Corner Gas 

The life, or lack thereof, of a proprietor of a gas station, which is the only stop for miles around and a hub of action on the Prairies.

Creators:

Brent Butt, Mark Farrell, David Storey

Stars:

Brent Butt, Gabrielle Miller, Fred Ewanuick

35 wins & 51 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Brent Butt	...	Brent Leroy 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Gabrielle Miller	...	Lacey Burrows 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Fred Ewanuick	...	Hank Yarbo 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Eric Peterson	...	Oscar Leroy 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Janet Wright	...	Emma Leroy 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Lorne Cardinal	...	Davis Quinton 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Tara Spencer-Nairn	...	Karen Pelly 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Nancy Robertson	...	Wanda Dollard 107 episodes, 2004-2009
Cavan Cunningham	...	Fitzy / ... 53 episodes, 2004-2009
Josh Strait	...	Josh / ... 53 episodes, 2004-2009

Storyline

Popular comedian Brent Butt returns to small town Saskatchewan to portray the life he would have led had he gotten a real job - pumping gas at Corner Gas. Each episode of Corner Gas delivers a half-hour of comedic voyeurism in a place where everyone knows everyone else's business. The series is set in the fictional town of Dog River Saskatchewan, and focuses on the life (or lack thereof) of gas station owner Brent LeRoy, coffee shop proprietor Lacey Burrows and the folks who populate the area. Dog River is a nice town, but far from the quaint and idyllic little burgs we're used to seeing on TV.

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Plot Keywords:

gas station | small town | beauty mark | nothingness | slow witted | 

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Taglines:

Forty kilometres from nowhere and way beyond normal.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 January 2004 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Corner Gas

Filming Locations:

Canada Saskatchewan Production Studios, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Three Thirty-Five Productions, Vérité Films, Canadian Television (CTV)

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16 : 9

Did You Know?

Trivia

The "surveillance bush" that Karen (Tara Spencer-Nairn) hides behind in her car in episode 1.1 "Ruby Reborn" doesn't actually exist, it was simply held up there by a crew member who was lying flat in the ditch. The bush appears in only one other episode - the finale, 6.19 "You've Been Great, Goodnight", and it once again had to be re-planted (footage of this event was featured in the "It's Been a Gas" special aired by CTV before the episode).

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Goofs

Pigeon's Cafe (a restaurant in town of Rouleau, Saskatchewan where the series is filmed) is shown in the background of several episodes as being near the police station. Yet no one in the series mentions it, despite the town being exceptionally small.

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Quotes

[repeated line]
Oscar Leroy: Holy Hell!

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Crazy Credits

During the Christmas-themed 13th episode of the 3rd season, "Merry Gasmas", the theme-music during the opening credits features Christmas bells playing beneath the normal instrumentation.

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Connections

Featured in It's Been a Gas (2009)

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Soundtracks

My Happy Place
(End title theme)
Written and Performed by Craig Northey

User Reviews

"Corner Gas"

This show is a rarity in Canadian television - it's good! Too much of Canadian programing is slow, dry and boring - and aside from NHL hockey, there is not much else worth watching. A few shows have made attempts at being clever comedies, but have always failed because Canadian programming always tends to alienate the main audience by becoming too political, historical or just plain arrogant (vis-a-vis the CBC and CRTC).

But this show has succeeded and, more importantly, is extremely entertaining because its focus isn't on some political agenda, but rather on the art of entertaining. Brent Butt has figured out the formula that has made this series a hilarious success - and I think I can identify what some of those criteria are.

1. It has great characters - And character development. Just like other successful comedies (Seinfeld, The Office, Cheers, etc.) quirky characters are fun to watch.

2. It has great writing - The stories seem to be about nothing - but even nothing is something!

3. It has excellent pacing - It does not slow down at all, and continues to improve its pacing as the seasons go by. The more jokes you can fit in to the half hour, the better.

4. It is not sentimental - If anything, most of the characters are less than sympathetic, and that type of darkness of the human psyche is far more appealing and funny when you are making a comedy about quirky people in a quirky little town.

5. There is NO winter!! - Have you seen any snow yet in Dog River? This is critical for a successful Canadian comedy - because snow complicates things. It is bleak, uninteresting, and unfortunately too much of a reminder of reality for those of us who have to live with it for 10 months out of the year. In fact, with out the snow - it makes this small town in Saskatchewan look quite charming, and all the more interesting and lovable.

Now these are just my opinions - but if you want to take a chance on a Canadian TV show - this should be the one. Canadians should be (and are - for the most part, I think) proud of this series. I, for one, try not to miss it each week, and I own all the DVD's too...its just a fun show to watch, and I would rank it up there as one of the best new comedies on TV right now.