November 28, 2023 • 56 mins
Get your popcorn ready as we dive headfirst into the iconic world of Trailer Park Boys with none other than Barrie Dunn, the man behind the unforgettable character, Ray. Barrie spills the beans on his multifaceted involvement in the show as a writer, producer, director, and of course, actor. We navigate through his journey post-Trailer Park Boys and the new ventures keeping him busy.
Our episode then shifts gears as we follow the incredible journey of a street performer in Eastern Europe during the tumultuous mid-70s. This rollercoaster of a story takes us through the highs and lows of the theatre scene in the UK, the struggle of finding acting gigs in Canada, and the varying audience reception across different countries. We also get a front-row seat to the legacy Trailer Park Boys has left behind its unique storytelling style that defied norms and how it has garnered a cult following.
Finally, to end on a high note, we lighten the mood with some candid relationship talk and fun moments. Barrie shares his wisdom about the dynamics of successful relationships, the impact of dating apps, and even showcases his impressive mimicking skills. This episode is not just a tribute to Trailer Park Boys but also a celebration of the unpredictable journey of the performing arts. So, buckle up for an entertaining ride filled with laughter, insights, and great stories.
Thanks for listening, hope you come back next week
Thank you for joining us on today's show, as always, we appreciate each and every one of you! Talk to you soon.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
I know you're gonna dig this Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
This is what you have been waiting for.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
And now we're starting the podcast in five,
four, three two one, hello,hello, Welcome to the powers
point podcast, season four,episode 32.
Today I have a special episodefor you all to listen to.
The gang isn't here at themoment.
(00:47):
They're still out enjoyingtheir holiday festivities.
But this episode, it means alot to me and I'll tell you why.
Because a couple years ago, whenGavin, craig and myself started
Majors Mess Hall, we all hadlike a wish list of people that
we would love to have on theshow and since we all love
(01:07):
trailer park boys, we activelypursued all that we could
because we were just so enamoredwith that show.
It made us all laugh.
We all had the same feelings.
And then you had Craig, whowanted Bob Ross on, and we all
know about Bob Ross.
So even though I left the messhall, gavin still pursued trying
(01:28):
to get as many of the cast onas he could, and he landed one
late last month, early thismonth, and I was lucky enough to
get the invite to sit in withhim and Kelly and talk to one of
the most loved characters onthe show, who not only is
important in front of the camerabut he's equally, if not more
(01:51):
as, important behind the camera.
He wrote, produced, directedsome of the episodes, and I'm
talking about Barry Dunn, whoplayed Ray, and everybody loves
Ray, let's just face it.
He's kind of like thatcharacter that creeps up on you.
You just love him.
So I'm going to play thisinterview with Barry and Gavin
and Kelly and myself, and thenI'm going to throw in a song
(02:14):
that I did and then, like I said, Friday, this Friday or early
Saturday, we will all be backtogether and enjoying Christmas
festivities or holidayfestivities, whatever you
celebrate.
So here's Barry Dunn.
Hope you like it as much as Idid.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Hey buddy, how's it going?
Good, how are you guys?
Excellent, oh look, you've gotall dressed up.
You've got a shirt on there.
Look at me, I always wear this.
Anyway, so just to introduceyou, I'm Gavin, who you've
obviously been talking to.
We've got Scott, who's inChicago.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
It's got it, and Kelly Don't mind the trapeze.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
I was going to put something like that on me.
That's not really, and Kelly'sNobody would believe it.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
I'm sorry.
No, I was just saying Kelly'sback in the UK.
Hi, kelly.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Hi, how are you?
This is international.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
It is.
We're all over the place.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Where are you, Gavin?
Speaker 2 (03:14):
I'm in Col Harbour.
Yeah, yeah, we're close.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
You and I are fairly close.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
Yeah, you want New Glasgow away.
Is that where you're based?
Speaker 3 (03:23):
No, out the eastern shore oh.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
OK yeah, nice.
Yeah, not too far then.
No, and you're obviously usedto like Col Harbour anyway,
because you obviously there wasa lot of filming at one point,
wasn't there here, so yeah, westarted shooting in Col Harbour
Gosh, I have to remember.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I think it was season five.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
That's right.
Yeah, yeah, you know I do yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
I mean I'll defer to every question to you, yeah,
yeah, every question.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Well, I know Mike Smith quite well and often he'll
be telling me something andhe'll have it wrong.
He's got it wrong and he's tornthem out and I'm like that's
not right.
And he just looks at me andlaughs and he goes yeah, you
obviously know you're stuffed.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
You know, a few years ago I did a.
I'm just kind of trying to getthis thing set up properly.
A few years ago I did a showfor CBC about the Canada Russia
72 hockey series and I had doneso much research on that and I
interviewed all the key players,coaches, and I knew more than
(04:30):
they did and of course I hadresearched it.
They hadn't.
It was at least 30 years afterthe event took place, so
everything in their mind was notas fresh as mine.
So I would do the same thing.
I would correct them on whoscored goals and what the scores
of games were.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Yeah, yeah, so sometimes I feel a bit rude
because I'm like they've gotthat wrong, but I need to tell
them.
Speaker 3 (04:57):
Better to know, better to have the truth.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Exactly.
So how have you been?
Obviously because you know likefor you know the likes of the
trailer park boys fans.
We obviously haven't seen youfor over 10 years now.
So how have you been doing?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Well, I've been.
Well, you know, I have been,you know, trying to keep busy
and have other projects on thego.
I took a bit of a break afterafter we left Mike Klatenberg
and I left the show, I think.
I think we sort of got out ofit officially in 2013, right
(05:29):
after the last movie, the thirdmovie, which I think was called
Don't Legalize it.
You can correct me.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yeah, you're nervous now, aren't you, to get it wrong
?
Speaker 3 (05:41):
So you know I took a bit of a break.
It's a slog.
I think anybody who's involvedin a TV series will tell you
that it's a slog, you know, andit's fun.
It's great fun, of course, fromthe shooting is fun, you know
it's it's it's so time consuming.
You don't have time for much ofanything else really, including
(06:01):
working in other projects.
So now I took a bit of a break,I'd say a couple of years, two
or three years after.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Nice, yeah, well, end well, end break indeed.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Good thing.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
So we'll, we'll, we'll touch on trailer park boys
in a little bit.
But I just want to knowobviously you were I spoke to
you about this on the phone aswell and you were going to kind
of get into it and then stopped.
But you were like a streetperformer in Eastern Europe like
many, many years ago.
Yeah, I'm just curious likewhat did you do?
Like what was that?
What did that entail?
Speaker 3 (06:31):
Well, it was in the mid 70s, I was.
I went to theater school in theUK.
Actually, kelly, where are youfrom in the UK?
Speaker 1 (06:39):
By Liverpool.
Oh, A little bit bit north.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
It's the same as me.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I know London well though.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Yeah, I went to London.
I lived there for a couple ofyears going to theater school
and when I was going to theaterschool I hate to talk about this
because my wife constantlyembarrasses me about it and I
got involved with the MimeCompany.
Now you can pause here forsnide comments.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
We're expecting you to give us an example.
Yeah, but the Mime, the Mimething's not going to work on
audio, though.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
I was in my twenties, my body was far more live than
it is now.
So, anyway, I got involved withthe steer company and through
the theater school that I wasattending, and we were invited
to perform in Yugoslavia, whichat the time was Yugoslavia.
I was in Zagreb, which is nowCroatia, but so we went there on
(07:45):
student visas, if memory servesme correctly.
Yeah, student visas.
We weren't professional and afriend of mine, two or three of
us, got together and we were inCroatia, I would say in Zagreb
for at least six weeks or so,and we would go down to the main
(08:09):
square and I did as much as Icould.
I was only embarrassing myself.
Is that okay, gavin?
Did I answer your?
Speaker 2 (08:20):
question yeah, you did, yeah, Like did you.
Was it like Boskin?
Did you make some money doingit?
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Well, yeah, no, we didn't make much money, but yeah
, it's like Boskin, you know, wewere sort of on the street.
You see a lot more now and yousee it from far better
performers than I was.
I mean, we probably didn't makemuch money because we weren't
very good, but you know, we, youknow it wasn't much People in
(08:48):
Zagreb and this would be 1976,maybe 77, you know, weren't to
giving out their hard earnedmoney, right, yeah, and in 76,
yugoslavia was still part of the, you know somewhat.
I don't know if it wasofficially part of the Iron
Curtain, but it was a.
(09:08):
It was certainly a communistcountry and not altogether
affluent, I would say.
So people didn't give a lot ofmoney, but they were always very
kind and, you know, and I thinkthey had a real well, what am I
telling you, kelly?
You know this, you lived there.
Right, things have a realunderstanding of culture, more
(09:31):
so than we do, in the sense thatthey have broader interests, I
think.
So, I think in 75, 76, we werethere attending a theater
festival.
We were performing at a theaterfestival and there were
countries from Romania, hungary,uk, probably France, you know,
(09:52):
so a lot of countries fromWestern and Eastern Europe and
the shows were extremely wellattended.
I mean, there would be cello'sin venues that must have set
three, four, five hundred people.
So you know, I don't thinksomething like that would have
happened, not in Dartmouth, Idon't think.
Maybe how did you go from,although things are different,
(10:13):
but certainly, you know, peoplewere.
People were very nice, veryfriendly.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
How'd you go from a street performer in Eastern
Europe to being back in Canadaand being an actor?
Speaker 3 (10:27):
Well, I graduated in 70s you know the years of 76, I
think it was.
I came back to Canada aftergraduating from theater school
and I looked for work as anactor and the first, I would say
the first year or two is verytough, you know, and I lived in
Halifax.
So I mean it was the wrongthing to do in many ways to stay
(10:48):
in Halifax to look for work asan actor.
My brother, who went to theaterschool with me, he went to
Toronto, which is where you knowthe equivalent, I guess,
scottie would be.
You know, in United States yougo to New York or LA, right, all
of Chicago.
Chicago has a really vibrant.
I mean a lot of great actorsand comedians have come out of
(11:12):
Chicago, as I'm sure you know.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
But anyway, I stayed in Halifax and I think it was a
struggle.
I'll tell you, it was a realstruggle, you know.
Finally, in Gavin I forget whatyear it was do you remember
what year I went to Toronto?
Speaker 2 (11:37):
You don't know that answer.
Well, yeah, I'm a little bitstuck on that one.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
I think it was 77.
I think I went up to Toronto.
Yeah, I was in the fall of 77.
I went to Toronto and I wasmarried at the time to a
different person and we tried tosurvive in theater and I got a
couple of jobs, you know, andthey didn't pay well, but I
(12:04):
think I made 90 bucks a week,which.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Fucked down.
