It's so big that the CBC can't ignore it either:

There hasn't been a trade this lopsided since Mike Milbury was allowed to be an NHL general manager.

To TSN: The Hockey Night in Canada theme
To HNIC: Mike Milbury

It's like Mark Parrish and Oleg Kvasha for Roberto Luongo and Olli Jokinen, only this time it hurts all hockey fans, not just those on Long Island.

The CBC, in its infinite wisdom, has really gone out of its way to tank the network's signature broadcast in the past few months. They let the awesome Hockey Night in Canada theme go and pick up possibly the worst analyst in broadcast sports.

If I'm not mistaken, this is Milbury's fourth network in two-ish seasons, having been booted from NESN, NBC, and TSN. The thing he'll always be most famous for, in broadcasting at least, is almost getting into a fistfight with Pierre Maguire over the value teams were getting on certain players' contracts during this last Free Agent Day. In the wake of Chicago signing Cristobal Huet, Milbury, not surprisingly was arguing for madness (i.e. Chicago paying $12-plus million for its goaltending), while Maguire thought that it would be wise for Dale Tallon to perhaps do everything in his power to get rid of one of the team's overpaid, mediocre netminders.

That said, he should fit right in with those clods on Satellite Hot Stove (with all due respect to Eric Duhatshek).

At this rate, HNIC is becoming such a joke that they might as well pick "Hockey Scores" as the theme song.

[Harper Index] Another example of the same kind of framing shows up in the current recruiting ads with the slogan "Fight with the Canadian Forces." In the past, recruitment ads for the Forces have featured the virtues of peacekeeping and learning a trade. Today's ads show young soldiers in battle fighting "chaos and despair." It is likely that new recruits have been only one audience for the ads, which ran frequently during the Stanley Cup playoffs when airtime is most expensive.

+

The troops are troops because their role is to support their government's foreign policy. It is not the public's job to support the troops since there is really — beyond hanging yellow ribbons and affixing stickers to their cars — nothing the public can do in a war thousands of kilometres away.

The rest.

Since the CBC lost the rights to the theme from Hockey Night In Canada (still among the worst decisions ever made by a television network), it is hosting a contest to find a new one.

But by opening this up to internet geeks and possibly nerds, the CBC has also opened itself up to look foolish. How? Because this is the leading entry right now.

It seems those "hilarious" rapscallions over at the Something Awful forums have decided that they should take time out from worrying whether or not they have Asperger's to prove they do by posting and continually voting for this video.

The winner gets $100,000, and I'd really prefer it if if a majority of that money wasn't spent on Transformers and LEGO sets.

Oh internetters, is there anything you won't get behind?

1. Saudi Arabia -- 262. 3
2. Canada: 179. 2
3. Iran -- 136.2
4. Iraq -- 115.0
5. Kuwait -- 101.5
6. U.A.E. - 97.8
7. Russia - 80.0
8. Venezuela - 60.0
9. Libya - 41.4
10. Nigeria - 36.2
11. Kazakhstan (NICE!) - 30.0
12. United States - 20.9

If you had to stop reading the list when you got to #2 because your jaw had dropped to the floor, you're probably not alone. Canada has 179 BILLION BARRELS of crude oil reserves? Based on the on ontemporary price of $145 for a barrel of crude oil, the value of the Canadians reserves is somewhere on the order of $25,984,000,000,000 TRILLION (Lord only knows what it will grow to over the next decade or two). Coupled with the largest reserves of fresh, potable water in the world, Canada has the potential to be one of the most powerful nations of the 21st century.  Everybody blathers on about how this century will be the "Chinese Century," but nobody mentions the Canadians. How have the Canadians managed to pull the wool over the world's eyes? I'm beginning to see through the ruse. 

