Brad Oswald
Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg, MB, Canada
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Past articles by Brad:
Hall kept his word by constantly giving back
Monty Hall will be remembered by most North Americans as the guy who gave stuff away — sometimes big, exciting, expensive stuff, and sometimes disappointing, worthless, comically silly junk. It all depended on the recipients' willingness to take a chance, risk it all and make a deal, combined with plain old dumb luck. → Read More
Reaching for Canadian connection at the Emmys
Amid all the acceptance-speech dissection and red-carpet fashion reaction that followed last Sunday&... - TV - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
Behind all of Jerry Lewis's mugging and shouting was one of Hollywood's key innovators
There’s probably an entire generation whose reaction to the passing of Jerry Lewis was something along the lines of “Oh, the guy from the telethons died.” And there’s likely at least another generation beyond that one that paid no attention because it had simply never even heard of the guy. → Read More
CRTC hearing examines troubled local television stations
The discussion, much of the time, has focused on high ideals, such as the health of democracy and journalistic integrity and the value of an informed public. But the bottom line, as it always has been, is money. → Read More
Half of Canada’s local TV stations could fade to black, lobby warns
So, here’s the question of the day: how much does local television matter? You might think this is a big, important question, or you might think it’s an irrelevant question whose answer has no bearing whatsoever on your day-to-day life and the way you watch TV (or consume content on your preferred mobile device). In a conference room in Gatineau, Que. → Read More
New X-Files revival picks up after clunky first episode
The enduring message of The X-Files is the truth is out there. When it comes to Fox’s highly anticipated six-episode revival of the beloved paranormal-adventure drama, the truth is the real fun of renewing acquaintances with Fox Mulder and Dana Scully lies out there somewhere just beyond the TV series reboot’s first episode. → Read More
Sitcom's father-son team really know their Schitts
Imagine the pressure. Imagine the pride. On one hand, you’ve got a relative newcomer to the TV business trying to produce one of showbiz’s most elusive entities — a successful and genuinely funny Canadian sitcom — who has saddled himself with the roles of creator, producer, writer and actor. → Read More
PBS is going to have a tough time replacing Downton Abbey
Just how big a deal is Downton Abbey to PBS? Well, consider this: in the leadup to the premiè... - TV - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
What’s the deal with Festivus?
“A Festivus. for the rest of us!” It was supposed to be a throwaway line in a secondary storyline in an episode of Seinfeld whose main focus was the ridiculous notion that Kramer, rather than being chronically underemployed as had been believed since the show’s première eight years earlier, had actually been on strike against a New York bagel shop for the past 12 years. But instead of being a… → Read More
Gold Strike!
It took the better part of a decade to close the deal, but Danny Schur has finally landed his leadin... - Movies - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
Netflix holiday special delivers old-fashioned fun, seasonal songs and mirthful Murrayness
In an oddly refreshing display of truthful advertising, the new holiday TV offering A Very Murray Christmas delivers exactly what its title promises. It’s a Christmas special. → Read More
Even a shlub can be a star in new TV landscape
Comedian Jim Gaffigan has carved out a very nice career by being an average, dopey, chubby, clean-talking, white American male. It should come as no surprise, then, that a new sitcom called The Jim Gaffigan Show doesn't inspire the use of such oft-employed descriptors as "edgy," "dark," "nasty" or "raunchy. → Read More
A guide to the season's festive TV offerings
Yes, that’s right, seasonal-special surfers — the holiday TV season is upon us. And it s... - TV - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
For Lara Rae, everything old is new again
More than three decades into her comedy career, Lara Rae feels a bit like she’s doing standup for the first time. And in a way, she is. When she steps up to the microphone during the all-female Empow(HER)ment show this week at the Park Theatre, she will be performing her first full set of comedy since embarking on a gender-transition journey she says she waited a lifetime to begin. → Read More
Down(stairs), set, party!
It was once the biggest event on Canada’s sports-TV calendar. It was also the biggest darned basement party of most north-of-the-border sports fans’ year. → Read More
No costume drama
There's a natural tendency, given the overwhelming presence of under-performing superhero titles at ... - TV - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
Two comedy kings go head-to-head this week, but they’ll be delivering jokes, not jabs
There’s a standup showdown in Winnipeg this week and, as strange as it might sound, it’s... - The Arts - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
There will be blood, not to mention gore and more
The term “bone-crunching” is mostly used to describe collisions and contact situations i... - TV - Winnipeg Free Press. → Read More
Lazy like a fox
Let's face it -- it's all just a bunch of baloney. But that's the nature of standup comedy, an art form that by its own definition is strictly for laughs. → Read More
The new face of TV
There's been a major demographic shift down at the ol' Central Perk. When Friends ruled the airwaves as TV's top comedy, the sitcom version of New York City was decidedly white, uniformly attractive and unapologetically, unrealistically upscale. → Read More