Rick Moranis Reveals How Canadian Broadcaster’s Request Created Iconic ‘SCTV’ Characters

Netflix

Bob and Doug McKenzie

The new Netflix documentary, “SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of,” includes a treasure trove of history and little-known facts about the beloved comedy series, which ran from 1976 until 1981.

Early in the show’s run, before being picked up by NBC, “SCTV” aired in Canada on CBC, Canada’s national public broadcaster.

“The CBC came to me because we were on the CBC, Canadian Broadcasting Company, and they said we want more Canadian content,” said “SCTV” producer Andrew Alexander in the doc, as reported by People.

As Alexander recalled, the request “really made no sense at all because it was a Canadian-produced show” with “mostly Canadian performers.” 

Bob & Doug Are Born

When actor/writer Rick Moranis learned of the CBC request for more Canadian content, he balked.

“I went crazy,” Moranis admitted. “I said, ‘Everything we’re doing is Canadian. What more do you want us to do? You want us to sit in front of a map, put on a toque and a parka and fry back bacon and drink beer and talk like hosers?’ He said, ‘Yeah, okay.'”

Moranis and co-star Dave Thomas (who was also head writer) did just that, introducing the dimwitted Bob and Doug McKenzie, who discussed inane topics while chugging beer and frying back bacon on a Coleman stove in a segment initially called “Kanadian Korner” before evolving into “Great White North.”

“It was sort of this weird double edge where there were all these other pieces that we worked on, that we wrote, slaved over, and really put thought into, and this little throwaway thing that was just improvised wound up catching on. To this day, I don’t know why,” mused Moranis, who went on to a successful movie career, and would later star in the 1990 animated series “Rick Moranis in Gravedale High.”

Hoser Stars Are Born

Meanwhile, the public couldn’t get enough of Bob and Doug — which was evident when the pair were the guests of honor at Toronto’s “Hoser Parade” in 1981 and landed on the cover of Rolling Stone.

“The media was pointing at Bob and Doug more than at the show and it was unfair, because the show was smart and Bob and Doug were stupid. It says ‘SCTV‘s Best Joke,’ on the cover of Rolling Stone and we weren’t the best joke.”

Moranis and Thomas parlayed the characters’ popularity into a hit album (including the single “Take Off,” featuring vocals from Rush frontman Geddy Lee) and, eventually, even a feature film, 1983’s “Strange Brew.”

Friction with the ‘SCTV’ Cast

While the brief improvised bits were meant as a middle finger to CBC (while also fulfilling the mandate for a few more minutes of Canadian content), Bob and Doug quickly became breakout characters. As the popularity of the McKenzie brothers grew, tensions flared as the rest of the cast grew resentful.

“That was an uncomfortable kind of thing to read and you can’t do much about it. And it’s not the guys that are saying it. It’s the press,” noted Eugene Levy.

“I think ‘resented’ is a little strong. I perhaps envied the success they were having as these two characters and the insensitivity on their part in how they were dealing with their success,” added Levy.

In the retrospect, Moranis and Thomas admitted they may have made some missteps in how they dealt with the meteoric popularity of the McKenzie brothers.

“We could have been a little better with the way we handled it,” Thomas conceded. “When Rick and I bought a Mercedes and he bought a BMW, that’s sort of like a signal to the cast that we’re making more money than you, and we shouldn’t have done that.”

“SCTV: The Greatest Show You Never Heard Of” is streaming on Netflix now.