ABSTRACT
In 1994, Due South became the first Canadian-produced series to air in primetime on a major US television network. Created by Paul Haggis (later to achieve two Academy awards for the films Crash and Million Dollar Baby), the series follows the adventures of a Royal Canadian Mounted Police Constable, Benton Fraser, who “first came to Chicago on the trail of the killers of [his] father and, for reasons which don’t need exploring at this juncture, … remained, attached as liaison to the Canadian consulate.” This chapter examines Due South in the context of Canadian television’s unequal struggle with the American industry and the consequent masking of Canadian identity in homegrown productions. It also explores the Canadian tendency to promote the myth of the northern wilderness over the urban reality of most Canadians. Paul Haggis’s use of Canadian and American stereotypes, which initially offended some Canadians and raised questions of authenticity, is shown to have been an effective method of overcoming a perceived American indifference to Canada and successfully establishing a new confidence that Canadian content could win an American audience.