It's not too bad, is it, butyou?
Speaker 3 (12:09):
know, at the time in 1977, it wasn't bad, you know, I
don't think you could live onit, I think.
I think my partner at the timewas working, I think.
And then the funny thing is Iwas performing at this theater
company in Toronto and a companycalled Factory Theatre Lab I
think it still exists anyway andthere was a handwritten notice
(12:37):
on the bulletin board like handscribble, looking for actors in
Nova Scotia, new theater company, and I thought, oh, what the
hell you know?
So I applied and I got the job,came back to Nova Scotia and
worked with this theater companyfor, I think three years and I
(12:57):
also worked at Neptune, workedwith John Dunn'sworth.
John and I, john and I workedfirst time I had known of John
Dunn, because John was quite alegend in Halifax long before I
knew him.
John ran a theater companycalled Pure 20 Pure, I think it
was Pure 20, I could be wrongabout that, but it doesn't
matter and John did some reallyinteresting work.
(13:19):
And so I got my first job onthe professional stage, if you
like, at Neptune Theatre inHalifax in a play, shakespearean
play, othello, and I had oneline, one line, and I think John
had two or three, I forget.
Anyway, john introduced me toprofessional theatre in Halifax
(13:44):
and and never since then, johnand I kept him.
You know, john and I workedtogether many times over the
years and you know, and stayedgood friends and then became a
bit different.
I think once in a sense thatbeing a producer of a show,
you're kind of the boss of theshow.
You know, I don't know you guysever have to be boss of a
(14:08):
friend, you know it would bedifficult, yeah, yeah, it could
be.
I mean, it doesn't have to be.
But I definitely make it apolicy now not to, you know, not
to get involved with my bestfriends, try not to get involved
in in projects together becausethey don't always end up well.
But anyway, john and I workedtogether for quite a long time.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
Sorry, can you hear me now?
Speaker 2 (14:29):
sorry, yeah, yeah, how does it differ going from
theatre to TV, and like did theaudience differ from country to
country?
Speaker 3 (14:42):
yeah, that's a really good, interesting question.
Yeah, the two there's twostyles of acting are quite,
quite different.
Are you guys okay with my imagehere?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
yeah, washed out, okay listen, we're pulling up
with.
We're pulling up with Scott'stropical one there, so don't
worry.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Scott, you're gonna have to tell me how you did that
is that.
Is that one of thosebackgrounds, a virtual
background?
Yeah or are you on LakeMichigan right now?
No, no.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
I wish that was Lake.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
Michigan.
I'm just hoping to see you go,flies over and shits on him.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
To be honest, but go back to your question, kelly.
Yeah, the two techniques arequite different.
And well, I'm trying toremember these are.
I should have, I should havegot up, brushed up on my dates.
But I, I, I did a.
I did a TV half hour drama inHalifax and and the director
(15:37):
there took a liking to me, hebrought me on to CBC where I
worked for seven years in thedrama department and we, we did,
and while I was there I didn'tdo so much acting as I did,
writing network executive stuff.
I'm very boring, wouldn't wantto do it again, but it was.
(15:58):
It was a nice time in my life.
I don't have a network.
I don't know how TV executivesdo it.
I don't know.
I think they must have.
I don't know I would be bored.
I was bored and anyway, I don'tthink I've answered your
question, kelly.
But going to back to answer partof your question, kelly, about
the differences in audiences,just taking trailer park boys as
(16:21):
an example and Scott, you're,you're, you are an American,
about you live, you're from theUnited States.
Yes, sir, um, trailer park boysdid extremely well, obviously
in Canada, but not, you know,not right away took, there was,
there was a hardcore group oftrailer park boys fans in that
(16:41):
first year and thank god forthat because you know they kept
the show going.
It could easily have been oneone and done with that show.
You know it was an amazing thatwe got it off the ground to
begin with.
But with trailer park boys wedid extremely well in in Canada.
We sold, I think, kelly to theUK.
(17:03):
I'm not sure what networks itmay have been on.
I do know this that we sold inIreland.
My family doctor at the timethis tell me, tell me, stop me
any one of you anytime, becauseI promise you I can know it's
fine, it's fascinating.
(17:24):
Honestly it's it's really greatbut my doctor, my family doctor
in all effects, was Irish, I'mnot sure where, I'm not sure if
he was from Northern Ireland orthe Republic anyway, um, one day
I'm in, I'm in having a checkupor something, and he says, he
says I just heard from my nephewin Ireland who loves a show
(17:48):
called trailer park boys.
He asked my doctor, did youknow anything about it?
And he said, well, yes, I don'tknow how much confidential
information, anyway, I puttogether a whole package of
trailer park boys stopped toenter to send to Ireland.
So my point was that in Irelandit did very well.
(18:08):
Now we sold to other countrieslike Scandinavia and Spain.
I've never seen how they'vedubbed those shows.
Curious.
But to finally answer your kill,your question, kill, we did not
do it very well in the UnitedStates.
We, we, I think we first soldto.
(18:31):
I think first was BBC America,which was a very niche channel,
uh, and I don't know how manyepisodes, how many seasons they
showed.
Then I think we went to thecomedy channel, look, yeah, the
comedy channel, and again itdidn't do all that well, uh, and
of course comedy channel andBBC America both bleeped.
(18:54):
So you can imagine what trailerpark boys would sound like
bleeped and he would beessentially just.
It would really ruin the flow.
Yeah, and you, you know if it'slike in that episode where Ricky
says if I can't smoke and swearI'm fucked, you know, it was
like if, if we can't swear on TVwe're fucked, nobody's gonna
(19:17):
watch this show because it justreally.
You know that.
You know, I mean, ricky, royWells is a master at swearing.
I think I think he could givecourses and to teach actors how
to swear, naturally, you know,because he could do it.
Bubbles could do it as well.
Um, I, to be honest, I wasn'tas good at it.
I think, um, and I don't thinkJim Lay, he ever swore, if I
(19:43):
recall correctly, but anyway, um, yeah, ricky, so, so they just
didn't do well in the UnitedStates and we made our first
movie, our first trailer parkboys movie.
We made that Ivan Reitman.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Ghostbusters.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
Ghostbusters and so many other great movies yeah,
I'm just a huge Ghostbusters fan.
I mean it's not a cult, it'shuge movie, it's a wonderful
movie yeah and he had set you toproduce that for your very
first episode.
And, um, he was.
We screened it in Toronto aspart of the trauma film.
It wasn't, it wasn't in thetrauma film festival, but we
(20:17):
screened it during the traumafilm festival because all of the
network buyers were there andIvan set this thing up.
He invited all of his uh and heknows everybody in Hollywood,
so virtually every big Hollywoodbuyer in it was at the
screening and Ivan fullyexpected, uh, after the movie,
(20:38):
the phone to start ringingimmediately with offers, uh, to
buy the movie.
And it was a study in humanitybecause, uh, we're all in this
room together.
Ivan was telling us what, whatto say, what not to say.
Let me do all the talking.
Five minutes after we all sitin there, the phone doesn't ring
(21:03):
.
10 minutes, not a call.
Half an hour not a call.
Nobody in the United Stateswanted to buy that movie.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
So yeah, there you go , kel.
I mean, audiences are different.
I don't know why it didn't takeoff in the United States the
way it did I.
You know there were shows thatcame out after Triller Park Boys
in the United States.
I think there was a show calledmy Name is Earl.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
Yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:29):
I think I saw a couple of those episodes.
I mean I think it tried to copyand actually we did.
There was some interest frombuyers to buy the what they call
a format rights of the showessentially the format rights
and stopped me, if you guys knowthis.
But the format rights are justthe right to essentially create
well, like the office in the UK.
(21:51):
Yeah, yeah.
They bought the format rights todo it in the United States with
Stephen Carell Right, and sothere was some interest, but I
don't know why I just nevermaterialized.
National Lampoon was interestedin buying it but they wanted to
call it National Lampoon.
Triller Park Boys.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Oh, no, yeah, that wouldn't work.
It didn't feel right to us, youknow so yeah, anyway, which is
weird because now it's massivein the states, like it's.
I think it's bigger there thanit is in Canada.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
Now, Is it really?
I think so.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Yeah, I think since Netflix picked it up.
It's like it's definitelybecause they they've done tours
and stuff and they do theComic-Con and things now and
it's always in the states,sometimes you kind of devil,
yeah, yeah, it's my first sortof it, when it hit Netflix and
then it was like a rage and fire.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
It just won't you know like it went off crazy and
everybody was talking about itand when did you first watch the
show Sky?
Speaker 3 (22:51):
What year?
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Oh, 2000.
Well, Gavin 11.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
10.
So we were well into it.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
When you watch the first season, did you?
Did you state yourself whatthat?
What is this?
Speaker 1 (23:07):
This looks so Well.
You know, like the first, thefirst season, the first couple
episodes was about characterdevelopment and teaching you
about who's who, and at firstI'm like I'll stick with this.
And then it just got crazierand crazier.
You know, here you got Rayriding around in a wheelchair
looking over his shoulders, youknow, trying to evade, you know,
(23:30):
like insurance or whatever, andthese three guys were always
going to jail at the end of theseason and it just was like
everybody was talking about itdown here.
Speaker 3 (23:44):
Well, I guess it took Netflix to do that.
You know I have to give theboys credit because they they.
When my last season working onthe show was season seven I it
doesn't mean anything, I suppose, because you don't know what
the season numbers are they tookit over, did season eight, nine
, 10, 11.
I'm not sure how many they did,and it would be 12.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
12.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
After John.
After John died they I thinkthey went to an animated show,
so I guess it did well and theboys have always been on the
road to performing the show.
I think Bubbles is on the roadnow.
I think he's making.
Yeah, he did.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
He said I think they just they wrapped it up.
It's coming out next year andnew movie.
Speaker 3 (24:28):
You know more about it than I do.
Yeah Well, I was in it as well.
I was in it.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
So we did the days filming, which was great fun.
So are you sworn to secrecy?
Speaker 3 (24:36):
You can't tell me what it's about.
I can tell you, but.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
I won't tell you on the podcast.
Tell me the title.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I think I know the title it's called Bubbles,
bubbles and the Shit Rockers.
Speaker 2 (24:49):
It's?
It basically follows Bubblesband around Europe, right, right
, yeah.
Are the other boys in it, likea Robin G there in it as well?
Yeah, I think it's focusedmainly on Bubbles, but the other
guys are in it too.
Yeah, well, I mean talk aboutit right up the alley.
Speaker 3 (25:03):
You know, talk about working with your strengths, of
course.