A number of years ago I was visiting with my Grandmother in Miami and we decided to drive down to the Hollywood Boardwalk for some ice cream and a leisurely stroll. Hollywood, Florida has always been a popular location for a certain set of Canadian snowbirds who are attracted by its abundance of cheap motels and tacky novelty shops. As my Grandmother and I drove around searching for a parking space, Grandma remarked, "Those Canadians are so smart, they buy up all the parking spaces." At the time, I thought her statement was patently preposterous. I mean, how could Grandma know who owns those parking places? But also, it seemed farfetched to proclaim the residents of a particular nation as being smart when they look like this --

-- but still wear bikini speedos on the beach; end every sentence with the interjection "eh?";  and pronounce "about" like "a-boot"? But now I realize that Grandma was on to something. The Canadians aren't just smart, they're playing us for fools.

The Canadians are  sitting on a 25 trillion dollar lottery ticket, but instead of acting like a bunch of asses by building hotels shaped like sailboats on man-made islands, hiring man-servants to take care of their pets, buying A380 Superjumbos to fly as private jets, and using Crystal Champagne as toilet water, they instead focus their attention on such pressing matters as how the Canadian Broadcasting Company decided not to renew the license for the iconic "Hockey Night in Canada" theme song, known for four decades as "Canada's second national anthem."

Just imagine if the United States were sitting on 179 billion barrels of sweet crude. Do you think we might make the rest of the world aware of that fact? Perhaps lord that information over other nations to coerce their actions in accordance with our desires?

American politicians like to blame porous borders and liberal policies for our illegal immigration problems, but if we didn't spend so much time boasting about how great it is here in America, I doubt so many Mexicans would go to such effort to get here. We have only ourselves to blame really. Just take a look at the respective National Anthems of the United States and Canada and you will find everything you need to learn. The American national anthem ends with the line: "Land of the free and home of the brave." Who wouldn't want to live in a nation that upholds those values? Those words are nothing but a recipe for illegal immigration. Now, have a look at the final lines of the Canadian national anthem: "O Canada, we stand on guard for thee." That sounds more like the motto of a frozen prison colony. I'm imagining a line of Mounties standing horse to horse at the border aiming rifles at anything that moves. Yet another brilliant move on the Canadians part: "Nothing to see here. It's very cold. Please move along."

But that Canadian ability to fly under the radar might soon be a thing of the past. For one, I believe the Canadians are making a terrible mistake by holding the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. What do they think will happen when 1.5 million people or so show up for the Olympics and discover a city with clean air, a low crime rate, friendly people, and oh, free national healthcare for all its citizens? Do you think some of those visitors might think of returning and perhaps staying for good? If I worked for the Canadian government, I would start running an anti-immigration/anti-tourism campaign: "CANADA: It's colder than a witches titty, moose and polar bears have the right of way, and Eskimos are permitted to hunt and kill Americans with impunity!"

With great power comes great responsibility, and the Canadians have shown little predilection for either. I would guess that most of them are reasonably happy with the way things are and they plan on keeping it that way. However, ten or fifteen years from now, once gasoline costs upwards of $10 a gallon and global warming really gets into gear, Canada will no longer be able to hide its embarrassment of riches, the world WILL take notice. My advice, my fellow Americans, is to buy into Canada now before its stock goes through the roof. Canada is like Microsoft circa 1986. I don't know about you, but I'm heading for the border.

Highlights of Season One

About game three I really started to see that the forechecking aggressive player made a come back and our captain Sean had to tell me to stop playing so aggressive. He only said this because we were dominating the game by six goals and even though we had the lead I didn't let up skating my heart out.

After discovering that my strength is skating hard every shift and rubbing the slow pokes the wrong way I had a very humbling experience. It was into the third period and we were up by seven goals; one of which was a breakaway goal that I scored just after they scored their only goal of the day. As the game progressed I was getting more and more targeted for body checks (which is not allowed in our league). I counted four checks and then the fifth one just put me over the edge. I caused a great ruckus and told the ref to just toss me out of the game if we're gonna play this way. I sat out for the rest of the game for unsportsmanlike conduct. As I mulled over my reaction (which is usually what the penalty box is for, mulling) I reflected on my emotion for the game, I just hate loosing.(period) So if I feel like something is going to slow me down and hinder me or my team from loosing then I will want to fight it. Go figure, I am an over comer.

Last night's final game was a great way to end the Mustangs season one. I called it, I got a hat trick. I was so blessed to have Alisha, Zack, Carrie and my buddy Ben there to support me and the team.

