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The Comedy Network turns 10

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The Comedy Network turned 10 years old yesterday and is embracing the future of comedy with a revolutionary change in how it delivers content to viewers.

The Comedy Network announced that it is celebrating "10 years well wasted" with a revamped <a href="http://www.thecomedynetwork.ca">web site</a>. Starting today, visitors to the site now have access to a robust and constantly expanding catalogue of free, on-demand programming, including full episodes of their favourite shows, games and other diversions.

It’s the next evolution for The Comedy Network, which became Canada’s first and only comedy channel on Oct. 17, 1997.

"Our research shows that this new-fangled internet thingy is gaining in popularity," said Brent Haynes, Vice President, The Comedy Network. "After 10 years as the destination for comedy on television, thecomedynetwork.ca could just become the best non-porn website ever."

Also part of the re-launch, the site will now feature the full compliment of programming currently available on www.comedycentral.com, the online home of Comedy Central. This is the fulfillment of the broadband portion of a multi-platform content deal signed by CTV and Comedy Central earlier this year. The deal delivers the full Comedy Central library to CTV and The Comedy Network for broadcast, broadband, VOD, Mobile and more. The Comedy Network will roll-out the mobile portion of the deal at a later date.

<font size=1>Source: Comedy Network press release</font>

Front Page, Industry News

Odd Job Jack is Back in Business July 22 on The Comedy Network

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Toronto, Resident ‘slacker’ Jack Ryder gives part-time employment another shot when he reports for duty in the fifth season of The Comedy Network’s award-winning animated series Odd Job Jack, premiering Sunday, July 22 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT.

This season, Jack Ryder (voiced by Canadian actor/writer/director Don McKellar) and his gang punch the clock alongside celebrity guest stars including Henry Rollins (The Henry Rollins Show), Carrie Fisher (Star Wars), Seán Cullen (The Seán Cullen Show) and Henry Winkler (Happy Days) in 13 half-hour episodes of workplace misadventures, which brings the total episodes for the series to 52.

In celebration of Jack Ryder’s on-the-job hysterics, The Comedy Network is giving fellow working-class “stiffs” across Canada a chance to share their workplace woes and win a special guest role in the season finale of Odd Job Jack in the “Odd Job Jack Worst Job Ever” contest (contest details below).

Odd Job Jack is the animated saga of the perpetually unemployed Jack Ryder, a 25 year-old Sociology grad whose higher learning has only put him deeper in debt. In each original episode, Jack returns to the temp agency “Odd Jobs Unlimited” and is assigned a new position. From egg farmer to escort, there is simply no job too odd for Jack in his unsuccessful quest for full-time work.

In this season’s premiere episode, “No One Likes a Gorilla,” Jack dresses up in an ape costume and hands out fliers at a mattress store. In the second episode, “Mind Humper,” Jack becomes a magician with a new, radical brand of illusion.

For more fun this season viewers can enter the “Odd Job Jack Worst Job Ever” contest. To do so, viewers need to visit thecomedynetwork.ca starting now and explain in a video clip (2 minutes or less) or describe (200 words or less) their worst job ever. The winner will get a trip for two to Toronto, tickets to a comedy show and a special guest role as an animated version of him or herself in the season finale of Odd Job Jack.

Three other lucky winners will receive a Comedy Network prize pack simply by voting for their favourite submissions online. The contest closes on Sunday, July 15 at 11:59:59 p.m. ET. For more information and for contest rules please visit thecomedynetwork.ca.

Returning alongside Odd Job Jack is the show’s corresponding “sit.com” – an interactive website based on Jack’s job of the week. Viewers are prompted throughout each broadcast to log on to www.oddjobjack.com and play show-related games and download content that is updated weekly.

With video recaps of each episode, in-depth character information and various downloads, the website has close to 14,000 registered users and has generated over 5 million visits, 20 million on-air page views and 2.5 million game-plays.

Accolades for Odd Job Jack include a nomination for Best Interactive Program (2006) and Best Animated Show (2005) at the Banff Rockie Awards, second prize for Best Interactive Design (2006) at Vidfest in British Columbia, as well as multiple Gemini and Canadian Comedy Award nominations.

Front Page, Industry News

Corner Gas Draws 2 Million in Record Setting Season Finale

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TORONTO, Monday night’s highly anticipated season finale of Corner Gas drew a season-high 2 million viewers, the most successful season finale to date and the second largest audience ever for Canada’s No.1 comedy.

For CTV, the big-buzz-finale capped another memorable year for Corner Gas, which charted an astonishing 67 per cent audience growth since its season premiere last September. The series finishes its 19-episode run with an average audience of 1.52 million viewers, reaching as high as No.16 on Canada’s Top 20 list of most watched programs.

For the fourth consecutive year, Corner Gas remains television’s No.1 comedy (Canadian or American) and the most watched Canadian scripted series (see "The Ratings" below for a complete ratings summary). The memorable finale will encore Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on The Comedy Network and is available on demand on The CTV Broadband Network at CTV.ca.

With another successful season in the record books, CTV today confirmed to series producers a full 19-episode production order for a 5th season of Corner Gas. Production crews are now gearing up for a May, 2007 return to their Saskatchewan-based sets and soundstages. With their return, Corner Gas remains the only network comedy series to be entirely based and shot in Saskatchewan.

Armed with the new production order, Corner Gas executive producers Brent Butt, David Storey and Virginia Thompson today unveiled their Season V story department, a six-person team that now stands as the most formidable creative lineup the series has ever boasted. The newly assembled "dream-team" story

department features:

Brent Butt – star/creator/writer/director/executive producer

Kevin White – supervising producer/writer (showrunner)

Mark Farrell – producer/writer

Norm Hiscock – consulting producer/writer

Gary Pearson – story editor/writer

Andrew Carr – story editor/writer

In addition to signing on the Emmy Award winning Norm Hiscock (Saturday Night Live, King Of The Hill, Kids In The Hall) and the highly acclaimed Gary Pearson (MadTV, This Hour Has 22 Minutes), the executive producing team today appointed Corner Gas veteran Kevin White as series show-runner. Together with star/creator/director/co-executive producer Brent Butt, producer/writer Mark Farrell (The Newsroom, This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and story editor/writer Andrew Carr (Comics), it’s a virtual all-star collection of Canada’s most prolific comedy writers.