Mike is such a good performer,you know musician To and to
create that character of Bubblesand the Shit Rockers, I mean,
you know, and I bet he's got alot of good people playing with
them too.
Yeah, it's a solid band.
It is a solid band.
Yeah, I've seen him play a fewtimes.
Speaker 2 (25:20):
Yeah, Well, good for them, yeah, so um so like when
you, when it came time to you to.
Obviously you saw, you got youand Mike Lattinby, you sold the
rights to the boys.
Was that hard?
Yeah, Was that hard decisionfor you?
Were you just were you ready atthat point to go?
(25:40):
You know what?
It's time to kind of pass thetorch on, yeah.
Speaker 3 (25:45):
That's a good question.
I think I was ready and I thinkMike see was.
I hate to speak for Mike, yeah,but yeah, I think we felt it
was time Um to to move on.
Um, it was very hard for MikeClattenberg Cause you know, mike
(26:05):
was the P creative force onthat show.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
And so Mike had to constantly come up with new
episode ideas, and you know, anduh, there are, uh, it was just
time.
I think it was just time forMike and I to get out.
You know, I think it was, uh, I, I, I, I re.
I missed it in some ways, butin a lot of ways I think it was
(26:28):
the right decision.
Yeah, you know if you're,there's a certain you know
you're, there's a certain set ofyou know five, five, but I
think it might have been alittle more interesting.
But there's a you don't and Ithink it maybe in some ways it's
it's already happened to somedegree you get sort of typecast.
I mean Mike Smith, I can't.
Well, mike, I think, is aprobably a very good actor and
(26:51):
Rob has done other work outsideof trailer part voice.
I'm not sure about John Paul.
So I mean they've done at leastRob has done a good job of not
being typecast.
You know, as as Ricky umproject that you want to do, and
there were other projects thatI wanted to do that I think in
some ways, having trailer parkboys over my head was.
(27:21):
I think there was a lot ofcondescension, let's put it that
way from the big mucky mucks inToronto who thought that, oh,
what a quaint little show thosemaritimeers did and it's not
real TV and they're not reallyactors and they're not really
writers.
And I think what pissed themoff the most was that we created
(27:44):
a show arguably the top ratedcomedy in Canada in years and
years and years that they havenever been able to create and
still haven't created.
Now there are some shows outthere.
I'm sure that you guys couldcomment on that.
I haven't seen that Canadiancomedy.
I don't know, I don't reallywatch much anymore.
(28:05):
Do you guys watch a lot ofCanadian TV?
I bet you, scott.
I bet you don't even know whatCanadian TV is outside.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
I do.
I watch a lot of Canadiancomedies like corner gas letter,
kenny, uh uh uh.
You know trailer park boys, ofcourse.
Yeah, pink is in.
I watch quite more up therethan I do down here.
Speaker 3 (28:31):
Is that right?
Well, yeah, corner gas had anice run, didn't they?
You know?
And I think it's Larry Kenny, Idon't know, I have not seen
that show, it's okay.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
This I mean they say at rivals trailer park boys, I
don't think it does.
It's kind of a say it's acertain niches post, it's got it
.
You know it's got a certainkind of fan Does it.
It's not for me.
Scott likes it.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Yeah, I like it.
Do you get it over in the UK,Kelly?
Speaker 2 (28:57):
No, I tend to watch when I visit Gavin Goal Harbor.
Yeah, she watches it all as shecomes over here.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
I mean Britain and comedy go hand in hand.
I mean you, britain has createdso many wonderful comedy shows.
I think I'd have to say myfavorite.
I have two favorite TV showsthe Office, the British version.
Yeah brilliant, and I even hateto say the British version,
because to me there is only one.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
Yeah, I mean, I like the American one, but the
British one's definitely thebest.
Ricky Gervais is a genius, sogood.
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Ricky Gervais is so, so clever, so funny.
And the other one that was theLarry Larry, larry Sandershell
with Gary Shanling.
Do you guys ever watch that?
Speaker 2 (29:40):
Oh yeah, yeah, I haven't seen that, no, but I
know.
Speaker 3 (29:42):
Oh, he's gone now.
He's long gone, but the showhas been on for years.
But those are my sort of mygo-to shows and I'm, you know.
So, yeah, I know Gavin was time, I think it was time to leave
and you know, and the guyscertainly had the creative
energy to keep going and I thinkthat's, you know, and more
power to them, and they've doneextremely well with it.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
So yeah, well, I remember at the, I was at the
premiere for the third movie.
It was your last involvementwith the show and right before
they showed the movie, you, yougot up and gave a speech.
This was in Halifax, in theOxford, I believe that was it
called the Oxford, yeah, and yougave a really nice sort of send
off speech.
It was so nice.
And then I knew afterwards Iwas going to, we were going to
(30:23):
do like an after party, and Iwas like, oh, I've got to meet
Barry and you, you, you weren'tthere, or at least I didn't see
you there, but that speech thatyou gave was really nice, it was
really nice.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
Thank you.
I, you know, and I think nowthat you mentioned it, and I
kind of remember it becausethat's you knowing more about
these things than I do no, Itend to, I tend not to go to the
parties to tell you the truth.
I'm just not, I'm not a partyguy, you know.
And again, we you and I weretalking before doing this
podcast is, I've been nervousabout this all week.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
Aww.
Speaker 3 (30:57):
Yes, yes, so many fans worldwide.
I don't.
I, you know, it's that thinghere.
Here's the thing I I don't liketo watch interviews about
actors.
I think things, especially whenthey talk about their work they
sound so self-important and Ialways think that people aren't
(31:17):
going to watch this and they'regoing to think one or two things
oh, barry down, no, that'swhere he is, he's in Nova Scotia
.
And the others are going tothink what a fucking asshole.
And I probably see it.
No one's going to think that.
No, honestly.
No, I'm not looking for.
I'm not looking for, but that'swhat I think, because I think,
because that's what I think whenI watch interviews, I think, oh
God well.
Speaker 2 (31:38):
But it's funny because you say that.
But it's like it's insane to meto even think that because,
like you, you created thischaracter and you play this
character, because that'sobviously what you're most known
for is playing Ray, and it was.
It's been over 10 years, butI'm not just saying this, but
Ray is one of the fan favoritecharacters and even though it's
(31:58):
been 10 years, you are, yourcharacter, is still a huge part
of the show.
So, like, which is a testamentto you as an actor, obviously,
and a producer.
So for you to come on and say,you know, I don't really know
what people would want to knowabout me.
You know they're going to thinkof an asshole, like it's just,
it's so foreign to me becauseit's not the case at all.
People.
People will love just even justhearing your voice after this
(32:21):
many years.
That's funny.
Speaker 3 (32:22):
You know, I mean Ray had some great lines.
You know, there's no questionhe had some of the best lines in
the show.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
Best character on the show.
Speaker 3 (32:32):
Well, you know he had .
He did have some good lines,but, no, I always felt insecure
about the part.
And it's funny, you know, it'sfunny, I, I, I guess I'm known
for playing Ray on the show, butyou know, I, this is, this is
the pompous in me and this isthe arrogance in me and this is
why I think people will, afterthe hear me talk, will think
(32:53):
what a dick.
You know, I would like to beremembered as the guy who
brought trailer park boys totelevision and the road co-wrote
the first two seasons.
You know that, yeah, right, inthe creative development of the
show.
That that's far more importantto me, although that's that's
the behind the scene stuff.
The visible stuff was thecharacter Ray.
But here's an example and wewere, I think we were filming.
(33:18):
I guess I can't remember thisguy, I'm sorry, but we were
filming.
We, I think we were shootingthe last movie, the trailer park
boys three movie, and we wereshooting at Massey Hall in
Toronto, which is equivalent to,I guess, what I don't know it's
.
It's the music venue and it'snot like.
(33:40):
It's not like the big state,the massive stadium, but it's a.
It's an intimate venue forwhere all the musical acts love
to perform.
Anyway, we were shooting thereand after the show.
I wasn't in the show, we were.
I was there with my clout, butwe were shooting some scenes, I
(34:00):
think for the movie, for thelast movie, and oh, what was I
going to say?
Somebody just came into my door.
Oh yeah, ok, so, yes.
So after the show there aresome people waiting downstairs
to hope to meet the boys.
Right, the three boys and Istayed upstairs but I could see
(34:23):
outside and I was on.
I was on the exit stairs, I wassort of standing on the stairs
and I and I didn't go down tomeet people because I thought
this was my thought.
They don't want to meet me,they want to talk to the boys
and if I go down there they'rejust going to think that I am
biting into the boys Popularity.
(34:45):
So afterwards I heard thiscomment that I was stuck up from
not going down because you knowand it's funny people you know
you make and it's a fair, it's afair assumption that that
person made, but it's so, it'sso long because people don't
know.
I think actors are generallyinsecure.
I was always insecure.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Yeah, no, you're very humble about it.
You are, like you know, evenjust getting you to do this and
I know it's a big deal to you.
That's why I mean that, which,in turn, made me nervous,
because I'm like he doesn't dointerviews and he's agreed to do
this Like this is reallyspecial that he's coming on and
and you know, barry Gavin and Iwe've actually talked for years
about getting you on.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
You know, and and we know it's a big honor to have
you on with us.
So when he said that he talkedto you, it was like wow, I can't
wait.
You know, like your characterand what you do is like so, so
legendary.
Thanks, guys.
Speaker 2 (35:47):
Yeah, and I'm like, although you'll you know, just
because of the fans, you'll beremembered mostly for Ray,
there's a lot of people as well,but there's a lot of people as
well that do do know what youdid behind the scenes and so I
mean, like the DVDs when theycame out, there's so much behind
the scenes stuff on them andI've watched them a million
times and it's reallyinteresting stuff there
genuinely is.
And like that was one thing Ireally wanted to talk to you
(36:09):
about was the production side ofthings.
It wasn't just about playing,no, so I know that's your true
passion.
I mean the acting was obviouslypassions about that, but your
true passion is the, theproducing, and well it is now.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
I mean, I started off as an actor and worked as an
actor for quite a few years, butnow you know, it was always
tough and I guess I just didn'thave the fortitude and the
perseverance that so many thatyou need to make it as an actor.
So, yeah, and I love producing,I love, I think I love writing
more than producing.
But you know, and I'm, and Itry to spend a lot of my time
(36:44):
writing.
I know my Klattenberg is doinga lot of writing to these days
from what he's told me.
So that's always, that's alwaysfun, it's always it's nice to
be able to write.
You at least get to control,initially, the process.
Eventually broadcast executivesget involved and fuck it up.
(37:04):
But you know, we were luckywith showcase.
We were lucky with showcase, Imean, when we first picked
showcase.
