I am a Canadian who tends to admit my nationality quite sheepishly. I’m not fiercely proud, but I am very appreciative...
Anyway, upon coming home this summer, I was surprised by a new installment of an old-time favourite - on tv in the form of a commercial was my Toronto husband, the one and only Marshall McLuhan, on the Canadian Heritage Minutes!
By being so campy… Heritage Minutes are sixty second dramatizations that illustrate important moments in Canadian History. This was introduced to television in 1991 so they have been a part of my upbringing as much as ParticipAction ads. Without them the general public would never have known that Canadians (not anyone else and not, ahem, Americans basically) are responsible for inventing Superman, basketball, and get this – Standardized Time. It was an attempt to articulate the difference between Canadian and American identity.
However, it’s intent on instilling patriotic virtues in the citizen’s everyday life is betrayed by low production value, theatrical wardrobe choices and bad acting. And the fact that the medium IS a one-minute television commercial. Zing! *Drum roll and Cymbal*
