Butch Patterson: Private Dick
Encyclopedia
Butch Patterson: Private Dick is a Canadian serial comedy television series centering around the seedy exploits of a self-described premature ejaculating, alcoholic, kleptomaniac, sexually deviant private detective played by Canadian actor/comedian Greg Lawrence. The series had a three season run, airing on The Comedy Network
. Although the show was not a critical or commercial success, it maintains a small cult following. After the series initial run, reruns were featured on the now defunct CBC Country Canada
. Since then, all three original seasons have been released on DVD
.
feel. Much of the humour is derived from the candid narrative of Butch as he reflects on his cases and his general state of affairs. There is a heavy reliance on recurring jokes about Butch's seemingly irrational disdain for bartenders and tailors, his chagrin regarding his childhood bullies and his brassy, open references to his sexual dysfunction. Other gags involve his near unquenchable craving for alcohol and cheap cigars, as well as his tendency towards kleptomania.
, kleptomania
, a tendency to prematurely ejaculate
, chronic urinary problems that cause him to continually wet his pants, and a tendency to shoot himself while cleaning his gun. Butch enjoys prostitutes, pornography
, cigar
s, any and every kind of alcoholic drink, and making crank calls to a man named Frank. He hates tailors, has a disturbing predilection for trying on lingerie
, and is still trying (and failing) to live down a certain incident at a local petting zoo
. Butch also has an unfortunate tendency to misplace his pants, and to wake up in strange places after having too much to drink. He is also banned from the local petting zoo.
Blanche DuMaurier(Vivian Burns) - A virtuous, hardworking newspaper reporter, Blanche is generally disgusted by Butch's deviant tendencies, but often assists him with his various problems, most notably bailing him out of jail
on multiple occasions. She is a staunch foe of Tommy Rubella's criminal empire
, and strives to bring him down with the help of Butch and the Swede.
Tommy Rubella(David L. McCallum) - The crime lord and kingpin of the city where Butch Patterson lives and operates. Despite seeming like an imposing figure, he is intimidated by domineering women, including Debbie Hitler and Jasmine Griffin, fearing them for very good reason. He is a talented accordion
player, and has a tattoo of Buddy Ebsen
on his back, something which his wife hates.
Debbie Hitler(Susan Brooks) - Tommy Rubella's power-hungry wife, who possesses an extremely violent temper and a strange fetish for deck wood. Known for beating, maiming and killing people for even the slightest offence, she terrifies even Tommy and the Swede.
"The Swede" aka Serge Lacroix(John Ng) - A contract killer who ostensibly works for Tommy and Debbie as an assassin, but he serves as a double agent
, frequently double-crossing his employers and working with Blanche in her investigations of Tommy and Debbie. Killing is his favorite pastime, although he is a consummate company man, only doing so when his employer gives the order. Butch insists that the Swede is French
, a claim that is later proven true when it is revealed that the Swede is an undercover French Canadian
police agent.
Vance Van Vandervan(David Elver) - The crooked curator of the Scott Baio
Museum of Fine Art, Vance is involved in the dirty dealings of Debbie, Tommy and Jasmine, constantly playing each side against the other as he tries to further his own agenda. He greatly enjoys roast chicken
, and has an unfortunate tendency to wet his bed
.
Jasmine Griffen(Sarah Van Diepen) - The ex-lover of both Tommy and Vance. Now a conniving, manipulative
seductress, Jasmine attempts to manipulate Tommy, Vance and Butch for her own purposes. In her youth, she travelled through Finland
as a circus
performer after overcoming an addiction to crystal meth
.