I mean we were just in theright place at the right time.
Trillipart boys would neverhappen today if anybody came to
a network with that concept,that show when in a million
years happened.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
Yeah, right place, right time.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, right place, right time.
Gavin, it's exactly what it was.
You know we approach showcaseto at the time their license,
the Canadian license, broadcastlicense was up for renewal.
They were, there was pressurefor them to do some and money on
Canadian programming and wejust happened to be there at the
right place and there wassomebody there at Showcase.
(37:47):
I think the guy who I wouldn'twant to give credit to was Norm
Bowland.
Norm was a senior VP there andI am fairly sure Norm was the
guy that greenlit this project.
Not that it matters becauseNorm is long retired and nobody
would know him anymore, but Ijust want to give a shout out to
Norm Bowland because he was,I'm pretty sure he was the guy
(38:08):
that greenlit the show.
And you know it wasn't easy andbroadcasters are putting money
in it.
They have every right to imposetheir ideas and their thoughts.
But that first year, man, thatwas tough.
We fought them on virtuallyeverything, I mean, and we were
(38:29):
lucky because we had a strongsense of what the show could be
and should be, you know, andthey were more interested in
doing traditional kind of drama,traditional kind of
storytelling.
But anyway, they came around tous and we developed a good
relationship with those guys,but thank god because it would
(38:50):
have been a miserable sevenyears.
But yeah it was.
You know it was tough to getoff the ground and they stuck
with it and get on them.
And you know, I have met honestto god guys.
I have met so many cool peoplewho watch trailer park movies.
I couldn't even begin to tellyou so many of the people that I
(39:13):
have met.
Just just randomly, on thestreets, people come up and say
hello.
I think sometimes people feelshy to do so, but, my god, I am.
People that actually.
You know, I was in the TorontoWar Court one day and I was
thinking the lineup and my wifewas with me and this guy
(39:35):
approached my wife and I couldsee them talking, had no idea
what they were talking about,and then my wife came over to me
and said there's a gentleman,there's a young fellow here from
from Sudbury I don't know hisname so I can't divulge it
Sudbury, ontario, which is north, north of Ontario, it's.
It's a.
It was a mining town in hardlockdown, but he wanted to know
(39:57):
if he could come over to meetyou.
He was so shy he actually wentto my wife to ask my wife.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
Oh nice.
Speaker 3 (40:02):
And his story was so heartwarming.
Guys, he was on his waysomewhere.
I I think he was on his way outto Alberta to work in the oil
fields.
I'm not exactly sure.
You know, they were hard up formoney, he's.
They just had a kid and he wastaking off the first time was
away from his family and hewanted just to say, you know, I
I even get choked up about itnow To think that we gave him so
(40:29):
much, he said.
He said he said I'm going therewith my DVDs and that's what's
going to make me feel like I'malways at home, because he and
his wife used to watch the showall the time.
And you know, if you can givethat kind of, if you can have
that kind of a relationship withthe viewer, holy Christ, I mean
, we've done, you know.
Speaker 2 (40:45):
And the thing is as well.
That's like that's one guy, butthat has happened so much
around the world with loads ofpeople.
And there's even actuallythere's a couple that mean Scott
.
No, they one guy from the UKand she's from the US.
They got married recently andthey met because of their love
for trailer park boys.
So it literally does bringpeople together.
Speaker 3 (41:05):
You know it's, it's nice, it's a nice legacy to have
been part of, and and we're allpart of it.
I mean you guys are part of it,everybody's part of it, because
if not for you know, if not foryou guys, it would long ago
have died.
And you know, people aretelling me now that you know I
am, I could be, I could be, Icouldn't be grandfather.
(41:29):
I'm not, I could, I'm certainlyold enough, right and so and so
, and, and now the kids ofparents are watching the show
again, like I'm hearing about 14and 15 and 16 year olds, yeah,
who are coming to trailer park.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Boys brown knew it's like having a whole new audience
all over again it is all thetime, and like that's the thing
as well, like your work willforever live on, which must be
amazing to feel, to know that.
Speaker 3 (41:55):
When I think about that and when I think about all
of the good times.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
for sure, you know, you know we look at someone like
John Dunn'sworth, who'sobviously no longer with us
anymore, but like Jim Leigh, hethat he's gonna live on forever,
he's always gonna be around andwe can always watch the show.
Speaker 3 (42:07):
And there he is, you know, and all his glory you know
, john, john was one of the mostcomplex people I'd ever known
in my life.
He was yeah, he was quite a guy, john.
You know he has left the legacy.
John had a legacy, I think,before trailer park boys,
certainly in this area yeah,yeah, everyone knows it.
(42:30):
Trailer park boys cemented it,and his character, jim Leigh, I
mean.
I mean, well, you can say thatabout every character in the
show.
I mean Randy, I know that,trevor, who, I'm sorry, what's
his name?
Mike, of course, mike.
Michael Jackson what is hisname?
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Michael Jackson.
Speaker 3 (42:49):
Michael Jackson.
I'm just so bad but you forgetthat one.
He, he.
Well, you know, I know this.
You know, I mean, I lovedworking with Michael.
I know, I know he said some badthings about us online.
I never wrote the comments, butI've been told he's.
You know he said some pretty,pretty, pretty mean things yeah
about us, but I loved workingwith Mike as an actor.
(43:14):
He was finding he was one guy onset who could make me, like you
know, break up on set roomtakes.
Mike was a great guy, you know.
He, he and I have no ideawhat's happened to Mike's since
and I'm sure now he's kind ofgone off the radar.
Speaker 2 (43:29):
We don't, don't pay anything.
I know he was.
Speaker 3 (43:31):
He's been involved in different bands and things over
the years yeah, yeah, he was amusician and he worked in the,
he worked on the, he worked as a, as a grip, I think, on a lot
of.
I mean, maybe he still doesyeah.
Mike was never.
Mike was never an actor, to myknowledge.
I don't think Mike ever startedas an actor.
But if you guys ever watchedthat black, have you ever
watched the original trailerpark boys, the black and white?
yeah he and, um, oh, everybodyin that.
(43:54):
I mean that's when I first sawthat movie I thought oh my god,
this is, this is.
I've never seen anything likethis.
I've never seen characters likethis.
I've never.
You know, nova Scotiancharacters were not.
We're not wearing fishing hats,and you know, because that's
what everybody thinks of with nothat's just that.
Who's difficult yeah fishermenand you know, and here you get
these guys, and I thought MikeJackson and then Cory balls, as
(44:18):
as Trevor and Corey, yeah, theywere funny amazing of course,
ricky and Julian.
I mean that original black andwhite well, my wife.
Speaker 2 (44:29):
My wife warned me because we met online and I came
to visit and she said listen,there's a TV show that's filmed
here and I just you may haveseen it because I know that it's
available in the UK.
She said, um, we're not.
We don't live like that.
I don't want you to thinkthat's what my family's like
when I like that, like we don'trun around with guns and things,
and I've never heard of it.
And I was like I remember goingto a bowl in Ali and there was
a picture of the boys up likebehind where the counter was.
(44:52):
I don't know why, but I thinkit was signed and she said
that's it, that's the trailerpark boys, and I'm looking at
like that.
I've never seen it.
Anyway, one day, while she wasat work and I was, I was over
here.
I put it on TV and it was onand I just fell in love with it
straight away.
It reminded me there's a TV showcalled Reno 9-1-1 yeah, yeah
yeah, you know it's kind of aspooky thing like trailer park
boys.
(45:12):
I just fell in love and then Iwent to blockbuster because that
was still around and rentedeverything they had.
Trailer park boys brought ithome, just watched the whole
thing and then I've been a fanever since oh man, that's going
way back.
Speaker 3 (45:23):
I mean, yeah, yeah, that's going back to the early
days.
Well, guys, it's been apleasure.
If there are any specificquestions, you there is.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
I've got, I've got one question for you and this is
going to put you on the spotnow.
But be completely honest, if,um, if they asked you to go back
to just to act, just to playRay for a one-off like scene, if
you like, would you considerdoing that?
Would you consider going backor are you like?
No, that's um, I'm done yeahyou know, if they said you know
(46:01):
what will pay you, well, youknow, we'll look after.
Yeah, like we go back.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
It wouldn't be anything about the money.
Um, I would.
I would say no.
Yeah, I would say no.
I think.
I think I've done my bet.
I remember the very last sceneI shot in the in the third movie
, the trailer park boys movie,was the scene where Ray is at
the dump and he's explainingthat he, he made 11 000.
(46:28):
He said that's right, yeah, yeah, that was a lot of scenes and I
remember at the end of thatthinking and I actually have it
written in my calendar and I'llnever erase it raise last day
and I'm very happy with that anduh, and it has nothing to do
with the boys, uh, and I thinkit has for me.
(46:48):
You know, gavin, I mean, look,I say no.
You.
You never say never.
Circumstances change.
But is it right now?
Speaker 2 (46:58):
yeah moment, I would say no yeah, you know, I think
that he had the perfect send-offas well, man, that third movie
starts out where he'sessentially passed away and then
at the end there's like thislittle thing at this little
video that he's still around.
I actually got choked up when Iseen that in the theater me
wife was with me.
She was like, oh it was.
It was really sweet that hejust snuck in this little video
to Ricky to say that he wasstill around, and that's how I
(47:18):
like to remember.
Speaker 3 (47:19):
You know, ray, yeah and this is very, very good.
You guys had made this processvery.
This has been this has beenamazing.
Speaker 2 (47:29):
Honestly, like you don't, you don't, you definitely
don't, because you're so humble, you definitely don't realize
how much this means to us.
Speaker 3 (47:35):
Honestly, it was.
It was a pleasure.
You guys, it was nice to meetyou.
I hope that we meet in personsomeday.
Scott, I can't wait to get tothe tropics with you in Chicago
and no idea, chicago at palmtrees, but that's good.
Speaker 1 (47:49):
I pop up the coal harbor every now and then the
sea Gavin, so yeah definitelyyou're in Liverpool now, eh are
you in.
Speaker 2 (47:58):
Liverpool now that's where Kelly is.
Speaker 3 (48:00):
Yeah, yeah yeah, kelly, you're in Liverpool.
Yeah, yeah, well, we maybe allmeet one day.
Speaker 2 (48:07):
Let's go for the next time she's down we'll go for
the drink.
Well, I'll buy you a drink.
That sounds like a good deal.
Okay, right, one last thingbefore you go.
Yeah, can you say, just once, Ihate to do this.
Can you say you know what I'mgonna say, don't you?
Speaker 3 (48:23):
it's either way she goes, or way of the road, or guy
she goes, it's gotta be.
