The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour (Action: Pope Productions/Happy Funtime Productions, 2011) is a case study in Canadian television not meeting its potential.  Drunk and on Drugs stars actors from Trailer Park Boys, one of the rare Canadian television phenomena of the past decade.  Amy Sedaris and Jay Baruchel, two reasonably popular celebrities, appear in small roles.  In addition, Drunk and on Drugs is the late Maury Chaykin’s episodic television swan song.

Where does Shaw Media air Drunk and on Drugs, then?  The channel it was originally slotted for, Showcase?  No, Shaw Media burns it off on an obscure Showcase spinoff channel, in the middle of July, two episodes at a time.  That’s a shame, as The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is the best Canadian television I’ve seen so far this summer.

Robb Wells, Mike Smith and John Paul Tremblay play themselves, as they try to figure out why they’re in random predicaments (in a trashed motel room, inside a giant wooden penis) at the beginning of each episode.  Dr. Funtime (Maury Chaykin), who may or may not be a real scientist and/or Maury Chaykin, has created a blueberry-based hallucinogen that keeps the residents of Port Cockerton in line.

Wells, Smith and Tremblay are also kept in Port Cockerton, for reasons as yet unexplained.  Meanwhile, television executive K. Money (Amy Sedaris) is pissed off, as she tries to assemble hours of show footage into something remotely coherent.  I’m not sure what any of this means, if anything.

Wells, Smith and Tremblay play multiple characters throughout the show.  In lesser hands, Drunk and on Drugs would be a vanity project in the tradition of Single White Spenny and Good Dog.  Thankfully, The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is an ambitious attempt at weaving multiple narratives into a cohesive whole.  Based on the first two episodes, it actually succeeds on this level.

Even given the show’s more outlandish elements (the armless Papa Karlson’s Feetza Pizza, the DJs of all-gay radio station CGAY, the geriatric mob family, Dr. Funtime), Drunk and on Drugs is fairly tightly plotted.  If Trailer Park Boys is Danger Man/Secret Agent, The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is The Prisoner.  That’s not to say Drunk and on Drugs is as good as The Prisoner, just that the two shows inhabit the same plane of weirdness.  I’m interested to see how the remainder of Drunk and on Drugs pans out.

If you’re curious, the first two episodes of The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour are online at drunkandondrugs.com.  The episodes aren’t viewable outside Canada, but one can get around the geoblocking.  See?  Canadian television not meeting its potential.  I hope The Comedy Network doesn’t wrap a similar geofence around Picnicface.

Long day for me.  Let’s get right to what you love: highlights.

Almost Heroes and Single White Spenny will debut June 2, 2011 on Showcase, kicking off a Thursday night comedy lineup.  Almost Heroes will air at 9:00 PM ET/PT, followed by Single White Spenny at 9:30 PM ET/PT.  The two shows will be twinned with Curb Your Enthusiasm and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

One day after I post news about cartoonist John Callahan dying, another death comes from left field.  Esteemed actor Maury Chaykin has died, just hours before his 61st birthday.

Chaykin’s most recent high-profile role is as Sam Blecher in the CityTV/HBO Canada series Less Than Kind.  He will also appear in Showcase’s The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour.  Chaykin had been battling kidney problems for a few years, though the cause of his death has not yet been disseminated.

Three of Chaykin’s best-known roles are as Desmond Howl in the 1994 film Whale Music, as Harvey Weingard in the HBO series Entourage (2004- ), and as Nero Wolfe in the 2001-02 A&E series A Nero Wolfe Mystery.  It was for Whale Music that Chaykin won a Genie Award, for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role.

This is stating the obvious, but I wonder how much Less Than Kind will be impacted by Chaykin’s passing.  Much of LTK‘s personality is due to Sam Blecher.  This doesn’t take away from Jesse Camacho’s character, but Chaykin’s death leaves a big hole that Less Than Kind‘s third season will have to fill.

Everyone of note has already mentioned Chaykin’s list of accomplishments.  It would be stupid to elaborate further.

Instead, I will link to the first ten minutes of Def-Con 4 (1985), in which Chaykin plays Vinny.  This might be disrespectful, but that’s the grim reality of the Canadian film scene.  Even the great actors have to appear in bad films.  I don’t think it can be avoided in this country.  At least Chaykin had the ability to make chicken salad from owl shit.

Etan Vlessing pretty much spilled the beans on June 29, but Canwest recently announced its 2010-11 production slate.  The newly announced shows are as follows:

Blackstone (January 28, 2011)
Combat Hospital (2011-12)
Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will* (Spring/Summer 2011)
King (Spring 2011)
Single White Spenny (Spring/Summer 2011)
Untitled Belleville Brothers Project* (Spring/Summer 2011)
XIII (Spring 2011)

Backdoor pilots include:
Befriend & Betray (Spring 2011)
Jack of Diamonds (Spring 2011)
Rave Squad (Spring 2011)

Previously announced programming:
Endgame (Spring 2011)
Lost Girl (Fall 2010)
Shattered (Fall 2010)
The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour (Winter 2011)

*working title

In addition, Rookie Blue has already debuted, while Haven will debut July 12, 2010 on Showcase.  Rookie Blue is a hit, albeit more on Global than on ABC.

