-part limited series "Franklin," now streaming on AppleTV+.If you don't think Douglas looks like Benjamn Franklin, neither did the actor. He does an extraordinary job, however, disappearing under the skin of America's favourite founding father at his diplomatic best. These were the years where Franklin was tasked with trying to persuade the French to back the States in the War of Independence.Does it help to be famous to play someone famous? Douglas acknowledges that he could tap into some of the built-in, "rock star"-like advantages Franklin enjoyed. That "Franklin" is also about a struggle for democracy, as well as a tale of truth, lies and the power of the press, well, how bloody timely is that.Douglas also talks about one of my favourite series, The Kominsky Method, his farm in Quebec, the Canadian doctor who saved his life and, as he approaches his 80th birthday in September, gratitude. I'm just grateful for this candid, reflective conversation which is a Canadian podcast exclusive. 

Man it was fun heading down to Niagara last October and catching up with Ron James. He was shooting season two of his comedy series 1 Man's Treasure, which is up now and streaming on Bell Fibe.If this episode sounds different it is because it was shot outside in a park, and simply recorded on a Pixel phone. There is some reflection here about getting older, or, as James says, being in the "third quarter in the game and you're still trying to find the purpose in life."Ron needn't look any further; his is to make others laugh. We were joined by actor-comedian-philosopher Pat McKenna, another Second City survivor who co-stars on the series. Guests this season include Jayne Eastwood, Paul Sun Hyung Lee, Tony Nappo and others. A dilly of a conversation. Pull up a lawn chair and listen in.

The licensing of American specialty brands in Canada went all WWE in June as Rogers swooped in and wrestled away rights to The Food Network and HGTV brands, among others, from Corus. The new deals with Warners Bros. Discovery takes effect in January. There are indications Bell Media can't count on re-upping some of their Discovery brand imports either.What has sparked all the brand swapping? What are the ramifications for Corus and others?  Daniel Eves, who for years was at the table negotiating licensing deals  with American Studios while SVP at Corus, says the potential for all these specialty swaps has been there for several years.  He explains it all as this week's timely guest at brioux.tv: the podcast.

As "Toad" in "American Graffiti," Charles Martin Smith took playing the school nerd to new heights. Over 50 years later, the California-born actor-director co-stars opposite Toronto actress Anwen O'Driscoll in "This Time," director Robert Vaughn's very modern road picture now streaming on Super Channel.In between, Smith has acted with a Who's Who of Hollywood, including Burt Reynold ("Fuzz"), David Niven and Don Knotts (Disney's "No Deposit, No Return"), Sean Connery and Kevin Costner ("The Untouchables"), Jeff Bridges ("Starman") and Michael Keaton and Geena Davis ("Speechless"). His TV credits range from episodes of The Brady Bunch, Room 222 and The Streets of San Francisco to  LA Law, Northern Exposure and The X-Files.  He's worked on more Canadian shows and movies than most Canadians, including "Never Cry Wolf" and Da Vinci's Inquest.  His directing credits include "Air Bud" and "The Snow Walker."And then there are the roles that got away, including one he auditioned for -- Luke Skywalker in "Star Wars."Then there are his dad and uncles -- "Golden Age" animation directors for Walter Lantz, Disney and UPA. Smith is a great story teller and man does he share some doozies here.

Hugh Dillon is a man of many talents, including acting, writing and rocking -- the latter done with his band, Headstones.The acting writing and producing skills were put to the test this third season on the Paramount+ drama Mayor of Kingstown.  Dillon and his series co-creator Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone; Tulsa King) made it their mission to put their lead, Jeremy Renner, firmly back on his feet again after the actor suffered a horrible accident in January of 2023.  Renner's Mayor "Mike" McLusky spends most episodes racing from crisis to crisis as he tries to settle gang wars that are constantly errupting in his prison town.  Viewers will see McLusky pick up right where he left off at the end of Season 2, with Renner showing no signs of the damage he suffered as a result of being crushed under a  seven ton snow plow.On this episode, Dillon also references his former series, Flashpoint, his years growing up in his own prison town, Kingston, Ont., and his new album with the Headstones.

