My pitch to the CBC: It’s time for the Canadian Apprentice

Have you ever come away from a TV show and said, “I wish we had that in Canada”? I definitely have. This syndrome, which I have appropriately dubbed “Reality TV Envy”, comes on in waves at the beginning of the summer programming blitz and has hit me hard once again this year. During the first episode of Big Brother, I thought to myself how much fun it would be to be on the show. After Expedition Impossible, I asked EJ if he would be on my team for the Canadian version. Well, the time for talking has passed. And the time for action is now.

So, after some preliminary marketing testing, I propose…. a Canadian Apprentice! (The jury’s still out on whether it should feature Kevin O’Leary or Jim Treliving or some combination of the two.)

Picture this… in a boardroom in Toronto somewhere, 16 aspiring business men and women sit patiently sipping on double doubles. Then, the boardroom doors open, and in walks Mr. Wonderful. As he approaches the table, a voiceover explains how he went from having his own software company in his basement to being a highly successful venture capitalist. And, of course, the winner of the competition could earn a one-year contract with O’Leary Funds Inc.

I will admit that not much needs to be thought out here. The American version of the series has a winning formula that a Canadian version could duplicate. The only modification would be having O’Leary in place of Donald Trump. And, of course, interjections of “but I’m in it to make money” (where money is pronounced muhhhhnnnneey).

After one or two successful seasons, a Canadian version of the Celebrity Apprentice could also be launched. Here are some ideas about who could make the cut (each team is still missing participants though, so feel free to add some!):

The Women’s Team

• Kim Cattrall(Actress) /Pamela Anderson (Actress/Vegetarian/Animal Activist)
• Shania Twain (Singer/Songwriter)
• Margaret Atwood (Writer)
• Alexa McDonough / Kim Campbell (Politicians)

The Men’s Team

• Rick Campanelli / Bill Welychka (former Muchmusic VJs)
• Stockwell Day (Politician)
• Ben Kowalewicz (Lead Singer – Billy Talent) / Deryck Whibley (Lead Singer – Sum 41)
• Donovan Bailey / Bruny Surin (Olympic Runners)
• Yann Martel (Writer)
• Craig Oliver / Robert (Bob) Fife (CTV Political Correspondents)
• Jean-Marc Généreux (Ballroom Dance Champion / Choreographer)

– CG

Next step: Develop a petition to send to the CBC. Or pitch the idea to Kevin O’Leary directly on Dragon’s Den…