Wikipedia

Ed the Sock

(Redirected fromLiana Kerzner)

Ed the Sockis asockpuppetcharacter, created and voiced bySteven Joel Kerzner,who first appeared on Canadian local cable television in 1987. He is best known for his hosting appearances in the 1990s onMuchMusicand his own late night talk show,Ed's Night Party.[1]He is a gray sock puppet with green hair, round eyes, a scowl, a cigar and a rough, gravelly voice.

Ed the Sock
First appearance
  • "Newton Cable"
  • Night Party (CityTV)
Portrayed bySteven Joel Kerzner
In-universe information
OccupationTelevision Host, Television Personality
NationalityCanadian

Since the acquisition ofMuchMusicbyBell Media,causing the cancellation of the majority of its music programming, the Ed the Sock character has continued to be portrayed through FU Network and NewMusicNation.[2]

History

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Origination of the Character: Newton Cable (1984–1993)

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Kerzner originated the character while working atNewton Cable,a small local cable television provider in the city ofNorth York,part ofMetropolitan Toronto.In addition to providing cable TV services for parts of the North York neighbourhoods ofDownsview,Bathurst Manor,andWestminster-Branson,the company also ran a local cable TV channel. During this time one of the public access shows the station produced needed a co-host on short notice, so Kerzner took a sock and other supplies from the station's craft closet and made a sock puppet with glue caps for eyes. He named the puppet Ed afterEd Asnerand co-hosted the segment himself. He enjoyed the experience and continued to do the character, improving the sock puppet's look and changing its voice somewhat over time. In these early years Ed the Sock served as the sidekick toThe Late Late Show's human hosts, which included Stan Glass,Harland WilliamsandEric Tunney(for almost three years). Tim Rykert also hosted for a time.[3]By 1987 Kerzner became a producer and director of programming.[4]

Rogers Cable (1993–1995)

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After Newton was purchased byRogersin 1993, Kerzner repackagedThe Late Late Showfor a wider cable audience. At this point Tunney as its host and star. The new show attracted the interest of producerJohn Brunton,who took the program toCITY-TV.[5]

CityTV (1995–2008)

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The logo ofEd & Red's Night Party

Night Party

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The show, which would come to be known asNight Party,debuted on February 10, 1995, at 10:30 pm Eastern Time. When Tunney left the show to pursue TV hosting and comedy opportunities in the U.S., he was replaced by"Humble" Howard Glassman(better known as half of the local radio morning showHumble & Fred), and though Ed the Sock was the only returning element of the old show he was still a sidekick to the star and not the star himself. The synopsis of the show's first season reads: "Humble Howard and sidekick Ed the cigar smoking, wise-guy sock host a talk show featuring talent spotlights, celebrity interviews and studio audience interaction".[6]

Within the show's first year Brunton and Glassman both departed the series. Brunton cited creative differences with Kerzner, while Humble Howard said he simply could no longer stand working with Kerzner. Their relationship remains contentious today:[7][8]

I don't want to say anything about Ed or the midget that has his hand up his ass that hasn't already been said by just about everyone that's met him.

— Howard Glassman

After Humble Howard's departure the show continued with more focus on Ed and less on his human co-host. Canadian comedianCraig Campbellreplaced Glassman and stayed with the show for a decade. Ed's longest running and arguably most popular co-host, Campbell had a very laid-back demeanor and took a more polite approach with the audience, playing "good cop" to Ed's cruder antics.[9]

In 2008Ed's Night Partyentered its 14th season and in a surprise move, Campbell was replaced by Steven Joel Kerzner's wife Liana Kerzner (billing herself as "Liana K" and frequently referred to simply as "Red" by Ed). Ed's first female co-host, she was a bustyredheadwho produced a pin-up calendar of herself which was offered for sale on Ed's website. Liana had dropped out of school in 1997 when she and Kerzner started dating to become a writer and co-producer on the show.

After the addition of his wife as co-host in what would become its final season, the show was re-branded asEd & Red's Night Partyand increasingly emphasized appearances by porn stars, strippers in a hot tub, and the kind of frat-party excesses that Ed used to pillory.[10]This resulted in criticism and complaints, largely from female viewers who grew tired of the shows rampant sexist clips and comments, which included such segments asLoCoDe(Lowest Common Denominator), porn star visits, and weekly clips of drunk spring break girls inWet T-shirt contestswith Ed providing joke commentary.

