House of Crouse

On this week’s Richard Crouse Show we’ll meet Dylan Smith. The son of filmmakers, Smith had an eye on a career in hockey until he was sidelined by an injury and discovered theatre. He is now an accomplished stage and film actor who has performed on Broadway, appeared in films like in films like “300,” “Total Recall,” “Murder on the Orient Express” and many others. He will next be seen in Prime Video’s largest title to date, “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” The series serves as a prequel to the events we all know from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy and focuses on the forging of the Rings of Power and the One Ring in the Second Age. It begins it Prime Video run on September 2.

Then, you know jenny Slate as the voice of Tammy Larsen on the critically acclaimed animated sitcom “Bob's Burgers,” as Mona-Lisa on the series “Parks and Recreation,” as well as films like “Obvious Child” which won her the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in a Comedy, “The Secret Life of Pets” film franchise, “The Lego Batman Movie,” and “Despicable Me 3” and recently in the critically acclaimed “Everything Everywhere All At Once.”

Her latest film “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On,” expands on her popular YouTube videos that feature a talking seashell outfitted with a single googly eye and a pair of miniature shoes. It is one of my favorite movies of the year.

On this week’s Richard Crouse Show Martin Freeman stops by. You know the Emmy, a BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild Award winning actor from playing Tim Canterbury in the original British series of “The Office.” He was Dr. John Watson in the British crime drama series “Sherlock” opposite Benedict Cumberbatch, Bilbo Baggins in “The Hobbit” film trilogy and will soon be seen in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” reprising the role of Everett K. Ross. Today we’ll talk about his newest project, the critically acclaimed police series “The Responder,” now playing on Brit Box.

Then, we meet Emmy-award winning documentary filmmakers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine who have created a fascinating look at iconic Canadian singer and poet Leonard Cohen called “HALLELUJAH: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song” that uses one of his most famous songs as a starting point. We’ll find out why one of Cohen’s most famous songs was rejected by his record company and more.

Later in the show we’ll meet Gregory Sestero, star of a new found footage film called “Infrared.” In the film he plays the creepy caretaker of an abandoned schoolhouse. If Greg’s name rings a bell, it’s likely because you’ve attended one of the midnight madness screenings of “The Room,” a movie so deliciously awful, it has become a cult favorite since its release in 2003. Gregory turned the experience of making the so-bad-it’s-a-hoot movie into a book, which eventually went on to become the Oscar nominated movie The Disaster Artist, starring James Franco and Seth Rogen. We talk about “Infrared” and whether or not, twenty years on, if “The Room” is an embarrassment or a source of pride.

This week on the Richard Crouse Show we meet Chris Strikes and Joella Crichton. Their movie “Becoming a Queen,” which is now on VOD, is a documentary about Joella Crichton, Canada’s most decorated Caribbean Carnival Queen. The film, directed by Chris Strikes, covers Joella’s attempt to win a historic tenth title in her last ever competition. The movie explores expressions of cultural identity, Caribbean artistry and a community’s struggle against a lack of understanding of Carnival in the larger society.

We’ll also meet author KL Armstrong. She has written over 40 books, including the bestselling young adult series the Darkest Powers and Darkness Rising, the YA book Aftermath, the middle-grade novel A Royal Guide to Monster Slaying and the adult thriller Alone in the Wild. On television the SyFy series Bitten was based on her book the Women of the Otherworld.

Her new novel is “The Life She Had,” a thriller about two women with secrets they want to keep buried, but when a body is discovered nearby, they must move quickly to prove their innocence and protect the lives they've built for themselves. We talk about how she comes up with her intricate stories and characters, and why she sometimes writes under a pseudonym.

Finally, we’ll get to know Jon Harvey, bassist and lead singer of Monster Truck. The JUNO Award-Winners are one of Canada's hardest-working rock and roll bands, a reputation they've cemented by touring relentlessly. Their new single, “Get My Things & Go” is available now wherever you legally buy and download great music.

On this episode of the Richard Crouse Show we meet Maestro Fresh Wes. He’s the "Godfather of Canadian hip hop," a record producer, an actor, and author who adds competition show host to his resume with “Race Against the Tide.” He plays host to 10 of the world's best sand sculpting duos and throws down a challenge each week on the show: create show-stopping sculpture at New Brunswick's iconic and beautiful Bay of Fundy, before the world's largest tides flow in and wash their sculptures away. Watch the show on Sundays on CBC and CBC Gem at 8:30 p.m.

We’ll also meet Ken Hall. If you are a fan of The Umbrella Academy, the Netflix series about a a dysfunctional family of adopted sibling superheroes who reunite to solve the mystery of their father's death and the threat of an imminent apocalypse, you’ll know Ken Hall. He’s played two roles on the show, Pogo, the talking chimpanzee and analytics specialist Herb. We’ll talk about working on the series and how he went from social work to the business of being funny.