Blackstone has already been announced for APTN, but airdates on APTN haven’t been given yet.  I really don’t count Blackstone as a “new” show for Canwest, since Canwest is giving Blackstone a second broadcast window.

I’m curious to know why both Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice have new shows.  Single White Spenny will be produced by Breakthrough Films & Television.  Howard Busgang has been mentioned in relation to the series.

Both John Morayniss and Kenny Hotz will executive-produce the new Hotz series for E1 Entertainment.  The show may or may not be called Prize or Punishment.  Spenny’s trying to be Larry David, while Hotz is being his usual tasteless self.  Sounds about right.

Based on Canwest’s 2010-11 slate, I get the feeling most of the shows will be offloaded to Showcase.  Showcase wants to be a mainstream drama channel now, so it’s beefing up its drama holdings.  I don’t know why Combat Hospital is even on this list, as it won’t debut for another year.

I think Showcase is treated better than Global.  It sure gets the lion’s share of Canwest’s homegrown drama content.  That doesn’t surprise me.  Cable rot is turning Showcase into a haven for reruns of the XIII miniseries and Beyond Loch Ness, but Showcase is launching more original series than ever.  It’s a strange dichotomy.  I wonder why Showcase hasn’t launched a Loch Ness series yet.

Addendum (July 12, 2010) | The media release for Blackstone, which has just been released, states that the show will air on both APTN and Showcase come “early 2011.”  No word on whether Blackstone will be simulcast.

Further Addendum (November 29, 2010) | Changes to Shaw Media’s (formerly Canwest’s) lineup will be underlined.  Info is from Shaw Media publicist Jessica Gold and, in the case of Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice’s shows, showcase.ca.

Untitled Belleville Brothers Project is somehow still Untitled Belleville Brothers Project.  It’s also been known as Masters of the Plazaverse and The Strip.  The name changes are confusing.  I’ll be surprised if the show doesn’t debut as Untitled Belleville Brothers Project.

Further Addendum to the Further Addendum (December 20, 2010) | According to this press release, Blackstone will debut Friday, January 28, 2011 on Showcase…at 11:00 PM ET/PT.  It will not be simulcast with APTN, as if Showcase giving Blackstone a timeslot of death hasn’t made this obvious.  The listing has been updated to reflect this change.

Not much to report on Day Two of Canwest’s upfronts, except that I talked briefly to Natasha Dunkley at the video presentation and pilot screenings.  Dunkley is the publicity coordinator for Canwest’s dramatic channels, which includes Showcase.

According to her, The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour will air in the winter of 2011, with no date yet specified.  This pretty much confirms what Metro Halifax reported on May 28.

As for whether Testees or Pure Pwnage will get second seasons, that’s apparently up to the production teams to decide.  Testees fans will have longer to wait for a second season, almost a year after FX’s John Landgraf stated that the show would continue airing in Canada.

It’s tough to speculate on Testees.  Either the show is dead, or it’s the male comedic version of Paradise Falls.  Both scenarios are possible in Canadian television.  The industry is funnier than Derek Edwards.

I know I should be more on top of Canadian television news, but I’m a latecomer to this story.  The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is currently shooting in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and has been since May 26.  Drunk and on Drugs… is Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay and Mike Smith’s follow-up to Trailer Park Boys, like I really need to state this.

Less Than Kind‘s Maury Chaykin will guest-star as an actor hired to play a wacky German scientist.  Chaykin is filling in for Alex Lifeson, the man originally tagged to play the scientist.  Jay Baruchel, Pat Roach and John Dunsworth also make appearances in the six-episode limited series.

Baruchel’s easily Drunk and on Drugs…‘ hottest guest star, appearing in films like She’s Out of My League, How to Train Your Dragon and The Trotsky.  His climb towards the Hollywood mainstream can only help Drunk and on Drugs… – well, that and Baruchel’s winning CanCon brownie points for The Trotsky.

There’s nothing I can say about The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour that hasn’t already been said.  You’re either excited for Drunk and on Drugs… or pissed off since it’s not Trailer Park Boys.  Hell, maybe you’re both.  TPB-related projects cause conflicting reactions in people.

The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour (one hell of a working title) has been commissioned by Showcase for a six-episode November 2010 run.  As reported by everyone in existence, this is the new show from Trailer Park Boys stars Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay and Mike Smith.

I’m not going to belabour the point by rewriting the press release, except that Monty Python’s Flying Circus and The League of Gentlemen are referenced.  Looks like Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town has competition.  Nice.

Hosts of The Happy Funtime Hour unknowingly take hallucinogens, acting like the characters they play.  Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson plays “a German scientist who teaches children about nutrition.”  The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour reads like a Sid and Marty Krofft pisstake.  I like it.

The show is ambitious, with Wells, Tremblay and Smith playing numerous characters.  I’m wary of Drunk and on Drugs… being a vanity project, but the TPB actors are capable of pulling a show like this off.  The show will either be awesome or a complete trainwreck.  I don’t see a middle ground.  There shouldn’t be.

Via Showcase’s YouTube account, here’s a video of the show announcement.  Warning: too many shots of a speakerphone.  Way to break the online budget, Showcase.

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