In its 14th and final season the series was also broadcast onG4in the U.S. as part of theirMidnight Spanklate night television programming block.[11]

In June 2008, Rogers announced thatEd & Red's Night Partywould be canceled as of August 31, 2008, in an effort to attract female viewers, who disapproved of Ed's politically incorrect and sexist shtick.[12]The final show aired Friday, August 29, 2008.[13]This also marked the end of Kerzner's relationship with bothMuchandCitytv,with Kerzner stating after Rogers announced their decision to ax Ed the Sock: "It appears Citytv is heading towards something more of a women's channel, I don't know."[14]

AfterNight Party's cancellation, Kerzner stated that the Ed character would live on in other projects that were already in the works, "for this fall or possibly a few months after that",[14]including other shows on competing networks and a feature film, though these projects never materialized and he remained off the air for more than two years.[15][16]

Ed's Nite In

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At CityTV, Ed also hostedEd's Nite In,a short-lived series in which he would invite "friends" over to watch (and make fun of) bad movies. The show was slightly different from Ed's later bad movie showThis Movie Sucks!in that the movies they broadcast were more current inEd's Nite Inand Ed and his friends did not comment during the movies, only before and after commercial breaks, which also included sketches.

MuchMusic (1995–2005)

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After movingNight PartytoCitytv,Ed also began making appearances concurrently onMuchMusic.This lasted from the mid-1990s until he was released byMuchin 2005.

Ed's Big Wham Bam

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While atMuch,Ed hosted the short-lived seriesEd's Big Wham Bam,a live weekly two-hour program that featured viewers performing talents such as singing, dancing, and cooking. The show was canceled by the network due to poor ratings.

Fromage takeover

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In the late 1990s, MuchMusic VJChristopher Ward,the creator of Much's annualFromagespecial (so named because it mocked the year's "cheesiest"music videos), decided to no longer host the show himself. Ed accepted an offer to take over hosting duties, which he did until Much canceled the specials in 2005.

Fromagemay be the most popular project Ed has been involved with, and he has repeatedly stated that he plans to bring it back in some form.

CHCH-TV Hamilton (2010–2012)

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This Movie Sucks!as seen in the first episode

This Movie Sucks!

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In 2010, after more than two years off the air, Ed returned to television on regionalCHCH-TVinHamilton[17][18]withThis Movie Sucks!,which was similar to his previousCityTVshowEd's Nite In.Kerzner relied on the use ofstudent internsfrom nearbyMohawk College[19]and the show was initially plagued with technical issues.

The show was once again co-hosted by his wifeLiana Kand featured comedianRon Sparks.In each two hour episode Ed has guests over to watch (and make fun of) abad movie.This Movie Sucks!was named one of the five best television shows of 2010 byToronto Entertainment[20]and one of the three best new shows of 2010 byExcalibur Magazine.[21][22]A third season ofThis Movie Sucks!was reported to be in production but never materialized, withCHCHannouncing that no future episode screenings were planned.

I Hate Hollywood

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Produced concurrently withThis Movie Sucks!on CHCH-TV was another Ed-hosted series calledI Hate Hollywood,which Kerzner based onFromage's style and template.[17][18]It was originally supposed to premiere in September 2010,[23]but was pushed back several times until it finally began airing on Wednesday nights, beginning May 2, 2012. The show, once again co-hosted by his wife Liana, made fun of the latestcelebritygossipand news but only lasted a few episodes before being canceled by the network.[24]

Ed the Sock has not had a show on network TV since this show's cancellation by CHCH.

The Being Frank Show

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Ed briefly becameFrank D'Angelo's sidekick onThe Being Frank Showin 2011–2012, which aired during late nightinfomercialslots purchased by host and beer entrepreneurFrank D'AngeloonCHCH-TV,the same network that airedThis Movie Sucks!andI Hate Hollywood.