Finally, Maxwell McCabe-Lokos, director of a new film called Stanleyville a new darkly humorous social satire now on VOD, stops by. Imagine if Samuel Beckett wrote “Squid Game,” minus the giant Kewpie doll, and you’ll get the idea of “Stanleyville.” It is a social satire, structured around a series of strange games administered by an odd moderator called Homunculus. The contestants are challenged to everything from balloon blowing contests to “writing a national anthem for everybody everywhere through all time.” As the games go on, escalating consequences pit the players against one another. It’s a cool move that is part Squid Game, part Lord of the Flies and part Samuel Beckett.

This week on the Richard Crouse Show we meet Chris Pratt and Taylor Kitsch. You know Chris Pratt as the star of the "Jurassic World" franchise and as Star-Lord in Marvel Studios' "Guardians of the Galaxy." Taylor Kitsch is a Canadian actor, known for his work as Tim Riggins in the NBC television series "Friday Night Lights," and starring in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," "Battleship," "Lone Survivor" and for playing David Koresh in the miniseries "Waco."

They are teamed to talk about their new series on Amazon Prime, "The Terminal List." The series follows James Reece, played by Pratt after his entire platoon of Navy SEALs is ambushed while on a covert mission. Reece returns home to his family with conflicting memories of the event and questions about his culpability. As new evidence comes to light, Reece discovers dark forces working against him, endangering not only his life but the lives of those he loves. Kitsch is Ben Edwards, Reese’s best friend and fellow Navy Seal.

We’ll also meet Chloe Traicos. You know her from the black comedy "The Righteous Gemstones," a series created by Danny McBride that follows a famous yet dysfunctional family of televangelists. You can find the show on Crave here in Canada. Chloe played Gloria Freeman, the wife of televangelist "Baby" Billy Freeman, who abandoned her and their son in a pet store. She also stars in “Introducing Jodea,” a comedy about a struggling young actress whose fortunes change when a world-famous movie director drives into the back of her car. It’s available wherever you legally buy and download movies. She has a fascinating story. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, she is unable to return because she made a controversial documentary about the country's former leader, Robert Mugabe.

Then, we’ll spend some time with Clare Pooley, the Cambridge educated author of "Iona Iverson’s Rules For Commuting." After working in advertising for twenty years it dawned on her daily ‘wine o’clock’ habit was out of control. She wrote the popular "Mummy was a Secret Drinker" blog and a memoir, "The Sober Diaries," published in 2017 to critical acclaim. Her debut novel, "The Authenticity Project," was inspired by her life and her seemingly perfect facade. Her new novel, "Iona Iverson’s Rules For Commuting," is an entertaining novel about unexpected friendships and the joy of connecting.

On this week’s Richard Crouse Show we meet Jeff Burrows, drummer of the multi-Platinum selling and multi-JUNO award-nominated Rock band The Tea Party, who will be returning to Canadian stages this summer with their first tour in almost three years.

The tour follows the release of The Tea Party’s “Sunshower” EP, a companion piece to the “Black River” EP, presenting a message of hope in the face of one of the most challenging years we as a society have endured so far in the 21st century.

We’ll also get to Know Daniel Paisner. He is one of publishing's most in-demand ghostwriters, the writer who actually writes those celebrity biographies that sit on the front of the racks at your favorite bookstore. His latest novel, “Balloon Dog” – a provocative, comedic, tender and contemplative book on middle age, social media, art, and belonging… asks: what happens when the life you are living is no longer the life you imagined?

Apart from Apart from being a novelist, my final guest today, Fiona Barton, has worked as a senior writer for the Daily Mail, a news editor for the Daily-Telegraph, and also as a news-editor for the Mail on Sunday. After an award-winning career in British newspapers, she gave it all to volunteer in Sri Lanka and since 2008, have trained and worked with exiled and threatened journalists all over the world.

She has also penned four worldwide bestselling thrillers, “The Widow,” “The Child” and “The Suspect.” She returns to bookstores with “Local Gone Missing,” a new crime novel featuring Detective Elise King investigating a man’s disappearance in a seaside town where the locals and weekenders are at odds with each other.

On this week’s Richard Crouse Show we tell you about “Elvis,” the new film about the King of Rock and Roll from Moulin Rouge director Baz Lurhmann. The movie covers the twenty-ish years in the lives of Elvis and his manager Colonel Tim Parker. Through the birth of rock ‘n roll of the late 1950s and the cheesy Hollywood years to the legendary 1968 Comeback Special and the Las Vegas rise and fall, Elvis and the Colonel shimmied and shook their way to the top of the charts and into the history books.