Unhiglights

The one game that we lost because Bengi traded to the Fighting Leprechauns, or better known as Lucky Charms, and with 20 seconds to go in the game they score and win the game by just a goal.

All in all playing Friday nights has been a wonderful experience. Me, Bengi, Ben, Steve, Sean, Mike, Rob, John, and others from Friday nights have converted over to a Sunday Night league that has been just as fun and better because we have been challenged a little bit more in our level of playing. So, if you like hockey, and you gots no money, come and watch us on Sunday Nights. We are known as the Electric Sheep.

my Best Hockey Songs of All Time #2: Hockey Night In Canada Theme post got 67 hits yesterday. now, the "Best Hocky Song" thread, and that post in particular, has been the most visited since I posted them -- but why the surge yesterday?

I checked my stats, and a ridiculous number of incoming clicks were coming from google searches on some combination of "colbert hockey night in canada". huh?

turns out, Colbert hijacked the theme song after the CBC decided to license it to CTV. and for a few hours, I was probably one of the few sites that had recent posts including the two terms. checking google today, I don't even rank in the top 100 for those keywords.

was that my blog's 15 minutes? for those of you still looking for Colbert+HNIC, complete with handguns and "punching beavers in the face", here you go:

I get many requests for more vibrator reviews.  Though I have to say, none will be as fun to photograph as the Mothra was (don't be sick).  I promise once I return home in a few days, I will post the review for the Titan, as I realize I am so very late in doing just that.  I am also getting a ton of requests for some hockey talk, even in the off season.  This is something I will be heavily focusing on as I revamp my blog this summer to include a hockey section.  I received an email today, wondering if I have any thoughts on the Hockey Night in Canada theme being ripped from the warm, cuddly arms of the HNIC folks @ CBC.  Hell ya - I think it's absolutely ridiculous.  To hear shite being spouted like, "the song has been saved!!!" and "it's still in Canada, so we can all relax!!" is pure crap.  It's not been saved, as it is no longer with HNIC.

This is theme music that has been with Hockey Night in Canada since 1968.  It just goes with HNIC like Bob & Doug go with beer (take off, eh?).  Losing the theme music is like asking Don Cherry to remove all color from his wardrobe - it's just something that should never happen.  There is some talk about Stompin' Tom Connors' hockey song being the replacement.  Will it make a difference?  Has the damage already been done? As a NHL Hockey fan for as long as I can remember, and as a gal who does not handle change graciously, this is not sitting well with me.   For years now, I've had the Hockey Night in Canada ring-tone on my cell phone, all year long.  And I crack a smile everytime it rings, as I am momentarily transported back to the days as a kid, happily watching Hockey Night in Canada alongside my dad.  To whichever powers that be let this happen: Not only are you screwing with a Canadian institution (in the minds of many hockey fans in Canada), you are mucking with my memories.

And that pisses me off. 

(definitely not advocating the facebook idea, as it's a lost cause now, but this is a great video with the Great One leading it off!!)

The fact that they lost the song is tragic, but I don't want to get into the business or cultural perspectives. Just the PR side of things.

First of all, the CBC failed to get its messages out first. Composer Dolores Claman and her agent framed the issue by distributing a media release on the night the Stanley Cup was awarded to the Detroit Red Wings. They were kind enough not to create a distraction during the playoffs. And smart enough to get their side of the story into the news first.

Second, the CBC appeared unprepared to answer media questions once the story hit. According to the Globe and Mail, CBC Sports executive director Scott Moore "said he was surprised to step off a plane from Pittsburgh, where he had celebrated the end of the playoffs, to be greeted by a firestorm as the story dominated newscasts and call-in radio shows." He told CBC News, "We have no real idea why the deal fell apart. We're not sure why because the other side hasn't communicated with us. You have to ask the other side what happened." Not the best key messaging.

Third, I still haven't seen an explanation from the CBC on why a long-standing lawsuit brought by the composer over copyright infringement hasn't been settled. How did they intend to convince the public that a deal was so close when they hadn't dealt with that issue? The Toronto Star's Chris Zelkovich commented, "it's hard to win a public relations battle when a 77-year-old woman (now 80) sues you for breach of contract and four years later is still waiting for a settlement."