We gotta get that off you,buddy where she goes, boys way,
she fucking knows the best.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
I can do it's been 10 years.
Yeah, well, we see you got theexclusive on that.
That was perfect, oh nohonestly, barry, all right.
Barry, thank you so much thanksguys, I could speak to you for
another three hours.
Honestly, it's been absolutelylovely.
Speaker 3 (48:52):
Thank you so much it was a pleasure and thanks for
making this enjoyable.
I appreciate it thanks, thanksvery much when you take care.
Speaker 2 (48:59):
Hopefully we'll see you soon.
Speaker 3 (49:01):
Nice, meeting you all with you guys Bye-bye you.
I know you're gonna dig this Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
This is what you have been waiting for.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
And now we're starting the podcast in five,
four, three two one, hello,hello, Welcome to the powers
point podcast, season four,episode 32.
Today I have a special episodefor you all to listen to.
The gang isn't here at themoment.
(00:47):
They're still out enjoyingtheir holiday festivities.
But this episode, it means alot to me and I'll tell you why.
Because a couple years ago, whenGavin, craig and myself started
Majors Mess Hall, we all hadlike a wish list of people that
we would love to have on theshow and since we all love
(01:07):
trailer park boys, we activelypursued all that we could
because we were just so enamoredwith that show.
It made us all laugh.
We all had the same feelings.
And then you had Craig, whowanted Bob Ross on, and we all
know about Bob Ross.
So even though I left the messhall, gavin still pursued trying
(01:28):
to get as many of the cast onas he could, and he landed one
late last month, early thismonth, and I was lucky enough to
get the invite to sit in withhim and Kelly and talk to one of
the most loved characters onthe show, who not only is
important in front of the camerabut he's equally, if not more
(01:51):
as, important behind the camera.
He wrote, produced, directedsome of the episodes, and I'm
talking about Barry Dunn, whoplayed Ray, and everybody loves
Ray, let's just face it.
He's kind of like thatcharacter that creeps up on you.
You just love him.
So I'm going to play thisinterview with Barry and Gavin
and Kelly and myself, and thenI'm going to throw in a song
(02:14):
that I did and then, like I said, Friday, this Friday or early
Saturday, we will all be backtogether and enjoying Christmas
festivities or holidayfestivities, whatever you
celebrate.
So here's Barry Dunn.
Hope you like it as much as Idid.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Hey buddy, how's it going?
Good, how are you guys?
Excellent, oh look, you've gotall dressed up.
You've got a shirt on there.
Look at me, I always wear this.
Anyway, so just to introduceyou, I'm Gavin, who you've
obviously been talking to.
We've got Scott, who's inChicago.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
It's got it, and Kelly Don't mind the trapeze.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
I was going to put something like that on me.
That's not really, and Kelly'sNobody would believe it.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
I'm sorry.
No, I was just saying Kelly'sback in the UK.
Hi, kelly.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Hi, how are you?
This is international.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
It is.
We're all over the place.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Where are you, Gavin?
Speaker 2 (03:14):
I'm in Col Harbour.
Yeah, yeah, we're close.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
You and I are fairly close.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
Yeah, you want New Glasgow away.
Is that where you're based?
Speaker 3 (03:23):
No, out the eastern shore oh.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
OK yeah, nice.
Yeah, not too far then.
No, and you're obviously usedto like Col Harbour anyway,
because you obviously there wasa lot of filming at one point,
wasn't there here, so yeah, westarted shooting in Col Harbour
Gosh, I have to remember.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I think it was season five.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
That's right.
Yeah, yeah, you know I do yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
I mean I'll defer to every question to you, yeah,
yeah, every question.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Well, I know Mike Smith quite well and often he'll
be telling me something andhe'll have it wrong.
He's got it wrong and he's tornthem out and I'm like that's
not right.
And he just looks at me andlaughs and he goes yeah, you
obviously know you're stuffed.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
You know, a few years ago I did a.
I'm just kind of trying to getthis thing set up properly.
A few years ago I did a showfor CBC about the Canada Russia
72 hockey series and I had doneso much research on that and I
interviewed all the key players,coaches, and I knew more than
(04:30):
they did and of course I hadresearched it.
They hadn't.
It was at least 30 years afterthe event took place, so
everything in their mind was notas fresh as mine.
So I would do the same thing.
I would correct them on whoscored goals and what the scores
of games were.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Yeah, yeah, so sometimes I feel a bit rude
because I'm like they've gotthat wrong, but I need to tell
them.
Speaker 3 (04:57):
Better to know, better to have the truth.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Exactly.
So how have you been?
Obviously because you know likefor you know the likes of the
trailer park boys fans.
We obviously haven't seen youfor over 10 years now.
So how have you been doing?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Well, I've been.
Well, you know, I have been,you know, trying to keep busy
and have other projects on thego.
I took a bit of a break afterafter we left Mike Klatenberg
and I left the show, I think.
I think we sort of got out ofit officially in 2013, right
(05:29):
after the last movie, the thirdmovie, which I think was called
Don't Legalize it.
You can correct me.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yeah, you're nervous now, aren't you, to get it wrong
?
Speaker 3 (05:41):
So you know I took a bit of a break.
It's a slog.
I think anybody who's involvedin a TV series will tell you
that it's a slog, you know, andit's fun.
It's great fun, of course, fromthe shooting is fun, you know
it's it's it's so time consuming.
You don't have time for much ofanything else really, including
(06:01):
working in other projects.
So now I took a bit of a break,I'd say a couple of years, two
or three years after.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Nice, yeah, well, end well, end break indeed.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Good thing.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
So we'll, we'll, we'll touch on trailer park boys
in a little bit.
But I just want to knowobviously you were I spoke to
you about this on the phone aswell and you were going to kind
of get into it and then stopped.
But you were like a streetperformer in Eastern Europe like
many, many years ago.
Yeah, I'm just curious likewhat did you do?
Like what was that?
What did that entail?
Speaker 3 (06:31):
Well, it was in the mid 70s, I was.
I went to theater school in theUK.
Actually, kelly, where are youfrom in the UK?
Speaker 1 (06:39):
By Liverpool.
Oh, A little bit bit north.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
It's the same as me.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I know London well though.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Yeah, I went to London.
I lived there for a couple ofyears going to theater school
and when I was going to theaterschool I hate to talk about this
because my wife constantlyembarrasses me about it and I
got involved with the MimeCompany.
Now you can pause here forsnide comments.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
We're expecting you to give us an example.
Yeah, but the Mime, the Mimething's not going to work on
audio, though.
Speaker 3 (07:18):
I was in my twenties, my body was far more live than
it is now.
So, anyway, I got involved withthe steer company and through
the theater school that I wasattending, and we were invited
to perform in Yugoslavia, whichat the time was Yugoslavia.
I was in Zagreb, which is nowCroatia, but so we went there on
(07:45):
student visas, if memory servesme correctly.
Yeah, student visas.
We weren't professional and afriend of mine, two or three of
us, got together and we were inCroatia, I would say in Zagreb
for at least six weeks or so,and we would go down to the main
(08:09):
square and I did as much as Icould.
I was only embarrassing myself.
Is that okay, gavin?
Did I answer your?
Speaker 2 (08:20):
question yeah, you did, yeah, Like did you.
Was it like Boskin?
Did you make some money doingit?
Speaker 3 (08:27):
Well, yeah, no, we didn't make much money, but yeah
, it's like Boskin, you know, wewere sort of on the street.
You see a lot more now and yousee it from far better
performers than I was.
I mean, we probably didn't makemuch money because we weren't
very good, but you know, we, youknow it wasn't much People in
(08:48):
Zagreb and this would be 1976,maybe 77, you know, weren't to
giving out their hard earnedmoney, right, yeah, and in 76,
yugoslavia was still part of the, you know somewhat.
I don't know if it wasofficially part of the Iron
Curtain, but it was a.
(09:08):
It was certainly a communistcountry and not altogether
affluent, I would say.
So people didn't give a lot ofmoney, but they were always very
kind and, you know, and I thinkthey had a real well, what am I
telling you, kelly?
You know this, you lived there.
Right, things have a realunderstanding of culture, more
(09:31):
so than we do, in the sense thatthey have broader interests, I
think.
So, I think in 75, 76, we werethere attending a theater
festival.
We were performing at a theaterfestival and there were
countries from Romania, hungary,uk, probably France, you know,
(09:52):
so a lot of countries fromWestern and Eastern Europe and
the shows were extremely wellattended.
I mean, there would be cello'sin venues that must have set
three, four, five hundred people.
So you know, I don't thinksomething like that would have
happened, not in Dartmouth, Idon't think.
Maybe how did you go from,although things are different,
(10:13):
but certainly, you know, peoplewere.
People were very nice, veryfriendly.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
How'd you go from a street performer in Eastern
Europe to being back in Canadaand being an actor?
Speaker 3 (10:27):
Well, I graduated in 70s you know the years of 76, I
think it was.
I came back to Canada aftergraduating from theater school
and I looked for work as anactor and the first, I would say
the first year or two is verytough, you know, and I lived in
Halifax.
So I mean it was the wrongthing to do in many ways to stay
(10:48):
in Halifax to look for work asan actor.
My brother, who went to theaterschool with me, he went to
Toronto, which is where you knowthe equivalent, I guess,
scottie would be.
You know, in United States yougo to New York or LA, right, all
of Chicago.
Chicago has a really vibrant.
I mean a lot of great actorsand comedians have come out of
(11:12):
Chicago, as I'm sure you know.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
But anyway, I stayed in Halifax and I think it was a
struggle.
I'll tell you, it was a realstruggle, you know.
Finally, in Gavin I forget whatyear it was do you remember
what year I went to Toronto?
Speaker 2 (11:37):
You don't know that answer.
Well, yeah, I'm a little bitstuck on that one.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
I think it was 77.
I think I went up to Toronto.
Yeah, I was in the fall of 77.
I went to Toronto and I wasmarried at the time to a
different person and we tried tosurvive in theater and I got a
couple of jobs, you know, andthey didn't pay well, but I
(12:04):
think I made 90 bucks a week,which.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Fucked down.
It's not too bad, is it, butyou?
Speaker 3 (12:09):
know, at the time in 1977, it wasn't bad, you know, I
don't think you could live onit, I think.
I think my partner at the timewas working, I think.
And then the funny thing is Iwas performing at this theater
company in Toronto and a companycalled Factory Theatre Lab I
think it still exists anyway andthere was a handwritten notice
(12:37):
on the bulletin board like handscribble, looking for actors in
Nova Scotia, new theater company, and I thought, oh, what the
hell you know?