FU Network

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Clint Hoekstra and Ed the Sock in 2018

After launching fundraisers beginning in 2015, in late 2016 Ed the Sock announced theFU Network,a video sharing website, from which he would share old and new clips. He also announced he would beginlive streaminga new live weekly show from the entrance/lobby of theHard Rock Caferestaurant in downtownToronto, OntariocalledLive from Canada, It's Ed the Sock![25]

The Toronto location of Hard Rock Cafe closed on May 31, 2017, making future shows from that location impossible.[26]

In April 2017, Ed posted a video to his YouTube channel called "Who Murdered MuchMusic", documenting what he refers to is the demise and downfall of the Canadian music channel by pointing the finger atBell Mediaand claiming that their behind the scenes management killed the station.[27]The video was pulled by YouTube after Bell Media complained about copyright infringement stemming from Kerzner's use of footage and logos owned by the company.

In July 2018, he launched anIndiegogocampaign to have the network officially launch online, promising to bring back oldMuchMusicshows from the 1990s and early 2000s. Although hisIndiegogocampaign failed to reach his goal of $35,000, Ed announced that he had met the goal through additionalPayPaldonations people had also made, and that theFU Networklaunched as planned, it has since been merged with Ed's website.[28]

NewMusicNation (2021)

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In 2021, Ed launched an Indiegogo campaign and website to support NewMusicNation, an online platform for new Canadian music with new VJs.[2]The platform also seeks to support musical acts who have been heavily impacted by theCOVID-19 pandemic in Canada.[2]

In May 2023, Ed the Sock was announced as the host of an overnight radio program on94.9 The RockinOshawa,Ontario.[29]

Controversies

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Night Party

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Night Partyaired in the late-night slot because of its overt depictions of sexuality, primarily involving sexualized, scantily clad (frequently topless) women and Ed's off-color remarks. The show was dismissed by many critics as nothing more than dirty "vaudeville schtick" overly relying on sex and bathroom jokes, with a "phallic in nature and attitude" host described as a "prurient party animal who feeds on his own misanthropy and sexism" and whose comedy, "vacillating between penetrating satire and pointless vulgarity" appealed only to "17 year old boys".[30]Because of the crude, sexist humor, coarse language and nudity, adisclaimerhad to preface the airing of every episode in the series' run.

Complaints were filed with theCanadian Broadcast Standards Councilthroughout the show's run[31]because of the prevalent "sexism" and allegations the show was "derogatory to women", with some of those complaints upheld. A January 2004 episode received criticism and complaints after Ed, Craig and Liana jokingly compared sex with women to stabbing women.[32]

The Ontario Regional Panel reviewed all of the correspondence and screened a tape of the episode in question. The Panel considers that the broadcast of the challenged episode was in breach of Clauses 6 and 11 of the CAB Code of Ethics and Article 7 of the Violence Code.

— Canadian Broadcast Standards Council in an October, 2004 ruling, CBSC Decision 03/04-0516 - October 22, 2004

In a further CBSC decision in March 2005 following a separate complaint, it was ruled that the viewer advisory screened before and during episodes of Night Party was insufficient under the CBA Code of Ethics and needed to be strengthened.[33][34]

Most infamously, following a stunt with a porn star named Doria in 1999, in which she stripped naked and pretended to have sex in "cowgirl" position with the Ed puppet on her hotel bed, many viewers complained and several stations dropped the show, including the entire province of Alberta where the show was banned for some time.[35]

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog

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Kerzner has accusedTriumph the Insult Comic Dog's creatorRobert Smigelofripping offEd the Sock. The controversy dates back to 1997 when Kerzner claims Ed was set to appear onLate Night with Conan O'Brienbut was suddenly cancelled, months before Smigel's Triumph debuted on that show.[36][37]Conan and NBC maintain that Ed was never even tentatively booked to appear on the show. Kerzner afterwards expressed such resentment towards Triumph and Smigel that NBC stated they "didn't want Ed anywhere near Triumph" when Conan visited Canada for a week of shows during February 2004,[38]with the Canadian network complying.

