Strombo: ‘I was never offered Canadian Idol’
Despite rumours flying aroung the Internet this week, The Hour host George Stroumboulopoulos says he was never offered the hosting job at CTV’s Canadian Idol.
Strombo told InsideCBC.com he’d talked to CTV about some other shows, but Idol wasn’t one of them.
The speculation occured when several bloggers inferred that he’d been offered the position from an interview he did recently.
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The saddest part of this story is that the CBC turned down Canadian Idol long before Strombo was a fixture at the Ceeb and that they choose to make it right by getting involved with “The One”.
What were they thinking???
The story floating around the Ceeb was that Cdn Idol and American Idol were a package, and that we’d have to air both if we wanted the CI franchise. Dunno if it’s true, nor why they opted for The One later.
As much as I detest the karoke circus myself, it’s hard to doubt that Canadian Idol would have been quite successful for our beloved pubcaster.
Then what show was he offered that he and his buddies consider to be “the biggest show in Canadian history”?
Surely they weren’t looking to replace Mansbridge.
Just wondering.
But thanks for clearing that up, George. Sort of.
Let’s see … biggest show in Canadian history … Hockey Night? … Mercer Report … W5 … E Talk Daily …
Oprah … Littlest Hobo … Corner Gas … Jeff Ltd. … Degrassi … Amazing Race … Survivor??? … Mike Duffy Live … American Idol rather than Canadian Idol? … Dr. Phil … CSI:Toronto … this is harder than Jeopardy …
In the interest of full disclosure, shouldn’t you mention that you were one of the bloggers to infer than Strombo was offered Idol?
I’ve got it!
The Bachelor.
No?
Words are funny. And how people use them.
To infer, imply, adduce, deduce is a hard call.
But where did rumour come from?
All anyone did was ask a question.
But I like your reference to full disclosure.
I never gave that blogger permission to use our interview… I don’t think asking or being polite and showing common courtesy are in his vocabulary either…
It is quite unfortunate that this little video- made for and by his fans- has been marred by petty rumours. It was a statement said in passing, and should have been treated as such.
I hope that folks can let it go and let the fans enjoy the Stroumboulopouli’ s work.
From today’s National Post:
“Ben Mulroney and George Stroumboulopoulos are the ying and the yang, possibly even the Salt N Peppa of Canadian television. And now, according to something that the latter let slip recently, it turns out George was actually supposed to be Ben!
While doing a guerilla-style online video interview with the Web site The Stroumboulopouli, the host of CBC’s The Hour strongly insinuates that he turned down a job at Canadian Idol.
Musing on his career track, the so-called Strombo, who certainly doesn’t have Ben’s cufflink collection, had this to say: “I mean, I took that show in the States and it bombed, and it was an amazing experience, and I was offered a show that’s a huge show here now and I turned it down. And people said to me ‘that’s the biggest show in Canadian history, why don’t you do that show?’ ”
In a later interview with yet another Web site, insidethecbc. com, Strombo denied having been approached about Canadian Idol, though he didn’t say what the aforementioned biggest show could be.”
– - – Shinan Govani
Barbara, do you really think that in this age, people are asking permission to link to videos on other people’s blogs? Do you understand what blogs are? How about video sharing sites?
Okay…so maybe you didn’t infer Strombo was offered Idol, Tod. Got you confused with Ouimet. Forgiveness…please!
I would like to concur with the above statement. Very well put. Very well!
But that’s just the point, we were enjoying the work – until it was taken down, apparently because people LINKED TO IT.
You know how this internet thing works, right?
Actually, to come to Barbara’s defense, I emailed her to ask why the video was taken down. Had nothing to do with the links. It was because they wanted to up the audio levels (which were quite low). It’s going back online soon enough.
Tod,
you would know better than most that the video did not need to be taken down in order to repair it.
Let alone all the comments that had grown around it.
Would you like me to explain?
George still insists it’s not true.
So fine.
Just wish he wouldn’t keep us in suspense like this.
It’s out there now, so why not clear it up for everyone?
