User:BrochJam
Artist, animator, film student, occasional lost media hunter and ripper of VHS tapes. Particularly fond of esoteric Canadian stuff. Wikipedia editor since 2019. Need to contact me? Here's my carrd.
Finds
Digitized
- Under The Hula moon (1995)
Currently looking for
- The Pink Medicine Show (1978) missing episodes
- Point of No Return (1976, dir. Ed Hunt)
- King of Kensington (1975-1980)
- Wapos Bay (2005) Finnish dub
Holy Grails
- Him (1974)
- Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole deleted scenes
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Sandbox
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King of Kensington was a Canadian sitcom that aired on CBC from 1975 to 1980. The show, set in the Kensington Market neighborhood of Toronto, is considered one of the most iconic depictions of the city on television. Despite this, however, only the first season ever saw a home release, and all remaining seasons are lost to the public. The show followed affable shopkeeper Larry King as he dealt with everyday conflicts in the neighborhood, always approaching problems with humour and empathy. The show is notable for its diverse cast, distinctly Canadian humour and for featuring performances from many recognizable Canadian actors before they achieved international success.
King of Kensington ran for five seasons with a total of 111 episodes, each episode running 20 minutes long. In 1978 the Ottawa Citizen reported the show regularly brought in 1.5 to 1.8 million viewers from across Canada.[1]
A statue of actor Al Waxman, who played Larry King, can be found in Kensington Market’s Bellevue Square Park.[2]
Synopsis
The titular “King of Kensington” is Larry King, a convenience store owner who lives in Kensington Market. Larry is a friend to just about everyone in the neighborhood, always willing to help with any problems they might have. He is sometimes helped (or more often, hindered) by his stubborn mother Gladys, who lives with Larry and his wife Cathy. Cathy is played by Fiona Reid from seasons 1 to 3, after which Reid decided to leave the show. Larry runs a social club at a local bar where he and his friends play cards. These friends include recurring characters Duke, Nestor, and barkeep Max. In season 4, Larry sells his store, getting a new job at a youth community centre.
Availability
“It is depressing that one of our few pop-culture TV heroes of the 1970s, a cuddly ambassador for the "new" Canada, is fading into obscurity. A local legend lost in the mire - it's exactly the kind of issue Larry King would have stood up for.” - Ed Conroy for Blog TO, 2021
A two disc DVD set of the first season was released by Morningstar Entertainment on November 13th, 2007.[3] This included all season 1 episodes as well as writer’s commentaries for the episodes Half-Way Home and Scouts Honour. Due to poor sales, none of the ensuing seasons received a home release, and season 1 has not yet been shared online in its entirety.
Retrontario, an independent television archive, has shared several promotional clips relating to King of Kensington on YouTube, but no full episodes. The longest episode clip the archive has shared is an 8 minute unlisted video of segments from the episode Scouts Honour.
In his 2021 Blog TO article about the show,[4] Ed Conroy suggests that CBC Gem, the network’s official streaming service, would be a logical place to release the show in the digital age; King of Kensington is not currently among the shows offered on the service.
Episodes
The “ft” portion of these episode titles are to indicate notable guest actors and are not part of the original titles.
Season One
| # | Episode Title | Air Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Variety Store | September 25th, 1975 | Lost |
| 2 | Hot Line Host | October 2nd, 1975 | Lost |
| 3 | Kensington Achievement Award | October 9th, 1975 | Lost |
| 4 | The Tax Audit | October 23rd, 1975 | Lost |
| 5 | Save Old George | October 30th, 1975 | Lost |
| 6 | Where’s Cathy? | November 6th, 1975 | Lost |
| 7 | Half-Way Home (ft Eugene Levy) | November 13th, 1975 | Found |
| 8 | The Lady Who Came To Dinner | November 20th, 1975 | Lost |
| 9 | The Joy of Kensington (ft Andrea Martin) | November 27th, 1975 | Lost |
| 10 | The Gambler (ft Saul Rubinek & Luba Goy) | December 4th, 1975 | Lost |
| 11 | The Real Mrs. King | December 11th, 1975 | Lost |
| 12 | Scout's Honour (ft Mike Myers) | December 18th, 1975 | Partially Found |
| 13 | The Christmas Show | December 25th, 1975 | Lost |
| 14 | The Detroit Story (ft Dave Thomas) | January 15th, 1976 | Lost |
| 15 | Cathy’s Hobby | January 22nd, 1976 | Lost |
| 16 | Duke’s Dilemma | January 29th, 1976 | Lost |
| 17 | Delma’s Decision | February 5th, 1976 | Lost |
| 18 | Happy Anniversary | February 12th, 1976 | Lost |
Legacy
Despite airing its final episode in 1980, King of Kensington remains highly regarded for its memorable characters and its portrayal of Toronto. The series has been parodied by various other Canadian TV shows, including SCTV, This Hour Has 22 Minutes and Twitch City.
Comedian Mike Myers, who starred in King of Kensington as a child, regards the show favorably in his autobiography Canada:[5] “I thought King of Kensington was as close to an American sitcom as Canada ever got. [...] I felt that Al Waxman and the entire cast really wanted to do well for Canada, and they tried their best to give the Canadian taxpayers, who paid for the CBC, value for their money.” Myers reportedly named Austin Powers character Vanessa Kensington after the show.
Al Waxman passed away on January 18, 2001 at age 65. A bronze statue created by sculptor Ruth Abernethy was placed in Kensington Market in his memory.
Gallery
Photos
External Links
References
- ↑ TV wife quits: King to be Bachelor Ottawa Citizen, January 25, 1978 Retrieved 19 Jun '23
- ↑ King of Kensington memorial needs TLC Liz Braun, Toronto Sun, August 7, 2018 Retrieved 19 Jun '23
- ↑ King of Kensington - Season 1: Catch Mike Myers (1st Role!), John Candy, Andrea Martin, Eugene Levy & More! David Lambert, TVShowsOnDVD.com, October 28, 2007 Retrieved 19 Jun '23
- ↑ The history of Toronto's King of Kensington Ed Conroy, Blog TO, Febuary 2021 Retrieved 19 Jun '23
- ↑ Canada Mike Myers, Random House, ISBN 9780385689250, October 22 2016, Retrieved 19 Jun '23