When Smigel andPets.combecame embroiled in lawsuits over the Triumph and Pets.com dog puppet characters, Kerzner renewed his claims that Triumph had ripped him off. Kerzner claimed that he did not sue Smigel because "we don't want to give that dog that much attention."[39]

Other

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In 2005, Kerzner'sEd's Night Partyco-producer James Stamos was ejected from aToronto Blue Jaysgame for wearing a shirt promoting the show that other fans complained was offensive. An usher asked him to turn the shirt inside out, but Stamos refused.[40]

After being announced as one of the 2007 Beaches Lions Club Easter Parade marshals, Ed the Sock was removed following dozens of complaints by concerned Beaches residents.[41][42]The organizers determined Kerzner's act was "too raunchy for a community event"[43]and replaced him with fellow Canadian comedianLuba Goy(of theRoyal Canadian Air Farcecomedy troupe).[44]

In 2020, Ed the Sock was criticized for what were described as racist comments concerningNew Democratic PartyleaderJagmeet Singh.NDP MP Don Davies described Ed the Sock's use of "Jughead" to refer to Singh as "pure racism"; several Liberal MPs including Health MinisterPatty Hajduand Minister of Digital GovernmentJoyce Murraycondemned Ed the Sock's comments.[45]

Inspirations

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Ed's look has become more well defined over the years but is a basicsock puppetdesign very similar to any other, such asShari Lewis's famousLamb Chopandother sock puppet characters.

Kerzner has claimed that Ed's voice is based on two actual people (non-celebrities), a friend's father and step-father, whose names remain undisclosed. However at other times he has said that Ed's voice is a combination of a “friend’s dad,Oscar the GrouchandJack KlugmanfromThe Odd Couple.”[46]

The name "Ed" was inspired by actorEd Asnerwho Kerzner enjoyed watching inThe Mary Tyler Moore Showand whose gruff voice is another inspiration for the puppet.

Other appearances

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Despite being a vocal critic ofVideo on Trialand saying he would never appear on it because in his opinion it was never as good asFromage,Ed was a guest on that show in 2013, nine years after his days as a regular at MuchMusic had ended. It was supposed to be a chance for Ed to reach a "nationwide audience" again, and "expose Ed to a whole new generation."[46]Kerzner said Ed would be in the show's regular rotation of comedians after that, but he never appeared on the show again.[47]

Ed has made some radio appearances[48]and has guested at sci-fi conventions. Kerzner sponsored and co-hosted as Ed (with his wife Liana) the first Constellation Awards in 2007.[49]He also was anadvice columnistforFaze Magazinein 2001 and 2002.[50]The Kerzners also have a now-defunct New Year's Eve convention Futurecon, which ended abruptly in 2014 after only running for three years (2011-2014).

On June 23, 2011, Ed and Liana began hosting the short-livedEd & Red's Podcastfor gwmp.tv.[51]They have announced plans to bring their podcast back in some form.

In 2011 Ed made several appearances asFrank D'Angelo's sidekick onThe Being Frank Show,a paidinfomercialprogram on CHCH-TV, the same network which formerly producedThis Movie Sucks!andI Hate Hollywood.

Kerzner also appeared as a stand-up comedian in his friendFrank D'Angelo's independent filmThe Joke Thief.

In 2018 Ed appeared as a guest on the fourth episode ofQuillette'sWrongspeakpodcast.[52]

Ed has made several attempts to be asked to appear on theJuno Awardsbut has not been successful as of yet.[53]He claims the Junos have a "grudge" against him.[54]

FU Party

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In 2010, Ed announced his intention to run forPrime Minister of Canadain the2011 federal electionas head of the new FU Party, ajoke political partynever registered withElections Canada,which he claimed stood for "Fed-Up Party". The FU Party's stated goals included "fighting apathy and stupidity in government".[55]Throughout the campaign the "FU Party News Centre" posted links to various articles and videos trying to encourage people to vote and criticizing the political establishment, especially the Conservative government and re-election campaign ofStephen Harper.Around this time, Ed also started his ownWordPressblogcalled "Nobody's Puppet!" where he elaborated his thoughts on politics but also on the media industry.