So I applied and I got the job,came back to Nova Scotia and
worked with this theater companyfor, I think three years and I
(12:57):
also worked at Neptune, workedwith John Dunn'sworth.
John and I, john and I workedfirst time I had known of John
Dunn, because John was quite alegend in Halifax long before I
knew him.
John ran a theater companycalled Pure 20 Pure, I think it
was Pure 20, I could be wrongabout that, but it doesn't
matter and John did some reallyinteresting work.
(13:19):
And so I got my first job onthe professional stage, if you
like, at Neptune Theatre inHalifax in a play, shakespearean
play, othello, and I had oneline, one line, and I think John
had two or three, I forget.
Anyway, john introduced me toprofessional theatre in Halifax
(13:44):
and and never since then, johnand I kept him.
You know, john and I workedtogether many times over the
years and you know, and stayedgood friends and then became a
bit different.
I think once in a sense thatbeing a producer of a show,
you're kind of the boss of theshow.
You know, I don't know you guysever have to be boss of a
(14:08):
friend, you know it would bedifficult, yeah, yeah, it could
be.
I mean, it doesn't have to be.
But I definitely make it apolicy now not to, you know, not
to get involved with my bestfriends, try not to get involved
in in projects together becausethey don't always end up well.
But anyway, john and I workedtogether for quite a long time.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
Sorry, can you hear me now?
Speaker 2 (14:29):
sorry, yeah, yeah, how does it differ going from
theatre to TV, and like did theaudience differ from country to
country?
Speaker 3 (14:42):
yeah, that's a really good, interesting question.
Yeah, the two there's twostyles of acting are quite,
quite different.
Are you guys okay with my imagehere?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
yeah, washed out, okay listen, we're pulling up
with.
We're pulling up with Scott'stropical one there, so don't
worry.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Scott, you're gonna have to tell me how you did that
is that.
Is that one of thosebackgrounds, a virtual
background?
Yeah or are you on LakeMichigan right now?
No, no.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
I wish that was Lake.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
Michigan.
I'm just hoping to see you go,flies over and shits on him.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
To be honest, but go back to your question, kelly.
Yeah, the two techniques arequite different.
And well, I'm trying toremember these are.
I should have, I should havegot up, brushed up on my dates.
But I, I, I did a.
I did a TV half hour drama inHalifax and and the director
(15:37):
there took a liking to me, hebrought me on to CBC where I
worked for seven years in thedrama department and we, we did,
and while I was there I didn'tdo so much acting as I did,
writing network executive stuff.
I'm very boring, wouldn't wantto do it again, but it was.
(15:58):
It was a nice time in my life.
I don't have a network.
I don't know how TV executivesdo it.
I don't know.
I think they must have.
I don't know I would be bored.
I was bored and anyway, I don'tthink I've answered your
question, kelly.
But going to back to answer partof your question, kelly, about
the differences in audiences,just taking trailer park boys as
(16:21):
an example and Scott, you're,you're, you are an American,
about you live, you're from theUnited States.
Yes, sir, um, trailer park boysdid extremely well, obviously
in Canada, but not, you know,not right away took, there was,
there was a hardcore group oftrailer park boys fans in that
(16:41):
first year and thank god forthat because you know they kept
the show going.
It could easily have been oneone and done with that show.
You know it was an amazing thatwe got it off the ground to
begin with.
But with trailer park boys wedid extremely well in in Canada.
We sold, I think, kelly to theUK.
(17:03):
I'm not sure what networks itmay have been on.
I do know this that we sold inIreland.
My family doctor at the timethis tell me, tell me, stop me
any one of you anytime, becauseI promise you I can know it's
fine, it's fascinating.
(17:24):
Honestly it's it's really greatbut my doctor, my family doctor
in all effects, was Irish, I'mnot sure where, I'm not sure if
he was from Northern Ireland orthe Republic anyway, um, one day
I'm in, I'm in having a checkupor something, and he says, he
says I just heard from my nephewin Ireland who loves a show
(17:48):
called trailer park boys.
He asked my doctor, did youknow anything about it?
And he said, well, yes, I don'tknow how much confidential
information, anyway, I puttogether a whole package of
trailer park boys stopped toenter to send to Ireland.
So my point was that in Irelandit did very well.
(18:08):
Now we sold to other countrieslike Scandinavia and Spain.
I've never seen how they'vedubbed those shows.
Curious.
But to finally answer your kill,your question, kill, we did not
do it very well in the UnitedStates.
We, we, I think we first soldto.
(18:31):
I think first was BBC America,which was a very niche channel,
uh, and I don't know how manyepisodes, how many seasons they
showed.
Then I think we went to thecomedy channel, look, yeah, the
comedy channel, and again itdidn't do all that well, uh, and
of course comedy channel andBBC America both bleeped.
(18:54):
So you can imagine what trailerpark boys would sound like
bleeped and he would beessentially just.
It would really ruin the flow.
Yeah, and you, you know if it'slike in that episode where Ricky
says if I can't smoke and swearI'm fucked, you know, it was
like if, if we can't swear on TVwe're fucked, nobody's gonna
(19:17):
watch this show because it justreally.
You know that.
You know, I mean, ricky, royWells is a master at swearing.
I think I think he could givecourses and to teach actors how
to swear, naturally, you know,because he could do it.
Bubbles could do it as well.
Um, I, to be honest, I wasn'tas good at it.
I think, um, and I don't thinkJim Lay, he ever swore, if I
(19:43):
recall correctly, but anyway, um, yeah, ricky, so, so they just
didn't do well in the UnitedStates and we made our first
movie, our first trailer parkboys movie.
We made that Ivan Reitman.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Ghostbusters.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
Ghostbusters and so many other great movies yeah,
I'm just a huge Ghostbusters fan.
I mean it's not a cult, it'shuge movie, it's a wonderful
movie yeah and he had set you toproduce that for your very
first episode.
And, um, he was.
We screened it in Toronto aspart of the trauma film.
It wasn't, it wasn't in thetrauma film festival, but we
(20:17):
screened it during the traumafilm festival because all of the
network buyers were there andIvan set this thing up.
He invited all of his uh and heknows everybody in Hollywood,
so virtually every big Hollywoodbuyer in it was at the
screening and Ivan fullyexpected, uh, after the movie,
(20:38):
the phone to start ringingimmediately with offers, uh, to
buy the movie.
And it was a study in humanitybecause, uh, we're all in this
room together.
Ivan was telling us what, whatto say, what not to say.
Let me do all the talking.
Five minutes after we all sitin there, the phone doesn't ring
(21:03):
.
10 minutes, not a call.
Half an hour not a call.
Nobody in the United Stateswanted to buy that movie.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
So yeah, there you go , kel.
I mean, audiences are different.
I don't know why it didn't takeoff in the United States the
way it did I.
You know there were shows thatcame out after Triller Park Boys
in the United States.
I think there was a show calledmy Name is Earl.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
Yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:29):
I think I saw a couple of those episodes.
I mean I think it tried to copyand actually we did.
There was some interest frombuyers to buy the what they call
a format rights of the showessentially the format rights
and stopped me, if you guys knowthis.
But the format rights are justthe right to essentially create
well, like the office in the UK.
(21:51):
Yeah, yeah.
They bought the format rights todo it in the United States with
Stephen Carell Right, and sothere was some interest, but I
don't know why I just nevermaterialized.
National Lampoon was interestedin buying it but they wanted to
call it National Lampoon.
Triller Park Boys.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Oh, no, yeah, that wouldn't work.
It didn't feel right to us, youknow so yeah, anyway, which is
weird because now it's massivein the states, like it's.
I think it's bigger there thanit is in Canada.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
Now, Is it really?
I think so.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Yeah, I think since Netflix picked it up.
It's like it's definitelybecause they they've done tours
and stuff and they do theComic-Con and things now and
it's always in the states,sometimes you kind of devil,
yeah, yeah, it's my first sortof it, when it hit Netflix and
then it was like a rage and fire.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
It just won't you know like it went off crazy and
everybody was talking about itand when did you first watch the
show Sky?
Speaker 3 (22:51):
What year?
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Oh, 2000.
Well, Gavin 11.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
10.
So we were well into it.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
When you watch the first season, did you?
Did you state yourself whatthat?
What is this?
Speaker 1 (23:07):
This looks so Well.
You know, like the first, thefirst season, the first couple
episodes was about characterdevelopment and teaching you
about who's who, and at firstI'm like I'll stick with this.
And then it just got crazierand crazier.
You know, here you got Rayriding around in a wheelchair
looking over his shoulders, youknow, trying to evade, you know,
(23:30):
like insurance or whatever, andthese three guys were always
going to jail at the end of theseason and it just was like
everybody was talking about itdown here.
Speaker 3 (23:44):
Well, I guess it took Netflix to do that.
You know I have to give theboys credit because they they.
When my last season working onthe show was season seven I it
doesn't mean anything, I suppose, because you don't know what
the season numbers are they tookit over, did season eight, nine
, 10, 11.
I'm not sure how many they did,and it would be 12.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
12.
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
After John.
After John died they I thinkthey went to an animated show,
so I guess it did well and theboys have always been on the
road to performing the show.
I think Bubbles is on the roadnow.
I think he's making.
Yeah, he did.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
He said I think they just they wrapped it up.
It's coming out next year andnew movie.
Speaker 3 (24:28):
You know more about it than I do.
Yeah Well, I was in it as well.
I was in it.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
So we did the days filming, which was great fun.
So are you sworn to secrecy?
Speaker 3 (24:36):
You can't tell me what it's about.
I can tell you, but.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
I won't tell you on the podcast.
Tell me the title.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I think I know the title it's called Bubbles,
bubbles and the Shit Rockers.
Speaker 2 (24:49):
It's?
It basically follows Bubblesband around Europe, right, right
, yeah.
Are the other boys in it, likea Robin G there in it as well?
Yeah, I think it's focusedmainly on Bubbles, but the other
guys are in it too.
Yeah, well, I mean talk aboutit right up the alley.
Speaker 3 (25:03):
You know, talk about working with your strengths, of
course.
Mike is such a good performer,you know musician To and to
create that character of Bubblesand the Shit Rockers, I mean,
you know, and I bet he's got alot of good people playing with
them too.
Yeah, it's a solid band.
It is a solid band.
Yeah, I've seen him play a fewtimes.
Speaker 2 (25:20):
Yeah, Well, good for them, yeah, so um so like when
you, when it came time to you to.
Obviously you saw, you got youand Mike Lattinby, you sold the
rights to the boys.
Was that hard?
Yeah, Was that hard decisionfor you?
Were you just were you ready atthat point to go?
(25:40):
You know what?
It's time to kind of pass thetorch on, yeah.