Finally, the CBC's PR team failed to provide its side of the story in any social media forum I've visited. There are Facebook groups and hundreds of blog posts - but no one from CBC to comment.

It would appear to me that the CBC didn't keep their eye on the PR puck. And the result was a heavy hit from thousands of hockey crazy hoosers and one 80-year-old composer.

This whole story reminds me of a presentation that I attended by CBC's excellent broadcaster Scott Russell. This was after CBC had been outbid by several million dollars to broadcast the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics - again, by TSN. Vancouver should have been a crowning moment for CBC, who have been doing quality work for the promotion of Olympic and Amateur sport in Canada for years, while TSN .... hasn't. Instead, TSN forked over the cash for the big ticket event, stealing it out from under the nose of CBC, and you could tell that Scott Oake was exceptionally pissed off.

Sadly, as a public broadcaster, CBC relies on the average tax-payer for funding, while TSN is part of the CTV empire and has much deeper pockets. It isn't a fair fight. Think of the competition between PBS and NBC, CBS and ABC. There really isn't one.

Anyways, it seems that the song has already found a new home - The Colbert Report. Last night Stephen Colbert said he was going to play the song while he punched beavers in the face. Here is the clip:

In a related note, the Canadian Press is reporting that Stompin' Tom is open to licensing the song to CBC as a new theme for Hockey Night In Canada. Last week, negotiations between the network and Dolores Claman to renew the rights to use her HNIC theme song broke down. The rival network, CTV, immediately bought the rights to the tune, apparently ending a 40-year run for the iconic theme sometimes referred to as "Canada's second national anthem."

CTV has said that it will use the song for its hockey broadcasts on TSN, RDS, and from the Vancouver Olympics. CBC, meanwhile, has announced a $100,000 contest to write a new theme song for HNIC.

You can read more on the story in The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, the CBC, or CTV.

Granted, the words to the first anthem are no great shakes, even if I could remember when to sing "far and wide" instead of the old "stand on guard." And true, it would be kind of a kick to hear 17,000 fans singing, in unison, "dum ba-DUM ba-dum, dum ba-DUM ba-dum." But really, isn't it time we gave this "anthem" some words?

The task is complicated by the absence even of  a standardized version of the tune -- the CBC has teased and tugged it into various forms over the years, adding sound effects here or altering the mix there, with different passages being used depending on whether it was being played off the top, at intermission or under the credits. There was even a disco rendition, as I recall, though the experiment was mercifully short-lived.

Nevertheless, a canonical version might be assembled out of the following three parts:

First, the intro: 

Dum, ba-DUM, ba-dum

Dum, ba-DUM, ba-dum

(Louder)

Dum, ba-DUM, ba-dum

(Still louder, with an overlay of high-pitched horns)

Dum, ba-DUM, ba-dum, dummm....

Second, the verse:

Ba-dum, ba-dum, dum, DAHHH! 

Ba-dum, ba-dum, dum, DA-dahhh! 

Ba-dum, ba-dum, dum, DAH, DAH-ba-dum

DAH, DAH, ba-dum, DAHHHH!

(Repeat.)

Then things calm down a bit for the bridge:

DAH, dum, DAH, dum, DAH-ba-dum,

DAH, dum, DAH, dum, DAH-ba-da,

DAH, dum, DAH, dum, DAH-ba-dum --

DUM! DUM! DUM! DUM! DUM-DUM-DAHHHH!

Then once more with the verse and we're done.

I challenge readers to hang some lyrics from that framework. You needn't bother with the intro  -- no one sings the riff from "Satisfaction," after all. But then -- well, to get you started, here's what the song's writer, Dolores Claman, might be thinking these days:

I'm going to CTV!

I've had it with the CBC!

They wouldn't pay me what it was worth --

What I gave birth to:

 

The Hockey Night theme song!

The one we can't quite sing-along!

But hum as generations of

Canadians do!

 

It's got no words, but

Plenty of punchy brass, and

Just when you're starting to get

Used to it --

KICKS! YOU! IN! THE! FRIGGIN' ASS!

