Air Farce: 40 Years of Flying by the Seat of Our Pants

by Roger Abbott, Roger Abbott

A rollicking, behind-the-scenes look at Canada's favourite comedy troupe

A staple of CBC television for fifteen years, with diehard fans numbering in the millions, Canada's Royal Canadian Air Farce exemplifies brilliant comedic mayhem. Written by the founding members of Air Farce—Roger Abbott and Don Ferguson—this candid memoir, full of anecdotes, photographs, scripts, and other memorabilia from the authors' private collection describes every aspect of their hard-scrabble early life in 1970 as an onstage comedy troupe, their historic run on radio, and their spectacular success on prime-time television.

With contributions from many of their longtime friends and collaborators, including Dave Broadfoot (whose "When I regained consciousness" tagline is now part of the Canadian vernacular), and the irrepressive Luba Goy, Air Farce takes readers behind the scenes, and onstage, into the day-to-day creative vortex of one of the most popular comedy shows in the history of Canadian television.

Offers unprecedented access to the intimate workings of Canada's legendary comedy troupe—from their days as "something fun to do on Sunday nights" in theatres to their arrival on Canadian television, as one of its highest rated shows The authors share the highlights, lowlights, successes, and tragedies that resulted from their Air Farce collaboration

Offering a no-holds-barred look at the key players that turned comedy talent into prime-time gold, Air Farce offers their legions of fans a genuine keepsake destined to last at least as long as the troupe's forty-year career—if not longer.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor

272 pages, Hardcover

First published December 29, 2011

About the author

Roger Abbott was a Canadian comedian. A founding member of the comedy troupe Royal Canadian Air Farce, he was one of the troupe's stars and writers throughout its 29-year career on radio and television.

Reviews

[I.D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great behind the scenes look at a Canadian institution. You can tell that the few instances where they wanted to say anything negative were glossed over with politeness but you can’t deny this is a worthwhile look back. Probably won’t appeal to any non Canadians but that’s ok. Now if only there was some way to get old radio broadcasts and tv episodes. Netflix get on that!

[Marcel Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great and essential read for any fan of Air Farce and - to be honest - anybody that calls themselves Canadian or a fan / aficionado of Canadian comedy.

[rabbitprincess · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Royal Canadian Air Farce (usually known simply as "Air Farce") was a radio and later television show featuring a combination of political commentary and more "traditional" sketch comedy, all with a uniquely Canadian sensibility. This lovingly written volume, put together by co-founders Roger Abbott and Don Ferguson, is a history of both the group and Roger's and Don's friendship. It begins in Montreal when Roger and Don are in high school and winds its way through the Jest Society, the radio version of Air Farce, the departure of Dave Broadfoot, the television series, John Morgan's departure, the end of Air Farce as a weekly series and a final chapter nobody expected to have to write so soon: Roger's sudden passing at the age of 64 in March 2011.

Because the book is written by the people who are most directly involved, it is certainly authoritative. The book includes interviews with the other cast members as well as friends and colleagues, and plenty of photographs (all black and white) of the cast throughout the years. Anecdotes are also plentiful, such as Roger saving an elderly couple from a burning building, Don spending a few weeks at sea, Luba's chronic tardiness, and John…well, everything about John is a treat to read, at least for me, because he was my favourite member of the group. And we cannot forget one of the classic sketches, the debut of the Air Farce "Chicken Cannon". The description had me giggling all over again. Even now I can see Don and John trying desperately not to laugh as the Chicken Cannon wreaks its havoc.

If you liked the show, you will definitely want to take a look at this book. One warning, though: you will want to have Kleenex handy for the last chapter, about Roger's passing. It's a very touching tribute to a dear friend, and must have been a very difficult chapter for Don to write. But it is a good thing they managed to get most of the book done when they did. It's a worthy addition to any fan's shelf.