Here is another conversation I had in May at the CBC Media Upfront on Toronto.  Allan Hawco and Josephine Jobert -- stars of the upcoming CBC series Saint-Pierre -- talk about shooting the series, which will premiere in 2025. Currently in production on the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, the police procedural finds an out of favour St. John's detective (Hawco) teamed with a seasoned investigator from France.  Can opposites arrest? Hawco, who co-created the series, says don't expect another Republic of Doyle-style retro cop show.   Look instead for something a little darker, more of a modern British approach to detective drama. French actress Jobert has also played a cop before, and is best known for the BBC/WNET drama Death in Paradise.I've been to these small islands off the coast of Newfoundland which remain a territory of France. They are better known for tourism than terrorism, but the leads insist they are an intriquing setting for criminal behaviour.

One of the new shows on CBC's 2024-25 schedule is called Small Achievable Goals. It is a scripted comedy about female podcasters going through menopause. Those three words, however, coulld also describe, in a fiercely competitive and crowded media landscape, the only way forward for CBC.  On this episode of brioux.tv: the podcast, I speak with Executive Vice President Barbara Williams and General Manager Entertainment, Factual & Sports Sally Catto. We talk about new shows hitting the schedule, including series returns for Allan Hawco, Jennifer Whelan and Meredith MacNeill; shows that missed the cut, including Run the Burbs and One More Time, the upcoming Paris Summer Olympic Games and the uncomfortable fact that the leader of the opposition -- who has a wide lead in the polls -- has vowed to defund the CBC. 

Attention Hearties! And especially Hickies! Yes, this week's episode of brioux.tv: the podcast features Ben Rosenbaum. For over a decade, he's played Mike Hickam on When Calls the Heart, the longest-running series on both Hallmark and Super Channel.With Season 11 winding down, WCTH has already been renewed for a 12th season. Born and raised in the States, Rosenbaum has enjoyed his decade-long run working on the show in British Columbia so much he applied for landed immigrant status.  He looks back over the years and talks about Hickam's slow and steady romance with Mei Sou (Amanda Wong) and how his character has grown from being, to use an Andy Griffith Show comparison, the Barney Fife of Hope Valley to more of its Andy Taylor.

Evanka Osmak helps us keep score most nights along with Ken Reid at the Sportsnet Central desk. She's taking her own shot now in the publishing world with her first novel, a cool book for kids ages 6-11 titled "Ali Hoops."The PlumLeaf Press release is all about a young girl named Ali who loves shooting hoops with her schoolmate Leila. Can they both make the school basketball team? What if one of them does and the other does not?Born in New Jersey and raised in Oakville, Ont., Osmak has an inspiring track record when it comes to stepping up to her own foul lines in life. Trained and employed in the world of civil engineering, at 25 she tore up those plans and took a chance on a broadcasting career. That led to opportunities on both sides of the border and a job she's loved for over a dozen years now at Sportnet.Hear about her own two young readers at home, her love for the Toronto Blue Jays and how she cracked the Sportsnet lineup on this episode of brioux.tv: the podcast.

As briouxtv listeners know, executive producer Mitch Azaria loves to go Tripping. These past five years, he has taken us by mahogany lake boat up the Rideau Canal, sailing along the tip of The Bruce Peninsula, on a bird's eye view over the Niagara region and aboard a Budd train northwest of Superior to White River. This April, his latest immersive documentary is Tripping the French River. The mode of travel this time is aboard a cedar strip canoe as we travel from Lake Nipissing on a three-hour paddle towards Georgian Bay. If you haven't taken one of these TV trips before you'll get so close to nature you may find youself tripping outdoors all on your own! Mitch gets you ready with plenty of facts and surprises in this conversation. Did you know that the French River was the first waterway to be designated a Canadian heritage river? See the documentary when it premieres Sunday, April 21 on TVO, on TVO Today or on YouTube.