He searched for volunteer candidates to run in ridings across Canada, as well as a volunteer "Facebook expert" to help promote Ed and his party, until April 2011.[56][57]

Although the Conservatives actually picked up 23 seats and the Liberals lost 43, Ed declared victory for the FU Party on April 28, 2011, claiming that he had successfully assailed apathy and taking credit for the record turnout at advance polls, although actualvoter turnoutended up being only slightly higher than in2008,which helped the governingConservative Partyto win a majority of seats.[58]

After the election Ed stated that the "Orange Surge" showed Canadians had learned that they have a choice. While not officially endorsing theNew Democratic Party,Ed stated that the "NDP has become the FU vote". Ed also stated he hopes the FU Party will continue to provide "smartass commentary for a dumbass political establishment".

In the 2015 election, Ed once again announced he was running for Prime Minister under the FU banner.

See also

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References

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  1. ^Ed the Sock brings his wisecracks back to TVArchived2011-07-14 at theWayback MachineThe Canadian Press, May 13, 2010 (Article by Bill Brioux)
  2. ^abc"Ed the Sock (a.k.a. Steven Kerzner) wants to bring MuchMusic back with NewMusicNation".Global News.
  3. ^"How North York are you?".North York Post.March 1, 2015.RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  4. ^The rough life of Ed the SockArchived2011-07-18 at theWayback MachineTV GUIDE, 2010-06-03 (Article by Janine Oliveira)
  5. ^"The Best of Ed's Night Party (Video 1996) - IMDb"– via www.imdb.com.
  6. ^The Lonely Geek."Ed the Sock - Episode Guide (for reruns in New Zealand)".lonely.geek.nz.RetrievedJuly 1,2019.
  7. ^"Ed the Sock on his Feud with Humble Howard and his Return to MUCH".Toronto Mike.March 8, 2013.
  8. ^Toronto Mike (August 23, 2006)."An Interview with Humble Howard".Toronto Mike.RetrievedJuly 1,2019.
  9. ^"Lonely.geek.nz:: Put on your Dancing Shoes!!!! - Greetings".www.lonely.geek.nz.
  10. ^Ed the SockJune 19, 2008 (Article by JD)
  11. ^"Ed's Night Party".RetrievedJuly 8,2019.
  12. ^[1]THE TORONTO STAR, June 25, 2008 (Article by Raju Mudhar)
  13. ^Brioux, Bill (August 28, 2008)."Party's over for Ed the Sock at CITY-TV".brioux.tv.RetrievedJuly 1,2019.
  14. ^ab"Ed the Sock turfed from CityTV".Oh No They Didn't.June 25, 2008.RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  15. ^"Citytv socks it to Ed".Toronto Sun.June 25, 2008. Archived fromthe originalon June 28, 2008.
  16. ^Mudhar, Raju (June 25, 2008)."Rogers to Ed: Put a sock in it".Toronto Star.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
  17. ^abCHCH expands programming for fallMedia in Canada, July 27, 2010 (Article by Katie Bailey)
  18. ^abCHCH-TV 'tweaks' formatTHE HAMILTON SPECTATOR, August 26, 2010 (Article by Steve Arnold)
  19. ^Bowes, Gord (May 27, 2010). "Mohawk students help bring Ed back to TV".Hamilton Mountain News.
  20. ^Phung, Wei. "Looking Back At All The Best of 2010",Toronto Entertainment,27 December 2010
  21. ^Miller, Amy. "The Best New Shows of 2010",Excalibur Magazine,6 January 2011
  22. ^"The Best New Shows of 2010".Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-27.Retrieved2011-01-08.
  23. ^Ed the Sock brings his wisecracks back to TV with new indie show on CHCHArchived2011-07-16 at theWayback MachineThe Canadian Press, May 13, 2010 (Article by Bill Brioux)
  24. ^Ed The Sock Returning To Save Television[usurped]CHARTattack, May 14, 2010 (Article by Kate Harper)
  25. ^"Live from Canada: It's Ed the Sock!".YouTube.November 17, 2016.RetrievedJuly 1,2019.
  26. ^Brait, Ellen (March 13, 2017)."Hard Rock Café closing its doors at Yonge-Dundas Square location | The Star".thestar.com.Retrieved2019-07-01.
