Ireneparalegal
10-29-2007, 08:44 PM
Tuned In: Fill 'er up
'Corner Gas' has a tank full of clean fun
Sunday, September 09, 2007
By Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.
America's broadcast networks will begin rolling out their new series over the next month, but perhaps the fall's best, least objectionable comedy series is the Canadian import "Corner Gas," airing on cable's Superstation WGN.
Created, written by and starring stand-up comic Brent Butt, the show is set in the fictional prairie town of Dog River, Saskatchewan. Butt stars as Brent LeRoy, proprietor of the farming community's gas station/convenience store. His father, Oscar (Eric Peterson), ran the place before him.
As the series begins, the new owner of the coffee shop next door arrives from Toronto. Lacey Burrows (Gabrielle Miller) takes over the place from her late aunt Ruby and in early episodes shocks the natives with her expectation that they pay for their coffee.
In another early episode -- the best of the first four, and they do improve as the series goes along -- the townsfolk debate what to build as a tourist attraction.
To honor the local farmers, the mayor's grandmother suggests they build a giant hoe. Many "big ho" jokes follow, but no one is willing to tell the old lady about the innuendo she's inspired.
"They do attract people," Lacey notes of the proposed giant hoe. "And they certainly generate revenue."
That's as dirty as "Corner Gas" gets. It is an amazingly clean show in this day and age -- no one's having sex, there's no violence, little-to-no profanity. It's just funny, sometimes wry, sometimes sly.
In an upcoming episode, Brent writes the names of anyone who fails to pay for his or her gas on a chalk board, confounding his clueless father, who thinks customers named Marge Simpson and Jean-Luc Picard truly exist.
The show's community aspect -- they have town meetings, gesture as if to spit when anyone mentions a nearby rival town -- brings to mind "Northern Exposure" or "Gilmore Girls," but "Corner Gas" is far less estrogen inspired.
While the show may be unheard of stateside, "Corner Gas" has been a hit in Canada since its 2003 premiere. (The Pittsburgh Pirates will be introduced to Butt in person -- he's scheduled to throw out the first pitch at the Sept. 23 Cubs game in Chicago where the Cubs play against the Pirates.)
Currently shooting its fifth season, Butt said he keeps the show clean for a simple reason: "I live in terror of my mother, who I know watches, her and her church lady friends. [If it was dirty], there would be hell to pay."
During breakfast in July, Butt said he grew up in a small Canadian prarie town and originally envisioned "Corner Gas" as a film. Later, he reconceived the idea for TV.
"There's a big market, a big chunk of North America that's referred to as 'flyover.' TV [depicts] a lot of dirty Vancouver drug deals and Toronto Bay Street lawyers and nothing in the middle of the country," Butt said. "It kind of parallels in the states, too, when you get a comic who's talking to people, not television executives, but welders or farmers or whatever. That's the bulk of the population."
The show's Canadian network was initially concerned about the appeal of "Corner Gas" in big cities, however, Butt said the show's highest per capita viewership is in Downtown Toronto, followed by rural Saskatchewan.
"You're either from a small town and can relate or you've never been to a small town, so it's exotic and weird," Butt said of the show's setting and appeal. "It's kind of a win-win."
Butt said while some TV shows get too many directives from network executives, "Corner Gas" has never been pressured to be anything other than what Butt envisioned.
"A lot of times, TV shows get saddled with an agenda, like, you have to have two bedroom scenes per episode or the notion of wanting to make a show dark and edgy," he said. "Aside from funny, we weren't saddled with any agenda from the network. They just wanted it to look good."
This week Superstation WGN will air an assortment of "Corner Gas" episodes at 8 and 8:30 p.m. Monday, 9 and 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and 4 and 4:30 p.m. Saturday. Beginning Sept. 17, "Corner Gas" will air at midnight Monday through Thursday. Episodes will also air at 8 and 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
'Corner Gas' has a tank full of clean fun
Sunday, September 09, 2007
By Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.
America's broadcast networks will begin rolling out their new series over the next month, but perhaps the fall's best, least objectionable comedy series is the Canadian import "Corner Gas," airing on cable's Superstation WGN.
Created, written by and starring stand-up comic Brent Butt, the show is set in the fictional prairie town of Dog River, Saskatchewan. Butt stars as Brent LeRoy, proprietor of the farming community's gas station/convenience store. His father, Oscar (Eric Peterson), ran the place before him.
As the series begins, the new owner of the coffee shop next door arrives from Toronto. Lacey Burrows (Gabrielle Miller) takes over the place from her late aunt Ruby and in early episodes shocks the natives with her expectation that they pay for their coffee.
In another early episode -- the best of the first four, and they do improve as the series goes along -- the townsfolk debate what to build as a tourist attraction.
To honor the local farmers, the mayor's grandmother suggests they build a giant hoe. Many "big ho" jokes follow, but no one is willing to tell the old lady about the innuendo she's inspired.
"They do attract people," Lacey notes of the proposed giant hoe. "And they certainly generate revenue."
That's as dirty as "Corner Gas" gets. It is an amazingly clean show in this day and age -- no one's having sex, there's no violence, little-to-no profanity. It's just funny, sometimes wry, sometimes sly.
In an upcoming episode, Brent writes the names of anyone who fails to pay for his or her gas on a chalk board, confounding his clueless father, who thinks customers named Marge Simpson and Jean-Luc Picard truly exist.
The show's community aspect -- they have town meetings, gesture as if to spit when anyone mentions a nearby rival town -- brings to mind "Northern Exposure" or "Gilmore Girls," but "Corner Gas" is far less estrogen inspired.
While the show may be unheard of stateside, "Corner Gas" has been a hit in Canada since its 2003 premiere. (The Pittsburgh Pirates will be introduced to Butt in person -- he's scheduled to throw out the first pitch at the Sept. 23 Cubs game in Chicago where the Cubs play against the Pirates.)
Currently shooting its fifth season, Butt said he keeps the show clean for a simple reason: "I live in terror of my mother, who I know watches, her and her church lady friends. [If it was dirty], there would be hell to pay."
During breakfast in July, Butt said he grew up in a small Canadian prarie town and originally envisioned "Corner Gas" as a film. Later, he reconceived the idea for TV.
"There's a big market, a big chunk of North America that's referred to as 'flyover.' TV [depicts] a lot of dirty Vancouver drug deals and Toronto Bay Street lawyers and nothing in the middle of the country," Butt said. "It kind of parallels in the states, too, when you get a comic who's talking to people, not television executives, but welders or farmers or whatever. That's the bulk of the population."
The show's Canadian network was initially concerned about the appeal of "Corner Gas" in big cities, however, Butt said the show's highest per capita viewership is in Downtown Toronto, followed by rural Saskatchewan.
"You're either from a small town and can relate or you've never been to a small town, so it's exotic and weird," Butt said of the show's setting and appeal. "It's kind of a win-win."
Butt said while some TV shows get too many directives from network executives, "Corner Gas" has never been pressured to be anything other than what Butt envisioned.
"A lot of times, TV shows get saddled with an agenda, like, you have to have two bedroom scenes per episode or the notion of wanting to make a show dark and edgy," he said. "Aside from funny, we weren't saddled with any agenda from the network. They just wanted it to look good."
This week Superstation WGN will air an assortment of "Corner Gas" episodes at 8 and 8:30 p.m. Monday, 9 and 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and 4 and 4:30 p.m. Saturday. Beginning Sept. 17, "Corner Gas" will air at midnight Monday through Thursday. Episodes will also air at 8 and 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.