Buzz Canuck

TV Buzz- Canada's 43 Most Buzz - able TV Programs

One need only look at the top ranked buzzable TV shows in Canada to get a sense of the plight of our homegrown prime time TV shows at the hands of our
U.S. neighbours. Only two of the top ranked 41 TV shows are produced here in
Canada- Corner Gas and the Trailer Park Boys.  Whatever happened to The Beachcombers (inset photo), SCTV, Tommy Hunter or even the Forest Rangers for cripes sake.

I guess we act like the French when it comes to U.S.culture, we hate being overwhelmed by it but put on a rerun of Hill Street Blues and we'll gladly sit in front of the tube sipping our Labatt Blue.

A mission for all Canadian TV producers - let's build shows with Canadian buzz - my best bets:
 
1) Canuck Celebrity Poker - head table of Don Cherry, Mike Myers, Pamela Lee Anderson, David Suzuki, Michael Budman-(Roots founder) and Stephen Harper
2) Lost  -  a plane crashes on Baffin Island and strange things happen and then we run out of a storyline and stranger things happen
3) CSI: Halifax - starring Rick Mercer as a brooding David Caruso type figure
4) Survivor:  Queen Charlotte - this is not such a crazy idea
5) The Apprentice: Ted Rogers  with a line extension called The Apprentice; Lynda Reeves
6) The DC - hot and steamy encounters by young beautiful actors in Durham County

As provided by our panel of Canadian BzzAgents, here is a listing of our top ranked, most word of mouth-able TV shows as they stood in December'05. We've tried to find Canadian content here wherever we can find it:

1. Lost - sexy castaway Kate, a Canuck! Evangeline Lilly

2. CSI -produced by Canadian entertainment giant Alliance Atlantis

3. Grey's Anatomy - note recent Emmy winner Canadian Sandra Oh 

4. Survivor - Canadians are up in arms because we can't participate, petition attached

5. Amazing Race - much higher ratings in Canada vs. U.S., the race has taken place a couple of times across

Canada and why not? - the currency is still a good exchange rate

6. Desperate Housewives 

7. House 

8. Prison Break - they went out of their way to "not shoot" in Canada, what our prisons ain't sadist enough for you?

9. The Apprentice -Torontois finally getting it's own Trump Tower, civilization arrives...we have been saved

10. Deal no Deal - how Canadian Howie Mandel keeps landing gigs boggles me 

11. Family Guy

12. The OC - another Canadian starlet Kelly Rowan and as god is my witness, I thought Mischa Barton was too..

13. 24 - Kiefer Sutherland - another Canuck, son of another great countryman Donald

14. Corner Gas - a classic Canadian TV show set in rural gas station in

Saskatchewan

15. CSI Miami- very obscure episode reference but we''ll take it "tonight's CSI:

Miami episode has a Canadian connection. In "Blood Brothers," a young fashion model is killed by a hit-and-run driver, and the perpetrator, the son of a wealthy South American businessman, has diplomatic immunity. When the victim's roommate, a woman from

Quebec, is found killed, Horatio must tie the two cases together. You even get to see the Canadian flag at one point in the background. "

16. Gilmore Girls - another obscure Canadian link but we'll take it - Yanic the hotel guy is from
Montreal

17. ER

18. Law and Order - Michael Moriarty - the original prosecutor now lives in Nova Scotia

19. American Dad 

20. CSI - New York

21. Ghost Whisperer 

22. Trailer Park Boys - Canada's combination of The Family Guy, My Name is Earl and the Beverly Hillbillies rolled into one

23. America's Next Top Model

24. Arrested Development - star Jason Bateman's father in-law is Canadian crooner Paul Anka, two other cast members also hail from north of the 49th parallel

25. Dr. Phil - please stop him at the border

26. Extreme Home Makeover

27. How I Met Your Mother - love interest in the show Colby Smolders- a Vancouvergirl!

28: Law and Order: SVU

29. Medium - supporting cast member David Cubitt, a Vancouverboy and star of famed Canadian TV series - Traders

30. My Name is Earl - Jason Lee's film Mallrats was really about life in Scarborough Ontario

31. Oprah - it could happen, click on the link

32. The Office - I love this show, unfortunately no Canadian Connection

33. The Simpsons - we tracked it down Homer Simpson is really Canadian, from 
Montreal, I wouldn't lie about this, click the link!

34. Alias - Jack Bistow - Jennifer Garner's father /kingpin, none other than Canadian Victor Garber 

35. The Colbert Report - his name sounds French, we'll take him, he's funny 

36. Ellen -she could get married in parts of Canada

37. Jon Stewart - The Daily Show - Canadians represent close to 40% of the people who watch this, correspondent Samantha Bee- funny Canadian, even rarer funny female Canadian 

38. Navy NCIS 

39. Numbers - Rob Morrow played the Doctor on Northern Exposure-heh, it could have been
Canada?

40. Scrubs 

41. Sleeper Cell 

42. Stargate - alright so Richard Dean Anderson is not Canadian, he should be- he cycled 7,000 miles across Canada as a teen and is one of Hollywood 's best hockey players - we'll claim him as ours

43. Supernatural

Word of Mouth Teases

If it's up to Flirty Girl, "Honey, I'm just going down to the gym" may never be the same statement again. Canada's hottest fitness regimen has just set up shop in Toronto and it makes your local neighborhood step class  seem "beige" by comparison.

I've just spent a few hours inventorying the full list of Pilates and Yoga clubs in Toronto for a future project and the amazing  thing is the level of sameness from club to club: "we focus on personal instruction", "we train in a bright, well lit studio", "we're not only a yoga club we're a life solution"...does every club in town read from the same marketing playbook?

After having seen so many vanilla sounding fitness clubs (and some really cumbersome flash websites to boot), it's amazing when you come across one that makes a statement  about what they're all about. No round edges here -- if you want to get a sweat on, while learning the tricks of the trade to arouse your partner, Flirty Girl is for you.

I took a spin by their class schedule and felt like I  was visiting Spring Break Daytona from my youth-  as a potential client, you have your choice between standard pole dancing classes, a once monthly Coyote Ugly session (how Piper Perabo didn't become a mega Hollywood star after that movie, I have no idea), the Art of Striptease, a Valentine's Day Lap Dance and a workshop on chair dancing.

As a footnote, the courses are taught by two extremely photogenic sisters - Krista and Kerry Knee.  She ra, Flirty Girl! Now that's something to talk about.