Network: CTV Television Network
Broadcast Run: 1985 to 1988
Broadcast Medium: Television
Don Adams had a spectacular success with his Get Smart series, but his transition from Smart to mart was much less successful. Adams as grocery store manager Howard Bannister was light years away and scores of scripts below the standard set by the man who talked into his shoe. Based on the UK series Tripper’s Day, Check It Out co-starred Dinah Christie as Bannister’s secretary Elsie, and other regulars in the cast were Jeff Pustil, Kathleen Laskey and Aaron Schwartz. Others in the cast from time to time were Barbara Hamilton, Henry Beckman and Gordon Clapp.
Shot in Toronto before a live audience, and located in a fictional supermarket in Brampton, Check It Out was a joint venture between CTV and the USA Network. 66 episodes were produced, and Dinah Christie won a Gemini Award as Best Actress in a continuing role in a Comedy Series. The program had a three-year run on CTV; it debuted on Saturdays at 7:30pm in September 1985, moving to the same time period on Fridays in September 1987, and ending its run in the fall of 1988.