 

The Hockey Night theme song!

The one we can't quite sing-along!

But hum as generations of

Canadians do!

Possibly you can do better.

UPDATE: Whoops -- some Calgary radio station has apparently taken a whack at it. Sample line: "I won't remember who won the game or even my own name soooooon!" 

For my American friends. This is the theme played on our national public broadcaster, the CBC (like the BBC), before and during the broadcast of our NHL hockey games. Turns out the CBC doesn't own the jingle and has been licensing it for the past few (40) years, recently at $500 bucks a pop. They tried to come up with a perpetual agreement that would give them full ownership for a price in the high 6 figures, or just under a million bucks or so. You can watch the coverage on the CBC's The National on CTV News, Or Read about it in the Globe, in the National Post, the Toronto Star and in the Ottawa Citizen, so as you can see its pretty big news here.

What happened is the CBC decided to break off negotiations and announced a contest to replace the jingle with a new one, sort of a American Idol for jingles. At this point CTV, another major TV station swooped in and bought the rights, for roughly $2.5 million or so. I personally believe that the Contest and the ending of negotiations was a bit of a ploy on the CBC's negotiators side, because as soon as they saw that CTV was in the running they announced they were negotiating again.

In any event The CBC lost the deal with Scott Moore, executive director, CBC Television Sports saying:

“The owner’s demand of $2.5 to 3 million is well beyond—actually, three or four times as much as—what we consider to be a reasonable valuation. As a public broadcaster, it would have been irresponsible to have offered that amount.”

Fair enough. (I have bolded the public thing)

Now CBC Sports has been having a rough time as of late. They won't be broadcasting the Olympics (they were outbid) and lost the CFL (Canadian Football League) again because they were out bid, they also lost curling (no great loss IMHO). Last year they won both the FIFA and NHL Broadcasting rights. The NHL deal cost "roughly 100 million a year" this being bid on again against CTV. The CBC at the time tried to reassure Canadians that this wasn't Tax Payers money being used but private money.

Stursberg explained that 45 per cent of CBC Television's financing comes from public money — the other 55 per cent is private money.

"This is financed completely out of private money … There is no public money involved in this deal," said Stursberg, adding that revenue generated from the deal will help finance other, less-profitable CBC programs.

He was also quoted in other media outlets saying:

"This is financed completely on private money," said Richard Stursberg, the network's vice-president of TV. "Advertising revenues from the property cover in their entirety the rights and production costs."

I remember this argument and kind of laughed at the statement, but I like CBC's hockey coverage so no biggie.

But as this Private vs. Public Money thing is CBC's argument for paying huge numbers on the Hockey rights, hockey is over 18% of CBC televisions budget alone, they should be honest about it. Remember their argument for not getting the jingle was of course they are a poverty stricken public broadcaster. I don't think they can or should have it both ways.

Were they going to use public money to buy a jingle that helps their 'privately paid for' broadcast? We were told that this NHL Broadcast deal was profitable, so presumably they can afford to pay for the jingle with those privately financed dollars. In any event, I'd probably be complaining if they had paid $3 million for the jingle but the broadcaster should stop trying to have it both ways on private vs. public dollars and quit trying to spin how their budget works. They are a publicly funded institution that has dipped into competing with CTV and Global, fair enough, but if you're going to be compete on these things (and make money on deals - which they have) don't beg off when you loose in public because you're the public broadcaster.

What does it say about our country when our whole identity, our whole raison d'être

hangs on a jingle written in less than half a day by a woman who doesn't really care that much for hockey and who has been living in the hockey-less UK for the last decade or so?

Thankfully, a crisis of national proportions has been narrowly averted by the last minute heros at CTV and TSN. The evil CBC has been left shaking their fists and trying to come up with a reality show based on the novel and highly original idea of amateurs trying to come up with their own theme in less than half a day.           Apparently this one doesn't end in a lawsuit.

Yes, up until the 1968-69 NHL hockey season, Canada really had no identity. The theme that used to open CBC's Hockey Night in Canada telecasts back then was the rather insipid and uninspired Esso "Happy Motoring Song". But in 1968 all that changed. The 'Hockey Theme' was banged out in less than half a day by Dolores Claman who was working for  Toronto's MacLaren advertising agency, and finally, 101 years after Confederation, Canada finally had its much needed identity!

