Latest news with #Toronto-born
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Howie Mandel to host Toronto-shot ‘Price Is Right' spinoff for Citytv
TORONTO - Come on down, eh! A Canadian spinoff of 'The Price is Right' headlines Rogers' new slate of Canadian originals coming to Citytv. The media giant says Toronto-born comedian Howie Mandel will host a reimagining of the U.S. game show, helmed by Drew Carey south of the border. Production begins this December in Toronto, with the show airing in spring 2026. While the Bob Barker-hosted original was a daytime TV staple, Rogers says it plans to make a prime-time evening version of the show, which has a working title of 'The Price Is Right Tonight.' 'It's important to us when we take on a format that there's a reason to Canadianize it and I think for 'Price Is Right,' there were a lot of reasons that it made sense,' says Kale Stockwell, head of original programming for Rogers. 'I love that idea that any Canadian can be picked out of the audience and brought on stage. I think that is so fun and maybe it's missing from other game show formats. So we thought the opportunity to engage the audience directly was really important.' Stockwell noted that the show is part of Rogers' broader relationship with Fremantle, the British production house that licenses Citytv's 'Canada's Got Talent' — where Mandel is a judge — and other popular game show formats. 'The Price Is Right' has had numerous international spinoffs over the years, including 'Le Juste prix' ('The Right Price') in France, 'OK, il prezzo e giusto!' ('OK, The Price is Right!') in Italy and 'Atinale al precio' ('Hit the Price') in Mexico. Citytv's upcoming Canadian productions also include a one-hour red carpet special in September celebrating the 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, led by Arisa Cox of the defunct reality series 'Big Brother Canada.' Rogers is the presenting partner of the upcoming movie marathon, set to mark its half-century milestone Sept. 4 to 14. Slated for winter is a third season of the police procedural 'Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent,' which won the Canadian Screen Award for best drama series on Sunday. An eighth season of cop-and-dog drama 'Hudson & Rex' will premiere this fall, with 'Game of Thrones' star Luke Roberts joining the cast. 'Breakfast Television' will continue its Ontario-wide morning broadcast with Dina Pugliese and Tim Bolen at the helm. Among the new U.S. imports coming to Citytv is the NBC competition series 'On Brand with Jimmy Fallon,' which follows 'The Tonight Show' host as he launches a marketing agency and searches for creative talent to join his team. Also on the slate are 'Surviving Earth,' an eight-episode prehistoric docuseries exploring past mass extinctions, and 'The Making of Wicked,' a one-time live special hosted by the blockbuster musical's stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, airing this fall from the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles. Reality hits returning this summer include new simulcast seasons of ABC's 'Bachelor in Paradise,' 'Celebrity Family Feud,' 'The Golden Bachelor' and 'Dancing with the Stars,' and NBC's 'America's Got Talent.' NBC dramas returning in simulcast include 'Brilliant Minds,' 'Law & Order' and 'Chicago Med.' Rogers also announced new U.S. titles coming to its specialty lineup, which features several new brands. Last June, Rogers announced landmark multi-year deals with Warner Bros. Discovery, securing Canadian rights to top lifestyle brands — including HGTV, Food Network and Discovery — previously held by Corus Entertainment and Bell Media. New on HGTV is 'Chasing the West,' which sees Drew and Jonathan Scott help families adapt to ranch life in states including Arizona, California and Texas. HGTV's 'Condemned,' meanwhile, follows a father-daughter duo as they attempt to rescue some of Detroit's most rundown homes. HGTV will also feature new seasons of home renovation favourites include 'House Hunters,' '100 Day Dream Home' and 'Help! I Wrecked My House.' Bravo will introduce reality series 'The Real Housewives of Rhode Island' and 'The Valley: Persian Style,' while FX adds star power with drama series 'The Lowdown' starring Ethan Hawke and horror series 'Alien: Earth' featuring Sydney Chandler and Timothy Olyphant. Returning shows on Bravo include new seasons of reality hits such as 'The Real Housewives' franchises, 'Below Deck Mediterranean,' 'Vanderpump Rules' and 'Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.' The Food Network will dish out fresh servings of 'Chopped,' 'Holiday Baking Championship,' 'Halloween Baking Championship' and 'Bobby's Triple Threat.' Guy Fieri is back too, with new episodes of 'Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives' and 'Guy's Grocery Games.' Discovery will air new seasons of 'Homestead Rescue,' 'Expedition X,' 'Expedition Unknown,' 'The Last Woodsmen' and 'Street Outlaws.' Splashy TV event Shark Week will return for its 37th year in July. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 3, 2025.