Episode 1 - The Jewel Heist Pt1
Episode 2 - The Jewel Heist Pt2
Episode 3 - The Hit
Episode 4 - Call Him Ishmail
Episode 5 - Losing It
Episode 6 - The Dinner Party
Episode 7 - The Affair
Episode 8 - Strike One
Episode 9 - Mom
Episode 10 - Dance Contest
Episode 11 - The Chase
Episode 12 - The Reading Drive
Episode 13 - The Wrath of Vance
Season 2:
Episode 1 - The Return of Vance
Episode 2 - Head Wound
Episode 3 - Debbie Gets a Trout
Episode 4 - Altar, He Go
Episode 5 - The Stake-Out
Episode 6 - The Ties That Bind
Episode 7 - Old Lady Digthorpe
Episode 8 - The Big Meeting
Episode 9 - Birds, Booze and Gas
Episode 10 - The Approximate Size of a Human Head
Episode 11 - The Beginning of the End
Episode 12 - The Plan Underway
Episode 13 - The Plan Revealed
Season 3:
Episode 1 - An Affair to Forget
Episode 2 - Fresh Tarts
Episode 3 - Ante Up
Episode 4 - Shrinking Heads
Episode 5 - Alley Oops
Episode 6 - Snapsy Come Home
Episode 7 - Those Who Can't, Teach
Episode 8 - Oh Yea Pt1
Episode 9 - Oh Yea Pt2
Episode 10 - Hepcat On the Catwalk
Episode 11 - I, Thadius
Episode 12 - How to Make Love
Episode 13 - The End of it All
The Comedy Network
The Comedy Network a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media specializing in comedy programming.The channel operates two time shifted feeds, East and West ....
. Although the show was not a critical or commercial success, it maintains a small cult following. After the series initial run, reruns were featured on the now defunct CBC Country Canada
CBC Country Canada
bold is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that airs a mix of drama, comedy, arts and culture and sports programming.-History:...
. Since then, all three original seasons have been released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
Style
Most of the episodes are focused around the cases that Butch Patterson is investigating at the time. Unlike most comedy series, Butch Patterson has a contiguous plot line running throughout the entire three seasons. The show is shot in a drab hue that provides a film noirFilm noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
feel. Much of the humour is derived from the candid narrative of Butch as he reflects on his cases and his general state of affairs. There is a heavy reliance on recurring jokes about Butch's seemingly irrational disdain for bartenders and tailors, his chagrin regarding his childhood bullies and his brassy, open references to his sexual dysfunction. Other gags involve his near unquenchable craving for alcohol and cheap cigars, as well as his tendency towards kleptomania.
Music
The show features a short jazz theme song that plays during the opening and ending credits [more info needed]. The score featured throughout much of each episode synchronizes emphatically with the tone of each scene, adding greatly to the comic impression upon the viewer.Characters
Butch Patterson(Greg Lawrence) - A hard-bitten private detective who suffers from alcoholismAlcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
, kleptomania
Kleptomania
Kleptomania is an irresistible urge to steal items of trivial value. People with this disorder are compelled to steal things, generally, but not limited to, objects of little or no significant value, such as pens, paper clips, paper and tape...
, a tendency to prematurely ejaculate
Premature ejaculation
Premature ejaculation is a condition in which a man ejaculates earlier than he or his partner would like him to. Premature ejaculation is also known as rapid ejaculation, rapid climax, premature climax, or early ejaculation....
, chronic urinary problems that cause him to continually wet his pants, and a tendency to shoot himself while cleaning his gun. Butch enjoys prostitutes, pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
, cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
s, any and every kind of alcoholic drink, and making crank calls to a man named Frank. He hates tailors, has a disturbing predilection for trying on lingerie
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...
, and is still trying (and failing) to live down a certain incident at a local petting zoo
Petting zoo
A petting zoo features a combination of domestic animals and some wild species that are docile enough to touch and feed. In addition to independent petting zoos, also called children's farms or petting farms, many general zoos contain a petting zoo...
. Butch also has an unfortunate tendency to misplace his pants, and to wake up in strange places after having too much to drink. He is also banned from the local petting zoo.
Blanche DuMaurier(Vivian Burns) - A virtuous, hardworking newspaper reporter, Blanche is generally disgusted by Butch's deviant tendencies, but often assists him with his various problems, most notably bailing him out of jail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
on multiple occasions. She is a staunch foe of Tommy Rubella's criminal empire
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
, and strives to bring him down with the help of Butch and the Swede.
