Adored as it is by we fans,
SCTV was never a ratings grabber, either in syndication or on NBC. (Before moving to its 90 minute slot on NBC, the show debuted in a half-hour format immediately following
Saturday Night Live.) Rick Moranis joined the show in its third season, after it became apparent that castmates Tony Rosato and Robin Duke weren’t clicking.
In Dave Thomas’ "SCTV: Behind the Scenes," the show’s vade mecum of abtruse insight, Moranis remarked, “I was the only guy ever to join the show from outside the little Second City world.” Moranis initially sensed resistance coming from Joe Flaherty’s corner. “I think he resented me because I hadn’t, in his mind, paid my dues by coming up from the theatre. We never came to blows or anything, but if you look through the whole catalogue, there isn’t a lot of stuff that Joe and I did together.” Thomas met Moranis at a party where both took to the stage and jammed with the band. “He had a good reputation,” Thomas recalls, “and seemed sharp, smart and funny.” Prior to that fateful meeting, Moranis worked as a deejay in addition to appearing alongside John Candy on