According to a Statement of Claim filed in November 2004 with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Newmarket by Kevin Kemp, acting on behalf of Dolores Claman, it is alleged that the Crown Corporation is in "breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and intentional interference with economic relations as it relates to the use of the Hockey Night in Canada theme song."

The plaintiff is seeking $2.5 million plus court costs.

According to the claim, whose allegations have not been proven in a court of law, "Ms. Claman was engaged by the MacLaren advertising agency of Toronto to create the composition as a commercial jingle to air at the beginning of the hockey broadcasts of the CBC for a term of one year."

Kemp asserts, "Ms. Claman retained all copyright interest, including moral rights, in and to the composition."

In 1987, Ms. Claman transferred her rights to an incorporated BC company called Vine Maple Music. In 1993, Ontario based Absolute Productions Inc was provided exclusive rights to administer the composition globally.

Bad CBC for not being able to reach an agreement with someone who's suing you for 2.5 million dollars.  And she's a little old lady too!

You deserve 2.5 for unsportsman-like conduct!  ...Back to you Ron and Don.

- Steve Steinbach

Theme songs apparently aren't much different. As I wrote about last week (read it here), the CBC wasn't going to continue to pay the owner of the song for the rights to keep using it. They were in the middle of a multi-million dollar lawsuit over the rights to distribute the song for cell phones and what not.

So CTV bought the rights to the song for the next few years. They plan to use it for TSN on their double headers on Wednesday nights, RDS for the Montreal Canadiens games (and they broadcast all of them) and for the 2010 Olympics.

The CBC will now have a contest for everyday Canadians to come up with a new jingle, maybe something similar to American Idol.

But the song has been saved, and that should make the people who wanted it saved very happy, as well as the composer, Dolores Claman.

Now, there's talk of bringing the Stompin' Tom Conners hockey song to Saturday nights on CBC, which I suppose wouldn't be all bad. It's an easily recognizable song as well.

The problem I have with the whole thing is that CTV has bought the song. I grew up watching that network, so I haven't nothing against it. But it's not the same. Watching games on TSN and hearing the song just won't feel quite right, like wearing mismatched shoes.

I personally think CBC the network who used the song since the 1960's for the Hockey Night In Canada broadcasts made a big mistake by not trying to keep this song. This song has been apart of Hockey Night In Canada's tradition and seeing it on a different network will just feel a bit off. I love TSN and I think it's the best sports network in Canada but hearing this theme song on their hockey telecasts and hearing a brand new song on CBC will be disappointing.

CBC's Hockey Night In Canada will not feel the same anymore and CBC should be ashamed for not keeping this theme. But I'm happy the theme song will stay alive and still be connected to hockey even if it is dead to Hockey Night In Canada. Here is the article courtesy of TSN.ca:

Toronto, ON - CTV Inc., together with Copyright Music & Visuals, today announced that CTV Inc. has acquired all rights to 'The Hockey Theme' in perpetuity, preserving the song's legacy and ensuring it will be heard on national television for years to come. 'The Hockey Theme' song will now live on CTV Inc. properties TSN, RDS and across Canada on CTV during coverage of the upcoming Vancouver 2010 Olympics as outlined below.

The deal between CTV and Copyright Music & Visuals was agreed to in principle after the CBC publicly announced last Friday at 5 p.m. ET that a deal could not be reached with the rights holders. Due diligence was completed earlier today.

The song, which was created by Vancouver's Dolores Claman in 1968, will now be used in NHL broadcasts on TSN and RDS beginning this Fall. In addition, CTV will utilize the song as part of its hockey coverage during the upcoming Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

"The song has a long and storied history in Canadian sports and has become ingrained in the hearts and minds of hockey fans across the country. It is an iconic tune, embraced by Canadians everywhere, and we felt it was imperative to save it. We know we will be in hockey forever, so there's no doubt this acquisition will create value for us," said Rick Brace, President, Revenue, Business Planning and Sports, CTV Inc. "It's an honour and a privilege to own such a cherished piece of Canada."

