Craig Olejnik Fan Site

SEPTEMBER 22: You guys did it! You really did! How awesome are you? About as awesome as a ginormo-size mocha, a park bench, a sunny day and a Mickey Spillane novel! You guys ROCK.

We can't stop -- keep getting people to sign the petition. Keep writing CTV at programming@ctv.ca. Tell them that they need to support a Canadian show. Tell them that too few shows are actually Canadian, instead of American dramas or repackaged American/British reality shows. Tell them that Canadians want to be represented on their own damn network. Tell them that the series really got its feet under it in the last half of the season and improved. Tell them that you don't want it to end with a cliff hanger. Tell them that their promotional campaign SUCKED and if they expect anyone to watch their damn shows, then they need to let people know they exist and invest a few bucks in advertising and run some promos and shit. I mean, it's ridiculous, y'all. 

SEPTEMBER 15: WE ARE SO CLOSE! Less then 300 signatures to meet our goal! Remember, NOW is the time that CTV is making this decision, so sign the petition already, if you haven't done it before now! (Note, you don't have to threaten to kill yourself if the show isn't renewed. Really. It's counterproductive. We want to appear passionate, not unbalanced. We're not going all Kathy Bates on CTV, okay? ... unless they REALLY deserve it. But, shhhh ... let's keep it on the DL for now.) What else can you do? Write CTV at programming@ctv.ca! All you need to do is tell them that you are a fan of The Listener and want to see another season. This is the end of the road, guys and gals -- holler it from the rooftops, do not stop, let's let CTV know that we want our show to stay on!

SEPTEMBER 9: Sorry people, I've been laid up with bronchitis or some silly thing. However, to sum up: 1,500 signatures and 650 individual visitors to this site. So, if everyone just writes programming@ctv.ca, then I think they'll get the point. Tell them you want The Listener to stay on and Canadian networks should support Canadian scripted dramas. Sign the petition. If everyone just gets two other people to sign the petition, then they'll really get the point. We don't have too much more time -- CTV will be making the decision to order another season or cancel the show within the next week to two weeks. This is the final push -- please, please, please tell your friends and family, sign the petition if you haven't yet done so and write CTV and tell them you want another season. We can still save this show!  

AUGUST 31: YOU GUYS DID IT! OVER 1,000 SIGNATURES IN A WEEK! LISTENER FANS ARE AWESOME!

Can we make it to 2,000 in two weeks? Let's keep telling friends, family and other fans about the petition to save "The Listener." We can do it! Let's show CTV that we mean business and we want to keep our show on! 

Don't forget to write CTV directly at programming@ctv.ca and tell them that you want dramas produced by Canadians, starring Canadians, written by Canadians and set in a Canadian city. 

AUGUST 28: The petition continues to gather signatures, but we're not done yet. In fact, I'm driving myself batshit insane by checking periodically to see how many signatures it has. Moving on ...

Can we save "The Listener?" Are we going to find out what's up with "William"? What about Toby's mom? Will there be a second season on CTV? There are some things that we can do.

1. E-mail CTV. The email address is programming@ctv.ca -- Tell the network that you want to watch Canadian scripted dramas starring Canadians and set in a Canadian city. Tell them that you want to see a second season of "The Listener," and that you are a fan of the show and of Craig Olejnik.

Tell friends and family members about the e-mail campaign.

2. Sign the petition. Disseminate information about the petition via Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn or any other social media for which you have an account. If you participate on a message board, make a post there. If you have a blog, blog about it.

3. Tweet @listenertv and tell the producers you want another season of the show. If you don't have a Twitter account, all you need to sign up is a valid e-mail address. One tweet is all you need: @listenertv I want a second season of The Listener!

Again, tell your friends and family about the Twitter campaign.

4. There is a long list of entertainment media outlets listed in the August 27 update. E-mail them and tell them about the fandom's grassroots campaign to save "The Listener." I've been asked what we should include in these e-mails.

In addition to that list, here's another suggestion: The Chronicle Herald (a Halifax daily; Craig Olejnik grew up near the Halifax metro area). The entertainment reporter's name is Andrea Nemetz, and her e-mail is anemetz@herald.ca.

Here's some suggestions:

Introduce yourself as a fan of "The Listener" and Craig Olejnik, and say what province you are from (if you're Canadian) or what country you are from (if you're not).

Explain that the fans are trying to keep "The Listener" on the air with a petition and letter-writing campaign. Link to the petition.

Talk about what you enjoy about "The Listener" and Craig Olejnik's performance.

Stress that there isn't enough shows produced and set in Canada and starring Canadians.

If you want, link back to this site or any other site that you think is pertinent.

The important thing is that each e-mail is individual to the person writing it; not that you need an entirely new e-mail for each media outlet, but we should avoid form letters.

In other news, it is clear the the pronunication of "Olejnik" is a great mystery. There's even an IMDB thread dedicated to figuring out how to pronounce it. In fact, one of the searches that land people on this site is "how do you pronounce Craig Olejnik?" No joke, people. Another popular one is "Craig Olejnik shirtless." Just to make sure we get plenty of hits from those people: Craig Olejnik, shirtless; Craig Olejnik, shirtless; Craig Olejnik, shirtless. There you go.

Now, if we were successful with this campaign ... maybe Mr. Olejnik would be moved to let us in on the big secret. I'm not saying that any promises have been made or even implied or that he is even aware that we're curious, but y'know, it could happen. Don't squash the dream.