I caught up with director Baz Lurhmann and his stars Austin Butler, who hands in a terrific performance as Elvis and Olivia DeJong who plays Elvis’ wife, Priscilla. We talked about what the story of Elvis’s life can tell us about America, Priscilla’s role in the singer’s life and mushc more.

Then, Nyla Innuksuk, director of “Slash/Back,” a cool new coming of age story with an Indigenous and sci fiction twist, and a message about friendship and what it means to fight for community, stops by to tell us about the challenges of taking a crew of 50 people to Baffin Island in the summer of 2019, to make this film.

Finally meet writer Cian KEY ANN Cruise. He has a degree in film studies and philosophy and is a new dad. He combines all those avenues from his life in his new book, “Dad Bod: Portraits of Pop Culture Papas.”

A clever collection of essays about father figures in popular culture, he has a look at everyone from Gandalf to Homer Simpson, to unpack the qualities that inform our collective image of fatherhood. Stick around and find out what he says Rambo, as seen in First Blood, can teach us about the behaviour of toddlers.

This week on the Richard Crouse Show we meet actor and musician Noah Reid. He became involved in theatre around age six, has been regularly appearing on television since his high school years and has appeared in films like "Buffaloed" and "Disappearance at Clifton Hill," but it was his performance as Patrick Brewer, business partner and later husband, of Dan Levy’s character David on "Schitt's Creek" that made him a household name.

Patrick was already a well-loved character on the series when, in season 4, episode 6, he serenaded his David with a very familiar tune. The “Simply the Best” scene is one of the most emotional scenes in the entire series for the iconic couple, and is now a fan favorite. It also taught us something new about Noah Reid… he can really sing.

Turns out, he’s an accomplished musicians with three albums featuring his powerful vocals and honest delivery. His first two albums, “Songs from a Broken Chair” and “Gemini,” collectively have garnered 145 million streams, two nominations at the 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards in the Songwriter of the Year and New/Emerging Artist of the Year categories and landed Noah on four Billboard charts. His latest album is “Adjustments,” which will be available everywhere you legally download and buy music this month.

We get to know Noah, and talk about his latest, on-going project, starring on Broadway in “The Minutes,” a show about the inner-workings of a city council meeting in the fictional town of Big Cherry.

This week on the Richard Crouse Show we meet actor Alana Hawley Purvis. In “Range Roads,” now available on Super Channel and to rent or buy on VOD, she plays an actress who tries to reconnect with her estranged brother after their parents die in a car accident. But there’s a mystery as well. Frankie finds a life insurance policy that names a woman whose name she doesn’t recognize. What’s her connection to the family?

We’ll also meet award-winning comedian Leslie Seiler. Leslie is from Halifax and now lives in Los Angeles. The focus of her mew comedy album, “Check For Snakes,” is moving to L.A. in 2016 and experiencing the Trump and Covid era from the perspective of someone from Canada. We talk about her comedy and her side gig… decorating Christmas trees for Jennifer Lopez.

Then we meet David Cronenberg. If it is true that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Cronenberg must be basking in the reflected glow of some pretty serious film fawning. The OG of Body Horror’s influence can be seen in lurid detail in recent movies like the Palme d'Or winner “Titane” and Natalie Portman’s biological thriller “Annihilation” among many others.

The director of “Eastern Promises,” “A History of Violence,” “The Fly” and “Videodrome,” among many others, returns to theatres after an eight-year break with “Crimes of the Future,” an all-star story of eroticized human evolution starring Kristen Stewart, Viggo Mortensen and Léa Seydoux.

Sharing a name with a movie the director made in 1970 and based on a script he wrote in the early 2000s, “Crimes of the Future” takes place in a time when "Accelerated Evolution Syndrome" has all but eliminated pain in most humans.

This week on the Richard Crouse Show we meet Elamin Abdelmahmoud. He is the host of CBC's weekly pop culture podcast POP CHAT, co-host of CBC's political podcast PARTY LINES, and a frequent culture commentator for CBC News. He's a culture writer for BuzzFeed News, and now adds author to his list of cr4edits with the release of a memoir called “Son of Elsewhere: A Memoir in Pieces.” In this interview we discuss moving to Canada from Sudan at age twelve, in addition to wrestling, turn of the century metal bands and the influence of TV shows like “The O.C.”.

Then we’ll meet Martin Freeman. You know the Emmy, a BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild Award winning actor from playing Tim Canterbury in the original British series of “The Office.” He was Dr. John Watson in the British crime drama series “Sherlock” opposite Benedict Cumberbatch, Bilbo Baggins in “The Hobbit” film trilogy and will soon be seen in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” reprising the role of Everett K. Ross. Today we’ll talk about his newest project, the critically acclaimed police series “The Responder,” now playing on Brit Box.