Toronto Star
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Toronto Star
‘The Apprentice,' ‘Canada's Drag Race' among big winners at Canadian Screen Awards
A film chronicling the rise of Donald Trump won best motion picture at the Canadian Screen Awards on Sunday, where its Toronto-born producer used his acceptance speech to address the U.S. president's threats to Canadian sovereignty. Daniel Bekerman is the lead producer of 'The Apprentice,' a Canada-Ireland-Denmark co-production that portrays how Trump got started in the real-estate industry and honed his persona under the mentorship of controversial fixer Roy Cohn.
Black America Web
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Black America Web
Drake Announces OVO Fest Will Return To Toronto This Summer
Source: Cole Burston / Getty As we round out a year since his fiery beef with Kendrick Lamar, Drake has once again refused to hunker down and is instead back outside. Over the weekend, Drizzy popped out for Central Cee's Toronto show at the History venue and announced to his hometown that the OVO Fest will be returning this summer. 'I'll see you this summer,' he tells the crowd. 'I will say this, though, because I haven't had the chance to say this yet. OVO Fest is back this year.' The crowd erupts with the news as Drake puts Cee on the spot, telling him he needs to come through for the Toronto-born musical festival. Drake hasn't held the annual fest since 2022, which he dubbed the October World Weekend: Road to OVO Fest Tour . It was the festival's 10th anniversary, so he enlisted some pioneering Canadian acts to perform, including Nelly Furtado, Kardinal Offishall, Saukrates, k-os, Choclair, Glenn Lewis, and Jully Black. The weekend continued with Chris Brown and Lil Baby, and the final night served as a YMCMB reunion as Drake took the stage with Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj. Before that, it'd been a few years since Drake organized the festival because of COVID-19 restrictions and contracting the virus himself. Drake didn't announce any official plans or a venue, but the fest usually gets announced at the top of the summer, while it occurs towards the end of July, so we should expect an official announcement soon. See how hyped social media is for the lineup to be revealed below. Drake Announces OVO Fest Will Return To Toronto This Summer was originally published on Black America Web Featured Video CLOSE
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Paris silver medallists Humana-Paredes, Wilkerson set sights on Hollywood ending at next Olympics
The scene was straight out of a sports movie. It was the women's beach volleyball final at the 2024 Paris Olympics, played under the lights beneath the shadow of the Eiffel Tower in mid-August. On one side stood Brazil's Ana Patricia Ramos and Eduarda Santos (Duda) Lisboa, a top team from a powerhouse country. Across from them lingered Canada's Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson. The Toronto-born duo was not expected to find itself in that moment — a mere 18 tournaments over two years together had shown itself with a 1-2 record in group play. But Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson rallied to win a lucky loser match, rolled through the first two rounds of the knockout stage, then won a three-setter in the semis to buck the odds and reach the final. Still, the Canadians entered as underdogs. Then, fireworks: a closely contested first set ended with a 26-24 Brazilian win, but the Canadians returned fire with a dominant 21-12 second-set victory. Along the way, Wilkerson and Ramos jawed like NHLers in a playoff scrum, prompting the in-game DJ to cheekily play John Lennon's Imagine. After a narrow third set, Ramos and Duda emerged with the Olympic title, ruining the Canadians' Hollywood ending. WATCH | Canada takes silver in women's beach volleyball after loss to Brazil: Speaking eight months later, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson were both still grappling with the duality of claiming Canada's first-ever women's medal in the sport while ending their tournament with a loss. "It was so much that led up to that point, not even just the two weeks at the Olympics," Humana-Paredes said. "When you're so close to being at the top and fighting for what you have been working for for so long and you fall short and like just short, that definitely hurts. "It's a huge sting. And I think it takes time for sure for that to just kind of sting less and less, but there's still so much to be proud of." Now set up for training in California, the Canadians' movie isn't over – they plan to continue working together, with the goal of gold and a literal Hollywood finish at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson will compete at their second stop of the Elite16 Beach Pro Tour season beginning Wednesday in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Live coverage of the tournament will be available on and CBC Gem. Their season debut in April was a bit of a reversal of their Olympic journey – the Canadians went undefeated in group play but fell in the quarterfinals, denying them a semifinal rematch against Ramos and Duda. Their next major tournament is the world championship in November in Adelaide, Australia. "Solidifying our spot as a world-class team on the World Tour is the new challenge that we're looking forward to," Wilkerson said. "We've always known we could do it. We've proven that we're the best in the world. So now to be able to do it over and over again is going to be the hardest challenge I think any athlete in any sport does, and it really differentiates the legendary ones from those that are extremely talented." Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson barely had time to process in the aftermath of their silver medal, with the regular season resuming just two weeks after that dramatic final and continuing through the fall. Humana-Paredes said their first downtime came around Christmas, but the duo took a longer-than-usual off-season to regroup. Now, they return to competition as Olympic silver medallists and with new targets painted on their backs. But in their view, the buildup to Los Angeles began two years ago – Paris was just a bonus. "We kind of have our foundation, but now it's like, OK, now we can get creative. Now we can push boundaries. I think we know we had moments where we could do that in the lead-up to Paris, but not as much as I feel like we have now," Humana-Paredes said. For Humana-Paredes, the silver medal could have been a culmination. Alongside former partner Sarah Pavan, she'd won the world title in 2019 and entered the Tokyo Olympic two years later among the favourites – only to lose in the quarterfinals. Finally reaching the Olympic podium three years later – albeit with a new teammate – could have felt like the end of a journey. Instead, it's only made her hungrier. "I look back at some of those games, I'm like, 'Oh, we can do that so much better.' And so I think there's a level of, we're not settling on that result. We keep moving forward. I think for better or for worse, you just keep moving and you keep going in the direction you want to go and you do it together," she said. Plus, while the silver was satisfying, it still did come with the bitter tinge of losing gold. "You can have both feelings. Like you can be disappointed and be super proud at the same time. And I think that's what was really eye-opening for me being like, 'Yeah, I'm all those things and more,'" Humana-Paredes said. Wilkerson is taking a similar approach. "I never want to become accustomed to not meeting my goals. That's not a good feeling. But outside of that, it's still something I'm processing and choosing to lean on how amazing of an opportunity it [was], choosing to be grateful and just be so proud," Wilkerson said. She said the attitude now goes something like this: they won Olympic silver just 18 tournaments into their time together – just think about what that could look like by 2028. "We're trying to use it to our advantage," Wilkerson said. More than anything, though, the vibes are immaculate between Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson. And that fact alone gives them confidence that, come 2028, they can take that final step. "I genuinely feel that Mel wants the best for me and I want the best for her and I think that's what's going to keep us strong throughout all of the challenges that are absolutely going to come," Wilkerson said. "We're getting to know each other more and more and she's the person I spend the most time with in my entire life. I think we find ways to enjoy that — and genuinely."
Hamilton Spectator
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Toronto-born Shai Gilgeous-Alexander becomes second Canadian ever to win NBA MVP. Is he the best Canadian player ever?
Toronto-born, Hamilton-raised Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has become just the second Canadian to be named most valuable player in the NBA. The Oklahoma City Thunder phenom has had a steady ascent to greatness, becoming one of the best players in the last few years, and leading his team to a first-place finish in the 2024-25 NBA regular season. Not only was the scoring champion this season, but he's recognized as one of the best defensive players in the game, ranking among the leaders in steals and blocks among point guards. Now, he has cemented his legacy. A post shared by UNINTERRUPTED 🇨🇦 (@uninterruptedcanada) Gilgeous-Alexander joins NBA legend Steve Nash as just the second Canadian-born to ever win the highly-coveted MVP honour, sparking debate about who is the best Canadian player in the history of the league. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander joins Steve Nash as just the second Canadian to ever win NBA MVP. The Thunder are currently playing in the NBA's Western Conference final against the Minnesota Timberwolves, looking to win their first championship in the young franchise's history. Gilgeous-Alexander has also earned respect from his peers and the basketball community for his participation with Team Canada in the 2024 Summer Olympics. THE BEST PLAYER IN THE NBA IS FROM CANADA 🇨🇦🏀 Congratulations to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander from Toronto who just won the MVP trophy in the NBA for the 2024-25 season. Here are ESPN's top 10 plays from Gilgeous-Alexander's impressive season. Is Gilgeous-Alexander the best Canadian-born NBA player of all time? Take our reader survey and weigh in. Disclaimer: Reader survey results are not scientific. As the informal findings of a survey presented to the readers of this site, they reflect the opinions of those who have chosen to participate. The survey is available online to anyone interested in taking it. This poll does not restrict the number of votes each person can cast.