Tommy Rubella(David L. McCallum) - The crime lord and kingpin of the city where Butch Patterson lives and operates. Despite seeming like an imposing figure, he is intimidated by domineering women, including Debbie Hitler and Jasmine Griffin, fearing them for very good reason. He is a talented accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
player, and has a tattoo of Buddy Ebsen
Buddy Ebsen
Buddy Ebsen was an American character actor and dancer. A performer for seven decades, he had starring roles as Jed Clampett in the long-running television series The Beverly Hillbillies and as the title character in the 1970s detective series Barnaby Jones, and played Barnaby Jones in the movie...
on his back, something which his wife hates.
Debbie Hitler(Susan Brooks) - Tommy Rubella's power-hungry wife, who possesses an extremely violent temper and a strange fetish for deck wood. Known for beating, maiming and killing people for even the slightest offence, she terrifies even Tommy and the Swede.
"The Swede" aka Serge Lacroix(John Ng) - A contract killer who ostensibly works for Tommy and Debbie as an assassin, but he serves as a double agent
Double agent
A double agent, commonly abbreviated referral of double secret agent, is a counterintelligence term used to designate an employee of a secret service or organization, whose primary aim is to spy on the target organization, but who in fact is a member of that same target organization oneself. They...
, frequently double-crossing his employers and working with Blanche in her investigations of Tommy and Debbie. Killing is his favorite pastime, although he is a consummate company man, only doing so when his employer gives the order. Butch insists that the Swede is French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
, a claim that is later proven true when it is revealed that the Swede is an undercover French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
police agent.
Vance Van Vandervan(David Elver) - The crooked curator of the Scott Baio
Scott Baio
Scott Vincent James Baio is an American actor and television director, best known for his roles as Chachi Arcola on the sitcom Happy Days and its spin-off, Joanie Loves Chachi, and as the title character on the sitcom Charles in Charge....
Museum of Fine Art, Vance is involved in the dirty dealings of Debbie, Tommy and Jasmine, constantly playing each side against the other as he tries to further his own agenda. He greatly enjoys roast chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
, and has an unfortunate tendency to wet his bed
Bedwetting
Nocturnal enuresis, commonly called bedwetting, is involuntary urination while asleep after the age at which bladder control usually occurs. Nocturnal enuresis is considered primary when a child has not yet had a prolonged period of being dry...
.
Jasmine Griffen(Sarah Van Diepen) - The ex-lover of both Tommy and Vance. Now a conniving, manipulative
Psychological manipulation
Psychological manipulation is a type of social influence that aims to change the perception or behavior of others through underhanded, deceptive, or even abusive tactics. By advancing the interests of the manipulator, often at the other's expense, such methods could be considered exploitative,...
seductress, Jasmine attempts to manipulate Tommy, Vance and Butch for her own purposes. In her youth, she travelled through Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
as a circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
performer after overcoming an addiction to crystal meth
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
.
Episodes
Season 1:Episode 1 - The Jewel Heist Pt1
Episode 2 - The Jewel Heist Pt2
Episode 3 - The Hit
Episode 4 - Call Him Ishmail
Episode 5 - Losing It
Episode 6 - The Dinner Party
Episode 7 - The Affair
Episode 8 - Strike One
Episode 9 - Mom
Episode 10 - Dance Contest
Episode 11 - The Chase
Episode 12 - The Reading Drive
Episode 13 - The Wrath of Vance
Season 2:
Episode 1 - The Return of Vance
Episode 2 - Head Wound
Episode 3 - Debbie Gets a Trout
Episode 4 - Altar, He Go
Episode 5 - The Stake-Out
Episode 6 - The Ties That Bind
Episode 7 - Old Lady Digthorpe
Episode 8 - The Big Meeting
Episode 9 - Birds, Booze and Gas
Episode 10 - The Approximate Size of a Human Head
Episode 11 - The Beginning of the End
Episode 12 - The Plan Underway
Episode 13 - The Plan Revealed
Season 3:
Episode 1 - An Affair to Forget
Episode 2 - Fresh Tarts
Episode 3 - Ante Up
Episode 4 - Shrinking Heads
Episode 5 - Alley Oops
Episode 6 - Snapsy Come Home
Episode 7 - Those Who Can't, Teach
Episode 8 - Oh Yea Pt1
Episode 9 - Oh Yea Pt2
Episode 10 - Hepcat On the Catwalk
Episode 11 - I, Thadius
Episode 12 - How to Make Love
Episode 13 - The End of it All