"DUE SOUTH"
PAUL GROSS
PAUL GROSS
On "Due South", Paul Gross plays Constable Benton Fraser, an exemplary member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (Fraser pronounced like Razor). Without much experience of big city life, Fraser was first brought to Chicago, the 3rd largest city in the states, on the trail of his fathers killer. In brief, once in Chicago, Fraser got teamed up with one Detective Ray Vecchio (David Marciano), who was assigned to the case. Although the differences far outweigh the similarities between the two, they managed to become the best of friends. Ray is a street-wise, smooth talking, rather cynical city cop, Benton is a caring, tundra born and raised Canuck who prides himself on a firm belief in the inherent good of all people. Fraser works at the consulate, more or less as a door man. Although his father's murder case was solved quickly (during the pilot episode) Benton still likes to help Ray make the streets a safer place. Not permitted to carry a weapon, Benton is armed only with his wits, a rigid code of ethics, and a partly (and somewhat selectively) deaf, lip reading wolf, Diefenbaker.
The show itself has a rather interesting history. For awhile, the inconsistent schedule for the show was probably about as frustrating as playing hide and seek with a deaf wolf. Yes, it was sometimes difficult to figure out when and what day the show would be on, which wears on even the most devoted fans nerves. It disappeared from our screens more than once. Some say it's due (ha ha) to the fact that it's the first Canadian series ever to break onto America's prime time schedule. It was the odd one out and so it got the boot. Fans (including myself) were furious, out for blood (well, maybe not). Suffice to say the response to the cancellation was immense. After a short sabbatical, the show was revived with a promise for 2 more seasons, and just enough episodes to hit the limit for syndication.
And so, we, the fans of Due South, were now able
to feel safe in the knowledge that we'd have another 2 seasons of the charm,
wit, and drop dead good looks of Our Favorite Mountie. The show was not
without it's changes though. Paul Gross was not only starring in the show,
he was also producing and writing (sometimes). David Marciano would be
around in our mind, even if he wasn't on screen. The character of Ray went
deep undercover for awhile and was replaced by Stanley Raymond Kowalski,
posing as Ray Vecchio (played by Callum Keith Rennie).
So instead of THIS...
We had THIS...
Before we move on, a big thank you to Michael Mouland (or John A. Macdonald) who wrote Due South, the official guide book, and to Alliance Communications from which I got quite a bit of this information.
NOTE: There are some gaps in my information (IE: some characters ages, where they live etc.) If you see a blank (E.G.: "Uncertain") and you KNOW the answer, PLEASE email me at lynnyn@hotmail.com.
Have fun :)