User:Aeong/survival
This is a draft page for a (hopefully) future article, something I can revise/format to wiki standards and correct information until it is ready.
TITLE: S*U*R*V*I*V*A*L (partially found/lost public access show, 1983-1986)
S*U*R*V*I*V*A*L (sometimes referred to as "CATACLYSM") was a Canadian public access show that ran in the 80's on Winnipeg channel VPW-11. The show was created by future screenwriter/director Guy Maddin and Greg Klymkiw, and may be copyrighted under It was a mock talk show filmed by the fictional paramilitary cult S*U*R*V*I*V*A*L N*O*R*T*H. In each episode, S*U*R*V*I*V*A*L N*O*R*T*H leader "Trevor Winthrop Baines", a man wearing a crude purple mask and other hastily thrown together survival gear screams and rants at the viewer about the "inevitable" Nuclear Apocalypse. Joined by him are similarly dressed fellow members of his cult. Together they give you questionable advice on surviving the apocalypse, tell stories, do book and gun reviews, break out into dance numbers, and really just whatever the creators felt like doing.
History
It is claimed that sometime after VPW-11 was purchased by Shaw Cable, all archives the station had of this show were destroyed. This claim has been disputed. Show creator Guy Maddin has claimed in the past that clips of the show have been uploaded to youtube, but this claim is from 2006, so if any clips from that era survived they are likely buried under Youtube's search algorithm.
Around the time these supposed clips were uploaded, episodes of the show were compiled into a 10~ minute long segment of a documentary called Winnipeg Babbysitter (2006), and from 2013 onward this compilation was uploaded multiple times to youtube and gained some exposure on reddit. For the longest time, this was the only publicly known footage of the show, other than a brief clip of Trevor saying "MUTANTS...WHAT ARE...MUTANTS?" in a trailer for a documentary.
Then on November 30, 2024, Youtube User rs.matr1x uploaded a 57:48 minute long video containing 3 episodes of the the show, with the third one containing incomplete footage. When asked, rs.matr1x claimed that they found them by "pure happenstance".
Later in 2024, Reddit user Aggressive_Ad posted an archive.org link to 3 more episodes of the show, 1 containing a slightly longer but still incomplete recording of the third episode in rs.matr1x's video. Aggressive_Ad did not respond to any inquiries when contacted.
Episode Format
The run time of each episode appears to be inconsistent. While the format of each episode is never set in stone, most follow a somewhat consistent formula: Each episode begins with a disclaimer, and then transitions to a scrolling marquee that details the episode. After which, the episode transitions to Trevor, who is often silent at first and staring at the camera. After a long pause, Trevor lets out an earpiercing rant about how he wants you to survive the apocalypse. Afterwards he brings on his guests. at random intervals, the show will do a musical break, with music composed by the showrunners. Some of these may be original songs, others are parodies of other songs, such as "Controller" by Oingo Boingo. Some episodes end with music, others skip to a message at the end.
Known Episodes
It is not publicly known how many episodes were produced for this show. The episodes are presented in incomplete order, and have been given unofficial nicknames by lostmedia wiki contributors to differentiate each episode.
| Nickname | Status | Airdate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| "A Great Man" | Partially Found | ? | Only 15:56 Minutes of this episode have survived |
| "Dwindling Faith" | Partially Found | ? | |
| "Trevor Hates The X-MEN" | Partially Found | ? | |
| "Northern Survival" | Found | 1985 | in this episode, co-host Slieve Gullion claims to have written a book called "Northern Survival". This is not true, as the actual book he shows in his hands was released prior to recording, written by a different author, and contains no information about apocalyptic survival. |
| "God Complex" | Found | 1987 |
Characters
Trevor Winthrop Baines (Greg Klymkiw)
Concerned Citizen Stan (Guy Maddin)
Slieve Gullion (Actor Unknown)
Reed Manning (Actor Unknown) - A ski hat wearing Gun Nut.
M*U*T*A*N*T S*E*E*K*E*R (Actor Unknown)
B*R*O*T*H*E*R Z*E*B*U*L*O*N (Actor Unknown)
General Niel (possibly a background character, actor unknown)