Wasn’t the Great Stromboli the wicked Circus entrepreneur who kidnapped Pinocchio and threatened to chop him into firewood if he tried to escape? Curious George Stroumboulopoulis has a disarming and impertinent persona on camera. I have high hopes he will survive and mature such that he doesn’t need his amateur pre-show segments that suggest he and his gang are waiting outside the CBC building every night at 11, ready to storm in and adlib another show. I don’t know long I can stand watching him almost loosing it every night. There is an aire of MuchMusic/Colbert Report that unfortunately must accompany CBC’s attempts to attract and hold a younger audience. He does a great highwire act… and his real production staff are terrific. CBC should take their cue one stroke higher from MuchMusic and put the Strombo Crew into highschools next Fall… where he can connect with Kids and Teachers. MuchMusic has a VJ troupe that hits high schools across the country to keep their adolescent TV audience in their highchairs. The old folks, who don’t let Mansbridge tuck them in each night- might linger to see George occasionally work his magic on non-Degrassified kids. I would have expected George to throw up over anyone who would try to offer him CanaCloned Idol. Ryan Mulroney was overlooked for that job- it certainly hangs far beneath Strombo’s potential. You can’t e-tox your way to greatness… just the next puke of commercials. He could call it the Stu Report… No Stone Unturned. (literally and figuratively)
@Paul: That’s odd. If it was something like “Star Search” I could’ve understood. But “American Idol”? If CBC wanted to air it, couldn’t they have gone directly to FremantleMedia (the co-owner of the format, along with Simon Cowell’s company)/RTL (the parent company) to create a version of Idol instead of Canadian Idol/American Idol? Think: when FOX wanted to do “American Idol” they were not co-erced to air ITV’s “Pop Idol”, in fact the contract stated that in order for Simon Cowell to air on “American Idol” there could be no version of “The X Factor” on American TV – a reason why you have spinoffs like “America’s Got Talent”. In addition, FremantleMedia/RTL had a contract with a British company that “Pop” in “Pop Idol” could not appear on any titles of international versions of “Pop Idol”. Thus, if CBC wanted to they could’ve aired “Canadian Idol” without “American Idol”. Was TVA co-erced to air the Spanish “Operacion Triunfo” or “Star Academy France” in order to air “Star Académie”? I didn’t think so.
We now know for a fact, from the Stroumboulopouli themselves, that while the cover story is that the interview was pulled down to fix the audio levels (a pointless exercise; just leave it up while you fix it), the most interesting parts were specifically edited out in the new, “improved” version.
I am not quite clear on how any blogger fails to understand the concept of links, or why any blogger would believe that permission is needed before linking. Incidentally, I count 71 links using the A element on the Stroumboulopouli homepage. Can they prove they have permissions in place?
The video is now back up at The Stroumboulopouli and the sound is much improved.
George still looks the same though, and says the same things. But there’s something missing from the original.
That element of scandalous, foot-in-mouth, bragging from a defensive blowhard that caught our attention the first time around.
But it’s still the best interview anyone has done on the web in Canada.
So far.
If you like George, you’ll love this interview.
If you don’t like George, you’ll know exactly why after this.
And if you just want an insight into The Hour, show business, and maybe more interestingly into the mind of a young man who thinks he’s smart, cool, with it, and understands television (barely, it turns out) then this is good stuff.
There’s a sincere attempt to be honest and responsive.
And the questions are more real than most interview subjects are afforded.
Barbara is like a secret weapon with a low-key and flat delivery.
It proved very disarming with a certain self-satisfied, too-clever-for-his-own-good biker.
I’d put her up against Conrad Black any day and see the real man emerge.
Something you won’t see happen because producers don’t know the secrets of a great interview, even after all this time.
I admire the group so much for having the moxie to try this, and for pulling it off.
They even added their own style to it, instead of relying just on George to be the sole entertainment.
(That doesn’t even work on The Hour!)
I think it is just plain great, and wish this occurred more often.
Even as part of The Hour itself – REAL journalism.
Of course the excitement is dying down quickly, as George had no doubt hoped.
And I’d like to see his other wish fulfilled as well.
The one where he wishes he could find a way to help everyone become more politically aware.
Right on, brother!
It’s easier than you think, George.
Just look up the meaning of the word “ironic”, and you’ll have your answer.
This interview was so good. I wish I could think of a way to bring it to the attention of a larger audience.