Original language(s) English First episode date 1977 Number of seasons 41 (2017) | Country of origin Canada No. of seasons 41 (as of 2017) Presented by Kin Canada | |
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Running time 20 or 21 hours (with 30-minute break for national news) Similar Cover Me Canada, Thicke of the Night, Lamb Chop's Play‑Along, I've Got a Secret, The Alan Thicke Show Profiles | ||
Telemiracle is an annual telethon organized by the Kinsmen and Kinettes in Saskatchewan, Canada for the benefit of the Kinsmen Telemiracle Foundation. Initially broadcast on both CTV and CBC affiliates in Saskatchewan, it is now broadcast, commercial-free, exclusively on the province's CTV affiliates. Generally broadcast the first weekend of March, the 41st edition took place in Saskatoon on March 4 and 5, 2017. The 42nd Telemiracle is expected to take place in Regina during the first weekend of March, 2018.
Contents
The opening of telemiracle 1
History
Originally, the Kinsmen had the idea to have a car raffle to raise funds to help with all the requests for assistance they received but the government wouldn't allow it. So instead, they came up with the idea for a telethon. In 1977, the first telethon raised more than CAD $1 million, which at the time was considered a record for per capita telethon fund-raising in a 20-hour period (the province had a population of only about 1 million people at the time). The telethon passed the $2 million mark for the first time in 1983, and the $3 million mark in 2001. Telemiracle has exceeded the $4 million mark seven times and $5 million six times, most recently in 2017.
Early broadcasts of the telethon featured a mix of national and international celebrities such as the late John Allan Cameron, Gloria Loring, Alan Thicke, the Irish Rovers, Arte Johnson of Laugh-In, Bob McGrath of Sesame Street, game show personality Jim Perry, his daughter Erin Perry, singer and TV host Blake Emmons (who was the telethon's de facto host during the first few years, a post later taken over by Thicke in the 1980s), pianist Frank Mills and Saskatchewan-born motivational speaker Alvin Law. In recent years, the event has mostly attracted Canadian talent. Traditionally, the telethon alternates between the two major Saskatchewan cities of Saskatoon and Regina.
Bob McGrath, a regular fixture on Telemiracle for 38 years, was awarded the Commemorative Medal for the Centennial of Saskatchewan for this work by the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, Lynda Haverstock, on March 3, 2006. He announced during the 2015 telethon that it would be his last.
Telemiracle 31 (2007), the first telethon to exceed the $5,000,000 pledge total, broke all previous records, with an official final total of $5,604,682. This record was shattered in 2012 (Telemiracle 36) with a final total of $5,906,229. A $1.4 million bequest—the largest pledge, bequest or otherwise, in the telethon's history—contributed to the 2012 total.
A scheduling mixup resulted in Telemiracle 32 being relocated to Saskatoon in 2008. A convention was booked in Regina for the days leading up to the telethon, meaning that the usual setup time was not available. Telemiracle was held in Saskatoon for 3 consecutive years. The telethon returned to Regina in 2010.
Format
Shown annually on CTV affiliates, the broadcast starts at 9 pm local time on the first Saturday in March (though for the first half of its history, it was scheduled in February). The broadcast goes live to the host auditorium, where members of the national cast are introduced.
The previous theme was Mike + The Mechanics' 1986 hit "All I Need is a Miracle", it was replaced in 2011 with You are the Miracle by Brad Johner and Donny Parenteau.
The broadcast takes its only break at 11pm local time to allow for the CTV affiliates to broadcast the CTV National News. The telethon (and live broadcast) continues during this 30 minute news break and at 11:30pm stations that aired the newscast once again rejoin the broadcast until the conclusion of the show on Sunday evening at 5pm local time. The broadcast always concludes with O Canada and a balloon and confetti drop during which time some of the volunteers take to the stage to celebrate; up through 2010, a rendition of With a Little Help from My Friends was included with the closing festivities.
For the first time in 2009 the show went to other various locations in Saskatchewan outside of Saskatoon or Regina. It went to many of the smaller towns and cities across the province showcasing what the local residents have done to raise money. The practice continued in 2010.
Telemiracle was streamed online on CTV's website for the first time in 2010.
While the show is now carried only on Saskatchewan CTV stations, the production crew is composed of approximately 200 volunteers representing several broadcast networks, many travelling from outside of the province.
Annual totals
Telemiracle's website doesn't display the annual totals and they don't set annual goals, but their FAQ notes that the telethon raised over $111 million through Telemiracle 39 in 2015, an amount that includes the $5,604,682 raised by Telemiracle 31 in 2007 and record-setting $5,906,229 at Telemiracle 36 in 2012.
At the 37th Telemiracle in 2013, the Kinsmen and Kinettes were proud to announce that the lifetime total for Telemiracle had surpassed 100 million dollars. Telemiracle has an all-time total raised of $121,869,338.