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Thursday
Mar202008

Ten Years After

I have a plane ticket to Vancouver for this Monday. I was scheduled to fly there to tape Week 44 of The Lab with Leo. Except I'm not. After 645 Canadian episodes of Call for Help and The Lab, Rogers has decided to cancel the show. It's a decision I can't help but agree with. Our Australian affiliate, the How-To Network, had stopped running the show due to poor ratings. The Canadian ratings haven't been so hot, either. The slide began a year ago when Amber left the show. The entire staff left in January and I was left the last man standing. I'm not good with slow fades. It's time to move on. Rogers is planning to replace it with a daily, live show which is, ironically, what Call for Help used to be, but unless I pack up and move to Canada there's no way I could host it, so we've parted ways amicably. I will always be grateful to them for keeping Call for Help alive these past four years. I have worked with many wonderful Canadians both in front of and behind the camera, many of whom will continue to be friends and partners as I segue into new ventures. TV, like all performing arts, is full of transitions. It's graduation day over and over again. You know you'll see some people again, and you also know that others, many of whom have been close friends, will drift away never to been seen again. It's sad, but it's inevitable. Every new beginning is also the beginning of the end. I guess that's life. There will be new shows through May; we were producing several months ahead. Repeats of both Call for Help and The Lab will continue indefinitely. Everything comes to an end except re-runs. Call for Help launched on May 11, 1998. It was cancelled April 2004 and revived by Rogers two months later. Ten years after its birth, four years after its resurrection, and after nearly 2,000 shows, Call for Help is finally over. Except, it's not. I'll talk about the next chapter tomorrow.



This is Call for Help the way it was meant to be - with a handsome young host (hey it was eight years ago!) and guests Martin Sargent and Andy Ihnatko.

Reader Comments (176)

Dude--you can't have a nerd show without a hot chick. Rule number one. Merlin didn't take you aside and tell you this?

If content is king, the queen is the hot chick on the set.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered Commentercouchpundit

Must follow Leo...must learn of his next show...all hail Leo

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterRandy

I'm looking forward to tWiT Live, and frankly, I see moving away from traditional media to New Media as just being ahead of the curve in what will happen to all things.

"When I was a kid, we had Networks, not like the tWiT Network--we had to wait for the show to be on and then TiVo it! None of this internet downloading stuff that's spoiled all you young whippersnappers!"

But as long as there's tech, there'll always be demand for Leo "Tech Jesus" Laporte. (Don't let the nickname go to your head, Leo--it came to mind when Veronica was talking about people "looking to you" on tWiT. Of course, it also brought several scenes from The Life of Brian to mind.)

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterDigital Dale

Dear Leo,
Even though I've never seen The Lab --only heard about it from your podcasts-- I can clearly see your pain over the cancelation of the show but also the admirable dignity of your character. I wish you best of luck on your new endeavour (TWiT Live) --I'm sure everything will work out fine!

Best regards,
Christos Varelas,
Athens,
Greece.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterChristos Varelas

I look forward to your new LIVE video broadcast on TWiT. Any chance you can keep that cute Canadian girl in Petaluma, CA?

How is the first floor studio build out going?
Any pictures of the progress?

Best regards,
Ernie

Long Live TWiT!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterGenuine240

Leo, you gave us Amber, you gave us Andy. The shows were funny, information, a learning experience and a time when we could listen to some friends.

Thanks for everything. I realize its not the end but as you say, a new chapter begins.

Can't wait.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterPaul

What a cliffhanger! We want details of the next chapter, Leo. More then just a fancy green room and free wine for your tech-head friends.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterColin Bartlett

Although watched from a far (from Amsterdam, NL), I enjoyed the bits and pieces of The Lab on Google Video.

I feel sad for the Canadians, but rejoice for the transatlantic guys and girls like me, who now get the chance to subscribe to even more geek speak with Leo :-)

Hope to hear more about your plans soon!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterSneaker Peet

Perhaps a blow for Canada, but certainly Twit.TV will be a boost to the global community.

Exciting times for everyone involved, not least us!

Ian.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterIan in the Tubes

The best of luck to you and TWiT Live!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterSuzyMassey

Never fear - (pod|net)casting is hands down _the_ way.

(net@night, mbw, twit-proper, etc will get us through - those of us hooked on leoware - until life streaming in Petaluma kicks in).

I don't think of myself getting caught-up in fandom, but here I am gushing away. Thanks, Leo !?!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterMicah Wittman

It's sad to hear it's officially dead but it is better to have called and ended than to have never called at all eh?

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterMichael Midnight

I'm going to say congratulations Leo, I believe in you and will continue to support your ventures.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterJoshua Blount

now you will have more time to devote to TWiT!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterDereX

I am out in the UK and have never seen the show, so only know you from the TWiT network.

But good luck. You have a huge opportunity with Live

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterProject

Rock On Leo! I look forward to what comes next. Thanks

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterAndrew

Leo,
It was great working with you for the last few years. I can't wait to see the new live show...we'll definitely stay in touch:)
-Matt

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterMatt Harris

I PVR'd it every day, and actually enjoyed the Lab even more than Call for Help! Reruns in tech seem odd, but I look forward to TWiT Video.

Best of luck Leo!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterRene Ritchie

Excellent recap, Leo. You know what they say, for everything there is a season, and the end of one season is the beginning of another.

I'm really looking forward to TWiT Live. With the new flexibility and power of the net, it can surpass anything you've done before.

Thanks for always pushing ahead, Leo.

Speaking of new seasons, Spring starts tomorrow. If only I didn't live at the 45th parallel...

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterKekoa

Really looking forward to TWiT live Leo.. Can't wait to see what you do with it!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterTyson

Ah Leo. I know this was your baby for soo long. The key ingredient here is "how we get tech news." I'm absolutely positive that the way we want to get that is from your podcasts..both the audio and video casts. TV is soo yesterday...TODAY is the net. See you there!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered Commenterkalradio

Hi Leo. Coming to Vancouver to meet you, be on your show and hang out with Alex back stage was the highlight of 2007 for me! I look forward to seeing what you do next. Go well. Take care.

- Randy

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterRandy Troppmann

You put on an amazing show and I am really going to miss you up here in Canada. Cheers Leo!

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterChris Blackwell

I'm deeply saddened by this. It feels as though just as a chapter of TechTV has finally come to a close, so has a deeply rooted portion of my childhood.

Although, at the same time, this leaves me with extreme excitement to see where TWiT will go from here.

The TechTV community is stronger than ever right now and we all owe it the death of the TV network.

It's been one hell of a ride so far Leo, and I thank you for it. I can't wait to see where we all go from here.

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterBrendon

Sorry to hear about your show, Leo, but you should still use that plane ticket! :)

March 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterBrian Megilligan

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