Speaker 3 (25:45):
That's a good question.
I think I was ready and I thinkMike see was.
I hate to speak for Mike, yeah,but yeah, I think we felt it
was time Um to to move on.
Um, it was very hard for MikeClattenberg Cause you know, mike
(26:05):
was the P creative force onthat show.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
And so Mike had to constantly come up with new
episode ideas, and you know, anduh, there are, uh, it was just
time.
I think it was just time forMike and I to get out.
You know, I think it was, uh, I, I, I, I re.
I missed it in some ways, butin a lot of ways I think it was
(26:28):
the right decision.
Yeah, you know if you're,there's a certain you know
you're, there's a certain set ofyou know five, five, but I
think it might have been alittle more interesting.
But there's a you don't and Ithink it maybe in some ways it's
it's already happened to somedegree you get sort of typecast.
I mean Mike Smith, I can't.
Well, mike, I think, is aprobably a very good actor and
(26:51):
Rob has done other work outsideof trailer part voice.
I'm not sure about John Paul.
So I mean they've done at leastRob has done a good job of not
being typecast.
You know, as as Ricky umproject that you want to do, and
there were other projects thatI wanted to do that I think in
some ways, having trailer parkboys over my head was.
(27:21):
I think there was a lot ofcondescension, let's put it that
way from the big mucky mucks inToronto who thought that, oh,
what a quaint little show thosemaritimeers did and it's not
real TV and they're not reallyactors and they're not really
writers.
And I think what pissed themoff the most was that we created
(27:44):
a show arguably the top ratedcomedy in Canada in years and
years and years that they havenever been able to create and
still haven't created.
Now there are some shows outthere.
I'm sure that you guys couldcomment on that.
I haven't seen that Canadiancomedy.
I don't know, I don't reallywatch much anymore.
(28:05):
Do you guys watch a lot ofCanadian TV?
I bet you, scott.
I bet you don't even know whatCanadian TV is outside.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
I do.
I watch a lot of Canadiancomedies like corner gas letter,
kenny, uh uh uh.
You know trailer park boys, ofcourse.
Yeah, pink is in.
I watch quite more up therethan I do down here.
Speaker 3 (28:31):
Is that right?
Well, yeah, corner gas had anice run, didn't they?
You know?
And I think it's Larry Kenny, Idon't know, I have not seen
that show, it's okay.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
This I mean they say at rivals trailer park boys, I
don't think it does.
It's kind of a say it's acertain niches post, it's got it
.
You know it's got a certainkind of fan Does it.
It's not for me.
Scott likes it.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Yeah, I like it.
Do you get it over in the UK,Kelly?
Speaker 2 (28:57):
No, I tend to watch when I visit Gavin Goal Harbor.
Yeah, she watches it all as shecomes over here.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
I mean Britain and comedy go hand in hand.
I mean you, britain has createdso many wonderful comedy shows.
I think I'd have to say myfavorite.
I have two favorite TV showsthe Office, the British version.
Yeah brilliant, and I even hateto say the British version,
because to me there is only one.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
Yeah, I mean, I like the American one, but the
British one's definitely thebest.
Ricky Gervais is a genius, sogood.
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Ricky Gervais is so, so clever, so funny.
And the other one that was theLarry Larry, larry Sandershell
with Gary Shanling.
Do you guys ever watch that?
Speaker 2 (29:40):
Oh yeah, yeah, I haven't seen that, no, but I
know.
Speaker 3 (29:42):
Oh, he's gone now.
He's long gone, but the showhas been on for years.
But those are my sort of mygo-to shows and I'm, you know.
So, yeah, I know Gavin was time, I think it was time to leave
and you know, and the guyscertainly had the creative
energy to keep going and I thinkthat's, you know, and more
power to them, and they've doneextremely well with it.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
So yeah, well, I remember at the, I was at the
premiere for the third movie.
It was your last involvementwith the show and right before
they showed the movie, you, yougot up and gave a speech.
This was in Halifax, in theOxford, I believe that was it
called the Oxford, yeah, and yougave a really nice sort of send
off speech.
It was so nice.
And then I knew afterwards Iwas going to, we were going to
(30:23):
do like an after party, and Iwas like, oh, I've got to meet
Barry and you, you, you weren'tthere, or at least I didn't see
you there, but that speech thatyou gave was really nice, it was
really nice.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
Thank you.
I, you know, and I think nowthat you mentioned it, and I
kind of remember it becausethat's you knowing more about
these things than I do no, Itend to, I tend not to go to the
parties to tell you the truth.
I'm just not, I'm not a partyguy, you know.
And again, we you and I weretalking before doing this
podcast is, I've been nervousabout this all week.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
Aww.
Speaker 3 (30:57):
Yes, yes, so many fans worldwide.
I don't.
I, you know, it's that thinghere.
Here's the thing I I don't liketo watch interviews about
actors.
I think things, especially whenthey talk about their work they
sound so self-important and Ialways think that people aren't
(31:17):
going to watch this and they'regoing to think one or two things
oh, barry down, no, that'swhere he is, he's in Nova Scotia
.
And the others are going tothink what a fucking asshole.
And I probably see it.
No one's going to think that.
No, honestly.
No, I'm not looking for.
I'm not looking for, but that'swhat I think, because I think,
because that's what I think whenI watch interviews, I think, oh
God well.
Speaker 2 (31:38):
But it's funny because you say that.
But it's like it's insane to meto even think that because,
like you, you created thischaracter and you play this
character, because that'sobviously what you're most known
for is playing Ray, and it was.
It's been over 10 years, butI'm not just saying this, but
Ray is one of the fan favoritecharacters and even though it's
(31:58):
been 10 years, you are, yourcharacter, is still a huge part
of the show.
So, like, which is a testamentto you as an actor, obviously,
and a producer.
So for you to come on and say,you know, I don't really know
what people would want to knowabout me.
You know they're going to thinkof an asshole, like it's just,
it's so foreign to me becauseit's not the case at all.
People.
People will love just even justhearing your voice after this
(32:21):
many years.
That's funny.
Speaker 3 (32:22):
You know, I mean Ray had some great lines.
You know, there's no questionhe had some of the best lines in
the show.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
Best character on the show.
Speaker 3 (32:32):
Well, you know he had .
He did have some good lines,but, no, I always felt insecure
about the part.
And it's funny, you know, it'sfunny, I, I, I guess I'm known
for playing Ray on the show, butyou know, I, this is, this is
the pompous in me and this isthe arrogance in me and this is
why I think people will, afterthe hear me talk, will think
(32:53):
what a dick.
You know, I would like to beremembered as the guy who
brought trailer park boys totelevision and the road co-wrote
the first two seasons.
You know that, yeah, right, inthe creative development of the
show.
That that's far more importantto me, although that's that's
the behind the scene stuff.
The visible stuff was thecharacter Ray.
But here's an example and wewere, I think we were filming.
(33:18):
I guess I can't remember thisguy, I'm sorry, but we were
filming.
We, I think we were shootingthe last movie, the trailer park
boys three movie, and we wereshooting at Massey Hall in
Toronto, which is equivalent to,I guess, what I don't know it's
.
It's the music venue and it'snot like.
(33:40):
It's not like the big state,the massive stadium, but it's a.
It's an intimate venue forwhere all the musical acts love
to perform.
Anyway, we were shooting thereand after the show.
I wasn't in the show, we were.
I was there with my clout, butwe were shooting some scenes, I
(34:00):
think for the movie, for thelast movie, and oh, what was I
going to say?
Somebody just came into my door.
Oh yeah, ok, so, yes.
So after the show there aresome people waiting downstairs
to hope to meet the boys.
Right, the three boys and Istayed upstairs but I could see
(34:23):
outside and I was on.
I was on the exit stairs, I wassort of standing on the stairs
and I and I didn't go down tomeet people because I thought
this was my thought.
They don't want to meet me,they want to talk to the boys
and if I go down there they'rejust going to think that I am
biting into the boys Popularity.
(34:45):
So afterwards I heard thiscomment that I was stuck up from
not going down because you knowand it's funny people you know
you make and it's a fair, it's afair assumption that that
person made, but it's so, it'sso long because people don't
know.
I think actors are generallyinsecure.
I was always insecure.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Yeah, no, you're very humble about it.
You are, like you know, evenjust getting you to do this and
I know it's a big deal to you.
That's why I mean that, which,in turn, made me nervous,
because I'm like he doesn't dointerviews and he's agreed to do
this Like this is reallyspecial that he's coming on and
and you know, barry Gavin and Iwe've actually talked for years
about getting you on.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
You know, and and we know it's a big honor to have
you on with us.
So when he said that he talkedto you, it was like wow, I can't
wait.
You know, like your characterand what you do is like so, so
legendary.
Thanks, guys.
Speaker 2 (35:47):
Yeah, and I'm like, although you'll you know, just
because of the fans, you'll beremembered mostly for Ray,
there's a lot of people as well,but there's a lot of people as
well that do do know what youdid behind the scenes and so I
mean, like the DVDs when theycame out, there's so much behind
the scenes stuff on them andI've watched them a million
times and it's reallyinteresting stuff there
genuinely is.
And like that was one thing Ireally wanted to talk to you
(36:09):
about was the production side ofthings.
It wasn't just about playing,no, so I know that's your true
passion.
I mean the acting was obviouslypassions about that, but your
true passion is the, theproducing, and well it is now.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
I mean, I started off as an actor and worked as an
actor for quite a few years, butnow you know, it was always
tough and I guess I just didn'thave the fortitude and the
perseverance that so many thatyou need to make it as an actor.
So, yeah, and I love producing,I love, I think I love writing
more than producing.
But you know, and I'm, and Itry to spend a lot of my time
(36:44):
writing.
I know my Klattenberg is doinga lot of writing to these days
from what he's told me.
So that's always, that's alwaysfun, it's always it's nice to
be able to write.
You at least get to control,initially, the process.
Eventually broadcast executivesget involved and fuck it up.
(37:04):
But you know, we were luckywith showcase.
We were lucky with showcase, Imean, when we first picked
showcase.
I mean we were just in theright place at the right time.
Trillipart boys would neverhappen today if anybody came to
a network with that concept,that show when in a million
years happened.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
Yeah, right place, right time.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, right place, right time.
Gavin, it's exactly what it was.
You know we approach showcaseto at the time their license,
the Canadian license, broadcastlicense was up for renewal.
They were, there was pressurefor them to do some and money on
Canadian programming and wejust happened to be there at the
right place and there wassomebody there at Showcase.
(37:47):
I think the guy who I wouldn'twant to give credit to was Norm
Bowland.
Norm was a senior VP there andI am fairly sure Norm was the
guy that greenlit this project.