  27. ^Former TV Personality Ed The Sock Comes Under Fire Over Who Murdered MuchMusic VideoArchived2018-07-23 at theWayback MachineEntertainment Tonight Canada, April 6th 2017 (Article by Rachel West)
  28. ^"Ed the Sock".Ed the Sock.
  29. ^Connie Thiessen,"Ed the Sock revives overnight radio format in the GTA".Broadcast Dialogue,May 16, 2023.
  30. ^"Ed the Sock pulls all the right strings".July 14, 2007.RetrievedJuly 1,2019– via PressReader.
  31. ^""Ed the Sock" Promotional Spots Decision "(PDF).Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.August 23, 1995.RetrievedJuly 6,2019.
  32. ^"Perpetuating Link between Women and Violence Breaches Codes, Says Canadian Broadcast Standards Council".CBSC.February 15, 2004.RetrievedJuly 5,2019.
  33. ^"CBSC Ruling".Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.March 12, 2005.RetrievedJuly 6,2019.
  34. ^"CBSC Decision 03/04-1814"(PDF).Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.March 11, 2005.RetrievedJuly 6,2019.
  35. ^"Ed the Sock Banned in Alberta".Calgary Herald.November 19, 1999.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
  36. ^“This Movie Sucks” Discussionbureau42.com, July 11, 2010
  37. ^"Is Triumph just a poor man's Ed the Sock??".Archived fromthe originalon July 8, 2009.
  38. ^Ed the SockEverything 2, Originally posted on June 19, 2008. Retrieved on May 4, 2011
  39. ^Tertius (May 5, 2000)."Of socks and men: Ed The Sock has been giving a bad name to male hosiery for a few years now".The Globe and Mail.RetrievedJuly 7,2019.
  40. ^"Kind of Blue: Jays Eject Fan for Wearing Offensive Shirt".August 1, 2005.RetrievedJuly 8,2019.
  41. ^Taylor, Billy (March 28, 2007)."No Easter Parade for Ed the Sock".Toronto Star.RetrievedJuly 7,2019.
  42. ^Whaley, Karen (March 28, 2007)."Ed the Sock Kicked Out of Parade".Torontoist.RetrievedJuly 7,2019.
  43. ^Blinoff, Sheila (November 21, 2012)."A History of Beach Metro News - 2007".Beach Metro.RetrievedJuly 8,2019.
  44. ^Chung, Matthew (April 9, 2007)."A Chilly Day for Easter Bonnets".Toronto Star.RetrievedJuly 7,2019.
  45. ^Pressprogress (16 August 2020)."Liberal MPs Denounce 'Ed the Sock' After Calls to Disavow Racist 'Dog Whistles' Targeting Jagmeet Singh".PressProgress.Retrieved2020-08-18.
  46. ^abWong, Tony (March 12, 2013)."Ed the Sock returns to MuchMusic March 13".thestar.com.Retrieved2019-07-09.
  47. ^Brioux, Bill (March 13, 2013)."Ed the Sock is Alive and Kickin' on MuchMusic's Video on Trial".RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  48. ^Ed The Sock Headlines This week’s edition of The Sports GuysJanuary 21, 2011
  49. ^"2007 Constellation Awards Archive".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-10-29.Retrieved2010-11-01.
  50. ^ASK ED & RED...Faze Magazine
  51. ^Ed & Red's PodcastArchived2011-07-16 at theWayback Machinegold water moving pictures
  52. ^"Wrongspeak Podcast".SoundCloud.Retrieved7 September2018.
  53. ^"Ed the Sock's Twitter".Twitter.Retrieved26 April2019.
  54. ^Ed the Sock (January 29, 2019)."Ed the Sock Junos tweet".Twitter.RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  55. ^Ed the Sock for Prime Minister - TV Legend announces new party to fight apathy & stupidityArchived2011-08-07 at theWayback MachineEd the Sock Website, March 23, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2011
  56. ^"Ed the Sock - FU Party tweet".Twitter.April 2, 2011.RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  57. ^"Ed the Sock - FU Party - Facebook volunteer request".Twitter.April 7, 2011.RetrievedJuly 10,2019.
  58. ^Low voter turnout Monday helps deliver Conservatives' coveted majority[permanent dead link‍]The Canadian Press, May 3, 2011
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