"I am very moved by how so many Canadians have taken the hockey theme to heart. We are so pleased the song has found a new home," said Claman. "Throughout our negotiations, CTV displayed a tremendous amount of respect for my family and the song. 'The Hockey Theme' means so much to Canadians, and we know it's in good hands with CTV."

The announcement complements TSN's new six-year multi-platform NHL deal, featuring more coverage of Canadian teams than ever before with at least one Canadian team in every game. Earlier this year, RDS extended its exclusive rights agreement with the Montreal Canadiens through the 2011-12 season.

No doubt some will lament this transfer of the song as an example of our national culture being sold off. However, it should be considered that the song was a mainstay of marketing for the CBC - and ultimately the private for-profit companies that advertised on the CBC benefited as well. There is no mistaking that it is a catchy tune, and that it elicits memories that span decades. However, the draw of the song is part of the marketing package to bring you in and have you watch the show and the ads. Had the song not been "saved" by the CTV our culture would have endured. The game would have gone on - as would have all the other current commercial aspects of it. CBC's coverage needs to change to stay current. Maybe this is something that needed to happen?

Is it just a song?

The song will be used on NHL broadcasts on TSN, RDS and the broadcaster's coverage of the 2010 winter olympics in Vancouver.

It seems that "one man's junk is another man's treasure". Earlier, the CBC and the lawyers representing the parties of Dolores Claman and the public broadcaster were trying to hammer out a deal, but in the end the talks finally fell through. It is unknown that how much CTV paid for the rights of this theme, but the CBC is planning to do a $100,000CDN contest to find a brand new theme song.

For those of you who don't know what will happen to CBC's coverage, they will end after the 2008 summer olympics in Beijing. CTV has won rights to broadcast olympic coverage for the 2010 and 2012 olympics back in 2005. It's not the first time that CTV has that piece of coverage. They have  assumed responsibility of the rights to broadcast the Juno Awards (music awards show) since 2002.

Either way, it's going to be a historic moment for Canadians. While many have opposed the move on having CTV's rights to broadcast and air the iconic jingle, many people seem to think that this is simply "a change of opportunity".

To finish off this blog, I'm leaving you a song by The Jeffersons called "Moving on up":

The Jeffersons - "Moving on up":

References:

"The tradition continues...but on that other channel where pierre maguire keeps screaming into the tv at me for some reason." Macleans.ca. 9 June 2008. 9 June 2008. <http://blog.macleans.ca/2008/06/09/the-tradition-continues-but-on-that-other-channel-where-pierre-maguire-keeps-screaming-into-the-tv-at-me-for-some-reason/>

" CTV Buys Rights to `Hockey Theme' Song in Canada." Bloomberg.com 9 June 2008. 9 June 2008. <http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601082&sid=amnTjA7pjrpY&refer=canada>

"Sold - to CTV." Ottawa Citizen. 9 June 2008. 9 June 2008. <http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=85350bcc-9890-49a2-9678-9b54c7889e68>

"CTV acquires rights to hockey theme song." CTV.ca 9 June 2008. 9 June 2008. <http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080609/hnic_theme_080609/20080609?hub=TopStories>

CBC has not renewed their license agreement with the rights holders of the Hockey Night In Canada Theme Song. The song has now been acquired by CTV. It will be used on TSN hockey broadcast starting this fall.

This tune has been ingrained in the psyche of millions of Canadians for decades, and now it has a strange new home. CBC plans to replace it with something generated via audience participation. Hopefully it will turn out better than the Olympic symbols sprouted by the public.

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I remember reading somewhere that ol' Delores didn't stand a chance of selling that music to anybody else.  Can't remember where I read that, but surely the author is feeling a mite bit sheepish now.  But not nearly as sheeish as the CBC executives who so totally  screwed the pooch on this file.

Good for Delores I say. It'll be sad not to hear that familiar theme on Saturday nights anymore, but the Ceeb suits were trying to nickle-and-dime the lady out of her creative property rights, and it came back to bite them on the arse. It looks good on them. CTV says it'll use the theme on TSN, RDS and its Olympic broadcasts.