A Newfoundland cultural icon has released his memoir, “Talking to Canadians”.
Rick Mercer stepped away from the hugely popular Rick Mercer Report in 2018.
Mercer spent 15 seasons bringing ordinary people into the living rooms of Canadians and creating a lot of laughter along the way.
Photo courtesy: Jann Arden Official Website
Some of his best-loved shows involved Calgary native and singer-songwriter Jan Arden.
The comedy pairing began when the show’s crew was in Calgary to shoot a piece that didn’t materialize.
Mercer, who had never met Arden, decided to give her a call to see if she could show them around Calgary for a bit.
The rest, he says, is history.
Speaking with VOCM Openline’s Paddy Daly, Mercer said she pulled into the parking lot 20 minutes later, with a list of ideas including a trip to the zoo to pet the animals and a visit to the Olympic bobsled park.
Mercer said those types of visits usually require weeks of planning, but when they arrived at each location, “the doors swung open” when they saw Jan Arden.
Arden quickly became a regular on a show that never had regulars.
From that point on, every time they promoted a show with Jan Arden, the ratings took a bump.
To this day people ask him about Jan when they meet him on the street.
“They think we’re in a relationship or something,” he said with a laugh.
It took a pandemic. I’ve written a book and this is the cover. I’m very pleased with it. I hope you’ll check it out or pre order today https://t.co/JNo441xmwS
— Rick Mercer (@rickmercer) May 7, 2021
