Sunday’s trip to Prince Albert will be the latest in a long line for Brent Butt.
The stand-up comedian and Corner Gas star arrives this weekend for a performance at the E.A. Rawlinson Centre.
As a kid growing up down the road in Tisdale, Butt said he had a soft spot for “PA” because that’s where the closest McDonald’s was. Years later, his appreciation for Prince Albert hasn’t subsided.
“I always have a good time,” Butt said during a phone interview from his home in Vancouver. “It’s always a been a good time performing there (at the Rawlinson), and basically I was invited back, so it would be rude of me to say no.”
It’s been almost 17 years since the last episode, but Brent Butt still gets questions about Corner Gas. While stand-up will be the focus of this weekend’s visit, Butt said he always gets plenty of questions about the popular TV show—and he’s not complaining.
“It’s the number one blessing in my life,” Butt said. “It was a fantastic thing. It was the culmination of a childhood dream and I’m happy to talk about it.”
Corner Gas premiered to an audience of 1.15 million viewers in 2004, and drew an average of one million viewers for each episode in its first season. It ran six seasons in total, and spawned a 90-minute movie and follow-up animated series.
The antics of gas station owner Brent Leroy, parents Oscar and Emma Leroy, best friend Hank Yarbo, co-worker Wanda Dollard, and Dog River police officers Davis Quinton and Karen Pelly, thrilled critics and fans, and helped turn Butt and the cast into household names.
“People often say, ‘you’re probably always best be known as the guy from Corner Gas, and they say it as though they think I’m not supposed to be okay with it or something,” Butt said with a chuckle. “That’s absolutely fine by me.”
The show was a hit outside Canada too. By late 2006, viewers in 26 countries were watching it. Butt said many people view it as a primarily Canadian show, but fans across the world relate to the situations and characters.
“I’ve had a lot of people come up to me and say ‘yeah, I like your show. I think it’s really funny, but I’m from Saskatchewan so I get it,’” Butt stated. “I always say, ‘well, they watch it in Sweden.’ It’s more universal than people think.
“The characters are archetypal. The situations are pretty universal. I always thought of it as there’s some value added if you’re from small town rural (areas).”
Before Butt won awards for his work on Corner Gas, he racked up recognition for his stand-up comedy. He was named Best Male Stand-up at the Canadian Comedy Awards in 2001, and said the format is still one of his favourites.
“I have a lot of hobbies. I have a lot of things I enjoy doing, but stand-up is my favourite thing to be doing,” he explained. “There’s nothing I would rather do at any given time of the day pretty much except get up on stage and do stand-up.”
Corner Gas drew on Butt’s life growing up in Saskatchewan, and how things might have turned out if he never pursued a career in comedy. His stand-up, on the other hand, draws on much broader sources.
“It’s a really a middle-aged old guy on stage trying to be funny,” he said. “That’s really what it is. There’s no theme. My stand-up has never really had any sort of thematic cohesion. It’s just a guy talking trying to be funny. That’s one of the things I love about stand-up. It’s different every time. Every time I go on stage—every time I’m waiting in the wings waiting to be introduced—I don’t know how it’s going to go.”
Brent Butt performs live at the E.A. Rawlinson Centre with a special guest on Sunday, March 15. The doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the show starting at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Rawlinson box office.
