Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town (TV 2012)

Stephen Leacock recounts his growing up period in the small town of Mariposa, Ontario, located on the shores of Lake Wissanotti with its notoriously leaky holiday steamer. It is a town ... See full summary »

Director:

Don McBrearty

Writers:

Stephen Leacock (book), Malcolm MacRury

Stars:

Jill Hennessy, Donal Logue, Gordon Pinsent

6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jill Hennessy	...	Agnes Leacock
Donal Logue	...	Josh Smith
Gordon Pinsent	...	Elder Stephen Leacock
Owen Best	...	Young Stephen Leacock
Katie Douglas	...	Rose Leacock
Skyler Wexler	...	Carrie Leacock (as Skyler Melody Wexler)
Dylan Everett	...	Charlie Leacock (as Dylan Philip Everett)
Patrick McKenna	...	Uncle EP Leacock
Rick Roberts	...	Peter Leacock
Michael Therriault	...	Billy Cole
Peter Keleghan	...	Reverend Drone
Steffi DiDomenicantonio	...	Lila Drone
Colin Mochrie	...	Judge Pepperleigh
Debra McGrath	...	Mrs. Pepperleigh
Eric Peterson	...	Jeff Thorpe

Storyline

Stephen Leacock recounts his growing up period in the small town of Mariposa, Ontario, located on the shores of Lake Wissanotti with its notoriously leaky holiday steamer. It is a town similar to many other small towns in Canada with its odd assortment of residents. He lived there with his parents Peter and Agnes Leacock, his older brother Charlie Leacock, and his two younger sisters Rose and Carrie Leacock. The family had difficulties making ends meet in Mariposa, due in large part to the continually drunken state of Peter, who oft visited the public house located in the town's hotel. As such, Josh Smith, the owner and operator of the hotel and public house, was the bane of Agnes' existence. She did whatever she could not only to shut down the public house and hotel, but also run Smith out of town. As the Leacocks took an extreme measure to earn money to survive, young Stephen had mixed allegiances as he felt that Smith could assist them with their dire financial situation while his ...

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 February 2012 (Canada)

Filming Locations:

Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

McMac Media Inc.

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The song "There Will Be a Happy Meeting in Glory" plays over the opening credits. This piece of music is best known in Canada for being the opening theme to the popular CBC Radio variety program "The Vinyl Café".

User Reviews

Wry subtle humour, great acting

Both my wife and I loved this. Excellence abounds. Leacock's subtle Twain-like observations come to life in the hands of a great cast. Gordon Pinsent's voice-over is perfect for this story. The production and direction are outstanding. Oddly, the extraordinary modern special effects work in this story of a hundred years ago -- they move you into and out of the story, and along the way provide just enough distance for the humour to operate. The director's presence, along with Leacock's, is felt from the opening scene. But that presence isn't heavy-handed, rather it's inviting. Leacock saw humans as quirky, each with their own flaws and frailties, but he didn't see them as evil -- at least not in these stories. The actors are flawless in their portrayal of each character's quirky charms and failings. Donal Logue, as always, was excellent. Her role gave Jill Hennessey more chance to display her charming talents than Crossing Jordan ever did. The other foible-laden characters of Maripossa were brought to life with consummate skill by this brilliant cast. Thanks for this.