What a Gas!
By Laurel E. Anderson
Recently I had a chance to enjoy some ‘coffee talk’ with Brent Butt, star of the hugely successful comedic sitcom Corner Gas. This No. 1 ranked Canadian program and No. 1 ranked sitcom has Brent playing a thinly disguised version of himself, as character Brent Leroy, proprietor of the town gas station. The creation of Corner Gas was based on an idea of what Brent’s life would have been like if he’d stayed in his hometown of Tisdale, Saskatchewan and ran the local gas station. Be warned if you are holding a hot coffee while reading this, chuckles may follow and said coffee may spill on dry clean only pants!
I spoke with Brent just before he headed out on the road to promote the third Season of Corner Gas. Getting back to what he loves the most, Brent is on a six-city, live comedy tour entitled ‘CTV Presents Corner Gas Live’ and lucky us, Ottawa is one of the cities on the tour. Ottawa’s show is Friday, Sept. 30 @ 8 p.m. at the Theatre du Casino (Lac Leamy) and tickets can be purchased at the Casino Box Office or at www.admission.com. Brent is also appearing in Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, Edmonton and concluding the tour in Toronto on Saturday, Oct. 1 @ 8 p.m. at Convocation Hall.
Right from the start, I can feel Brent’s down to earth personality on the phone when I remind him that we met a few months back at the CTV Fall Programming Launch and beg him not to hold my attempt at humour against me. I reminded him that I had said that I loved the show and that if Corner Gas wasn’t so far away, I’d get my gas there regularly. Not the funniest line at the time but it was the best I could come up with. Brent assures me, with a chuckle, that he won’t hold it against me but at the same time, I don’t think he really remembers and for this I am thankful.
After congratulating Brent on the success of the show I go right to subject, of gas that is and ask him what he thinks of today’s gas prices. “They’re up and down that’s for sure. It’s $1.03 where I am right now,” he answers. I ask Brent how much gas is at the Corner Gas station in Dog River and he answers, “a nickel a gallon.” But hey, before you head on over (it’s a really long drive from Ottawa), it’s important to note, as Brent is kind enough to point out, that Corner Gas doesn’t have any underground reserves, meaning there isn’t any gas there. It really is a television set.
I asked Brent about the idea behind the 6 city ‘live’ comedy tour ‘CTV Presents Corner Gas Live. He tells me that stand up is the impetus behind it all and that he really misses getting up in front of a live audience and thought it was a great way to get back on the road to promote the show’s third season and at the same time, celebrate the release of the second season on DVD. The DVD comes out this week and some members of the Corner Gas cast will be at Sunrise Records at the Bayshore Mall on Friday, Sept 30th from 1:30-2:30 where they will be autographing copies for fans. Tara Spencer-Nairn who plays Karen on the show, will also be at the signing.
For someone who loves performing live, it wasn’t hard for Brent to answer ‘what’s the best part of performing live?’ “Television is such a process and everything has to be precise but standup is loose and free and I can do what I want when I want, like making a left turn midway through something or at the last minute.” He continues, “I love the freedom and live audience response.” Corner Gas is filmed on a set without a studio audience.
Of course the next question is about the challenges of performing live of which Brent doesn’t really seem to feel there are. “Even when it goes bad there’s something good. I like the challenge.” But if he has to pick one difficult thing he says it’s the full hour live. ‘Have you ever tried being funny for five minutes? Well, try an hour, it’s always a challenge,” he finishes with a laugh.
Brent will be adding directing to his repertoire this season, which already includes star, writer and executive producer and I asked him if he will find directing difficult. “I enjoy directing and my partner David Storey (one of the show’s executive producers) is a director and has been helpful. Also, I’m always on the floor, working with the directors. I learned from them and we have a good crew, which helps.”
With a show of this success level there’s bound to be lots of fan mail and of course I want Brent to share an odd one with me. With a chuckle he tells me about this guy from Sweden, who lives and works in Canada. He contacted the show, convinced that it was based on the Swedish village that he grew up in. Apparently the similarities in character and premise were very much like his hometown and he had to be convinced that the show was based on Brent’s idea and not on him, some stranger from another land.
Just before my 15 minutes with Mr. Butt is up, it’s time to talk about the magic of Corner Gas. They say three times a charm and since this is the third season of CG, I ask Brent what he thinks. What’s in that magic gas tank that is the success of this ‘coffee talk’ humour-based show? “There’s a real sense of realism to the show,” Brent answers. “The number one priority of the show is that it be a funny show. It’s a comfortable show, not edgy and the viewers can relate to all the characters.”
Season Three of Corner Gas airs on Mondays @ 8 p.m. ET (check local listings) on CTV and Saturdays @ 8 p.m. on The Comedy Network.