Mr. Interesting's Guide to the Continental United States
Encyclopedia
Mr. Interesting's Guide to the Continental United States was a 6-part radio series broadcast on CBC Radio One
Saturday afternoons during the third hour of Definitely Not the Opera
in the summer of 2000. Like its predecessor Running with Scissors with Mr. Interesting
in 1999, it starred Dan Redican
reprising the title role from The Frantics
' Frantic Times radio series.
This often-surreal comedy show featured a number of sketches strung together that formed a rough narrative having Mr. Interesting and his best friend Eddie (a giant talking carp
played by Colin Mochrie
), smuggle themselves across the United States-Canada border and who are then beset by a number of odd situations and characters.
The basic format of the show had the main story of Mr. Interesting and Eddie making their way illegally across the U.S-Canadian border, and then through the mid-west and eventually to Hollywood. Interspersed with this storyline were "slice-of-life" sketched involving other random characters. Some of these skits included an Amish
farmer dating a supermodel, a bickering family in a car who collide with a beam of God
's pure love, and a man visiting a shoe store looking for gay
-friendly shoes. The show was ultimately less an exposé of life in the United States and more an exploration of contemporary mores, American cultural clichés and a sometimes scathing critique of the show business industry. Perhaps tellingly, both Mr. Interesting and Eddie the carp are ultimately gunned down and die by the show's conclusion.
The shows were recorded live in front of an audience at the Toronto's Tim Sims Theatre over a three-day period, from April 13–15, 2000. Besides Redican and Mochrie, the cast also included Kathy Greenwood
and Kathleen Laskey
. It was written by Redican and Jenny Hacker.
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English language news and information radio network of the publicly-owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial free and offers both local and national programming...
Saturday afternoons during the third hour of Definitely Not the Opera
Definitely Not the Opera
Definitely Not the Opera is a magazine-style radio program focusing on aspects of pop culture. The program is broadcast on CBC Radio One on Saturday afternoons, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. . An abridged version of each weekly program is available for download as a weekly podcast...
in the summer of 2000. Like its predecessor Running with Scissors with Mr. Interesting
Running with Scissors with Mr. Interesting
Running with Scissors with Mr. Interesting was a six-part radio series broadcast on CBC Radio One Saturday afternoons during the third hour of Definitely Not the Opera during the summer of 1999. It starred Dan Redican reprising the title role from The Frantics' Frantic Times radio series...
in 1999, it starred Dan Redican
Dan Redican
Dan Redican is a Canadian comedy writer and performer and puppeteer, best known for his work with the comedy troupe, The Frantics. As a founding member of the troupe he has worked since 1979 on numerous stage shows, the Frantic Times radio show, Four on the Floor TV show...
reprising the title role from The Frantics
The Frantics
The Frantics or Frantics is the name of:*The Frantics , a punk rock band.*The Frantics , a Canadian comedy troupe.*The Frantics , a Showtime network series....
' Frantic Times radio series.
This often-surreal comedy show featured a number of sketches strung together that formed a rough narrative having Mr. Interesting and his best friend Eddie (a giant talking carp
Carp
Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. The cypriniformes are traditionally grouped with the Characiformes, Siluriformes and Gymnotiformes to create the superorder Ostariophysi, since these groups have certain...
played by Colin Mochrie
Colin Mochrie
Colin Andrew Mochrie is a Scottish Canadian actor and improvisational comedian, most famous for his appearances on the British and US versions of television improvisation show Whose Line Is It Anyway?.-Early life:...
), smuggle themselves across the United States-Canada border and who are then beset by a number of odd situations and characters.
The basic format of the show had the main story of Mr. Interesting and Eddie making their way illegally across the U.S-Canadian border, and then through the mid-west and eventually to Hollywood. Interspersed with this storyline were "slice-of-life" sketched involving other random characters. Some of these skits included an Amish
Amish
The Amish , sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches...
farmer dating a supermodel, a bickering family in a car who collide with a beam of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
's pure love, and a man visiting a shoe store looking for gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
-friendly shoes. The show was ultimately less an exposé of life in the United States and more an exploration of contemporary mores, American cultural clichés and a sometimes scathing critique of the show business industry. Perhaps tellingly, both Mr. Interesting and Eddie the carp are ultimately gunned down and die by the show's conclusion.
The shows were recorded live in front of an audience at the Toronto's Tim Sims Theatre over a three-day period, from April 13–15, 2000. Besides Redican and Mochrie, the cast also included Kathy Greenwood
Kathy Greenwood
Kathryn "Kathy" Greenwood is a Canadian actress and comedienne. She appeared on the American version of Whose Line Is It Anyway? numerous times, and played Grace Bailey on the Canadian television drama series Wind at My Back....
and Kathleen Laskey
Kathleen Laskey
Kathleen Laskey, sometimes credited as Kathy Laskey, is a Canadian actress, primarily associated with television roles. Her credits include roles in Check it Out!, Being Erica, Street Legal, George Shrinks, Blue Murder, Yin Yang Yo!, Wayside, Weird Years, At the Hotel and The Eleventh...
. It was written by Redican and Jenny Hacker.