Not that it matters becauseNorm is long retired and nobody
would know him anymore, but Ijust want to give a shout out to
Norm Bowland because he was,I'm pretty sure he was the guy
(38:08):
that greenlit the show.
And you know it wasn't easy andbroadcasters are putting money
in it.
They have every right to imposetheir ideas and their thoughts.
But that first year, man, thatwas tough.
We fought them on virtuallyeverything, I mean, and we were
(38:29):
lucky because we had a strongsense of what the show could be
and should be, you know, andthey were more interested in
doing traditional kind of drama,traditional kind of
storytelling.
But anyway, they came around tous and we developed a good
relationship with those guys,but thank god because it would
(38:50):
have been a miserable sevenyears.
But yeah it was.
You know it was tough to getoff the ground and they stuck
with it and get on them.
And you know, I have met honestto god guys.
I have met so many cool peoplewho watch trailer park movies.
I couldn't even begin to tellyou so many of the people that I
(39:13):
have met.
Just just randomly, on thestreets, people come up and say
hello.
I think sometimes people feelshy to do so, but, my god, I am.
People that actually.
You know, I was in the TorontoWar Court one day and I was
thinking the lineup and my wifewas with me and this guy
(39:35):
approached my wife and I couldsee them talking, had no idea
what they were talking about,and then my wife came over to me
and said there's a gentleman,there's a young fellow here from
from Sudbury I don't know hisname so I can't divulge it
Sudbury, ontario, which is north, north of Ontario, it's.
It's a.
It was a mining town in hardlockdown, but he wanted to know
(39:57):
if he could come over to meetyou.
He was so shy he actually wentto my wife to ask my wife.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
Oh nice.
Speaker 3 (40:02):
And his story was so heartwarming.
Guys, he was on his waysomewhere.
I I think he was on his way outto Alberta to work in the oil
fields.
I'm not exactly sure.
You know, they were hard up formoney, he's.
They just had a kid and he wastaking off the first time was
away from his family and hewanted just to say, you know, I
I even get choked up about itnow To think that we gave him so
(40:29):
much, he said.
He said he said I'm going therewith my DVDs and that's what's
going to make me feel like I'malways at home, because he and
his wife used to watch the showall the time.
And you know, if you can givethat kind of, if you can have
that kind of a relationship withthe viewer, holy Christ, I mean
, we've done, you know.
Speaker 2 (40:45):
And the thing is as well.
That's like that's one guy, butthat has happened so much
around the world with loads ofpeople.
And there's even actuallythere's a couple that mean Scott
.
No, they one guy from the UKand she's from the US.
They got married recently andthey met because of their love
for trailer park boys.
So it literally does bringpeople together.
Speaker 3 (41:05):
You know it's, it's nice, it's a nice legacy to have
been part of, and and we're allpart of it.
I mean you guys are part of it,everybody's part of it, because
if not for you know, if not foryou guys, it would long ago
have died.
And you know, people aretelling me now that you know I
am, I could be, I could be, Icouldn't be grandfather.
(41:29):
I'm not, I could, I'm certainlyold enough, right and so and so
, and, and now the kids ofparents are watching the show
again, like I'm hearing about 14and 15 and 16 year olds, yeah,
who are coming to trailer park.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Boys brown knew it's like having a whole new audience
all over again it is all thetime, and like that's the thing
as well, like your work willforever live on, which must be
amazing to feel, to know that.
Speaker 3 (41:55):
When I think about that and when I think about all
of the good times.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
for sure, you know, you know we look at someone like
John Dunn'sworth, who'sobviously no longer with us
anymore, but like Jim Leigh, hethat he's gonna live on forever,
he's always gonna be around andwe can always watch the show.
Speaker 3 (42:07):
And there he is, you know, and all his glory you know
, john, john was one of the mostcomplex people I'd ever known
in my life.
He was yeah, he was quite a guy, john.
You know he has left the legacy.
John had a legacy, I think,before trailer park boys,
certainly in this area yeah,yeah, everyone knows it.
(42:30):
Trailer park boys cemented it,and his character, jim Leigh, I
mean.
I mean, well, you can say thatabout every character in the
show.
I mean Randy, I know that,trevor, who, I'm sorry, what's
his name?
Mike, of course, mike.
Michael Jackson what is hisname?
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Michael Jackson.
Speaker 3 (42:49):
Michael Jackson.
I'm just so bad but you forgetthat one.
He, he.
Well, you know, I know this.
You know, I mean, I lovedworking with Michael.
I know, I know he said some badthings about us online.
I never wrote the comments, butI've been told he's.
You know he said some pretty,pretty, pretty mean things yeah
about us, but I loved workingwith Mike as an actor.
(43:14):
He was finding he was one guy onset who could make me, like you
know, break up on set roomtakes.
Mike was a great guy, you know.
He, he and I have no ideawhat's happened to Mike's since
and I'm sure now he's kind ofgone off the radar.
Speaker 2 (43:29):
We don't, don't pay anything.
I know he was.
Speaker 3 (43:31):
He's been involved in different bands and things over
the years yeah, yeah, he was amusician and he worked in the,
he worked on the, he worked as a, as a grip, I think, on a lot
of.
I mean, maybe he still doesyeah.
Mike was never.
Mike was never an actor, to myknowledge.
I don't think Mike ever startedas an actor.
But if you guys ever watchedthat black, have you ever
watched the original trailerpark boys, the black and white?
yeah he and, um, oh, everybodyin that.
(43:54):
I mean that's when I first sawthat movie I thought oh my god,
this is, this is.
I've never seen anything likethis.
I've never seen characters likethis.
I've never.
You know, nova Scotiancharacters were not.
We're not wearing fishing hats,and you know, because that's
what everybody thinks of with nothat's just that.
Who's difficult yeah fishermenand you know, and here you get
these guys, and I thought MikeJackson and then Cory balls, as
(44:18):
as Trevor and Corey, yeah, theywere funny amazing of course,
ricky and Julian.
I mean that original black andwhite well, my wife.
Speaker 2 (44:29):
My wife warned me because we met online and I came
to visit and she said listen,there's a TV show that's filmed
here and I just you may haveseen it because I know that it's
available in the UK.
She said, um, we're not.
We don't live like that.
I don't want you to thinkthat's what my family's like
when I like that, like we don'trun around with guns and things,
and I've never heard of it.
And I was like I remember goingto a bowl in Ali and there was
a picture of the boys up likebehind where the counter was.
(44:52):
I don't know why, but I thinkit was signed and she said
that's it, that's the trailerpark boys, and I'm looking at
like that.
I've never seen it.
Anyway, one day, while she wasat work and I was, I was over
here.
I put it on TV and it was onand I just fell in love with it
straight away.
It reminded me there's a TV showcalled Reno 9-1-1 yeah, yeah
yeah, you know it's kind of aspooky thing like trailer park
boys.
(45:12):
I just fell in love and then Iwent to blockbuster because that
was still around and rentedeverything they had.
Trailer park boys brought ithome, just watched the whole
thing and then I've been a fanever since oh man, that's going
way back.
Speaker 3 (45:23):
I mean, yeah, yeah, that's going back to the early
days.
Well, guys, it's been apleasure.
If there are any specificquestions, you there is.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
I've got, I've got one question for you and this is
going to put you on the spotnow.
But be completely honest, if,um, if they asked you to go back
to just to act, just to playRay for a one-off like scene, if
you like, would you considerdoing that?
Would you consider going backor are you like?
No, that's um, I'm done yeahyou know, if they said you know
(46:01):
what will pay you, well, youknow, we'll look after.
Yeah, like we go back.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
It wouldn't be anything about the money.
Um, I would.
I would say no.
Yeah, I would say no.
I think.
I think I've done my bet.
I remember the very last sceneI shot in the in the third movie
, the trailer park boys movie,was the scene where Ray is at
the dump and he's explainingthat he, he made 11 000.
(46:28):
He said that's right, yeah, yeah, that was a lot of scenes and I
remember at the end of thatthinking and I actually have it
written in my calendar and I'llnever erase it raise last day
and I'm very happy with that anduh, and it has nothing to do
with the boys, uh, and I thinkit has for me.
(46:48):
You know, gavin, I mean, look,I say no.
You.
You never say never.
Circumstances change.
But is it right now?
Speaker 2 (46:58):
yeah moment, I would say no yeah, you know, I think
that he had the perfect send-offas well, man, that third movie
starts out where he'sessentially passed away and then
at the end there's like thislittle thing at this little
video that he's still around.
I actually got choked up when Iseen that in the theater me
wife was with me.
She was like, oh it was.
It was really sweet that hejust snuck in this little video
to Ricky to say that he wasstill around, and that's how I
(47:18):
like to remember.
Speaker 3 (47:19):
You know, ray, yeah and this is very, very good.
You guys had made this processvery.
This has been this has beenamazing.
Speaker 2 (47:29):
Honestly, like you don't, you don't, you definitely
don't, because you're so humble, you definitely don't realize
how much this means to us.
Speaker 3 (47:35):
Honestly, it was.
It was a pleasure.
You guys, it was nice to meetyou.
I hope that we meet in personsomeday.
Scott, I can't wait to get tothe tropics with you in Chicago
and no idea, chicago at palmtrees, but that's good.
Speaker 1 (47:49):
I pop up the coal harbor every now and then the
sea Gavin, so yeah definitelyyou're in Liverpool now, eh are
you in.
Speaker 2 (47:58):
Liverpool now that's where Kelly is.
Speaker 3 (48:00):
Yeah, yeah yeah, kelly, you're in Liverpool.
Yeah, yeah, well, we maybe allmeet one day.
Speaker 2 (48:07):
Let's go for the next time she's down we'll go for
the drink.
Well, I'll buy you a drink.
That sounds like a good deal.
Okay, right, one last thingbefore you go.
Yeah, can you say, just once, Ihate to do this.
Can you say you know what I'mgonna say, don't you?
Speaker 3 (48:23):
it's either way she goes, or way of the road, or guy
she goes, it's gotta be.
We gotta get that off you,buddy where she goes, boys way,
she fucking knows the best.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
I can do it's been 10 years.
Yeah, well, we see you got theexclusive on that.
That was perfect, oh nohonestly, barry, all right.
Barry, thank you so much thanksguys, I could speak to you for
another three hours.
Honestly, it's been absolutelylovely.
Speaker 3 (48:52):
Thank you so much it was a pleasure and thanks for
making this enjoyable.
I appreciate it thanks, thanksvery much when you take care.
Speaker 2 (48:59):
Hopefully we'll see you soon.
Speaker 3 (49:01):
Nice, meeting you all with you guys Bye-bye you.
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