ANOTHER QUICK UPDATE: If you have Twitter, hit up @listenertv and tell the producers that you want another season of the show! All you have to do is Tweet @listenertv and tell them that you want more Craig! (h/t Caper Jan)

AUGUST 27: We're still creeping up. Although the petition to save "The Listener" hasn't hit 1,000 yet, it hasn't stalled either. This is good. Don't forget, if you haven't signed the petition yet, it is free, fast, easy, and you can be anonymous if you want. There's no advertising and your email is kept private and not sold. If you're feeling ambitious, take a few minutes to add a comment about how much you enjoyed the show and Craig's performance.

TELL YOUR FRIENDS.

We need notice in a national media outlet. What can you do about this? Shoot a quick e-mail to some of the Canadian entertainment news outlets with a Web presence. Tell them that you are a fan of the show and part of a grassroots campaign to keep it on the air. Pimp the petition. If we get enough people to e-mail them, they'll have to take notice.

Contact The Gate (Canadian Entertainment Magazine.)

(Toronto) Globe and Mail (The show is based in and is shot in Toronto.)

Halifax Daily News (Craig grew up near Halifax, NS; we can consider it his home town.)

HELLO! Magazine Canada (You will have to sign up for a free account under "customer services" at the very bottom of the homepage to send an e-mail.)

Ion Magazine (This is a monthly entertainment magazine and its coverage area includes Toronto. Again, if you email, stress that "The Listener" is shot and set in Toronto.)

Naked Eye Magazine (This is a quarterly magazine, but it has a Web presence. It focuses on Canadian entertainment that is popular internationally, so this is a great place for fans from other countries to e-mail. Even if you're Canadian, e-mail them and remind them how well "The Listener" did in international markets.)

Popjournalism (An entertainment magazine based in Toronto; again, it isn't unusual for all sorts of projects to be shot in Toronto, but it is unusual for them to be set in Toronto, as "The Listener" is, so this may be something you want to mention.)

Go to the Tribe message board and tell hip Canadians about the petition to save "The Listener." (You will have to register to post; it is free, but they do not accept Web-based e-mails -- i.e. Hotmail, Yahoo, etcetera -- so you have to sign up through your IP e-mail address.) In fact, if you frequent message boards, especially those dedicated to entertainment or television, why not post about the petition there as well?

TVWeek (A television -- duh! -- entertainment magazine.)

If you have any other suggestions, please e-mail me and I'll add them.

Remember: The more people they hear from, the more seriously they will take our campaign, so ask your friends to e-mail, too. Even getting a small mention on one of these sites can reach thousands of other potential signees. Please spread the plan through social media (Facebook, Twitter, MySpace) and ask your friends to e-mail as well.

When you send an e-mail, don't forget to stress that this is a Canadian production, set in Canada and it's an original drama -- not a copy of a U.S. show or a reality show. And don't forget to mention (and link to) the petition.

AUGUST 26: The word continues to spread, but we haven't hit even 1,000 yet on the petition. The season -- I won't say series -- finale is airing at 10 p.m. Aug. 27 on CTV. If you are Canadian and you are reading this, for the love of puppies, kitties and God, watch the show. Ask your friends to watch it. Turn all the televisions in the house to it.

We've got to hit at least 1,000, maybe 2,000, by the time the show airs, so CTV knows we're serious. At the rate we're going, it should be maybe two and a half weeks before the petition hits the goal of 5,000. That's at this same rate. If we want another season of "The Listener," then we've got to keep the heat on. Did you tweet? Did you Facebook? Did you send a Myspace bulletin to all your friends? Yes, you might risk annoying someone, but this is serious business. It's live or death. It's a television show.

In all seriousness, a lot of people are employed by a television show. There are a lot of behind-the-scenes people who are making a living on "The Listener." The economy sucks; let's not force them to get another job.

Signing the petition is free, it is easy and it takes literally maybe two minutes. Your email is kept confidential and you will not get any spam. You can remain anonymous. You know you want to do it; all the cool kids are.

AUGUST 25, just later: People, you rock on with your bad selves. Within 45 minutes of posting this notice, another 70 people have signed the petition -- because word is getting out! (Dare I say a few people saw it here?) We can't stop now. TELL YOUR FRIENDS. It's free, it's fast and it's easy. One simple form and there's no complications, committments or strings attached.

Remember, we can't just kick back and assume our work is done. CTV isn't going to notice unless we put up the numbers. We do have the power to save "The Listener." Let's use it. 

AUGUST 25: Okay people, apparently CTV isn't sure whether they'll pick up a second season of "The Listener." This simply must not be allowed to happen, because then I can't buy the season compliations on DVD. And that would suck.

I've gotten a message from a mysterious "CO." Now, I'm not saying that this person might be a certain actor with those same intials. I'm not saying I believe that this person may be a particularly actor. But this person had good grammar and was complimentry. And I couldn't stop smiling after I read the message.

So.

Anyway, what we can to to help keep "The Listener" on CTV is to sign this petition (yes, click right there). Tell your friends about it. If you're a member of a social networking site like Twitter, MySpace or Facebook, just post a quick message telling your friends about the petition. It takes literally a minute to sign it and make me happy (and all of those lovely people whose jobs depend on the continued production of the show). I know; I signed it (not saying I'm a bigger fan than you, but ... ). Ask them to pass the word along. If every person who uses this site tells five more people about this, and those people tell another five ... well, things can really happen, people.

Also, I'm going to propose something to our mysterious "CO." The petition is under 100 signatures now. The goal is 5,000. If the petition gets 5,000 signatures, then ... we'd like to see a video on YouTube. You know what we're talking about. Thirty seconds; that's all I ask. 

AUGUST 23: Okay, I've been really, really busy. Sorry about that. I have a few new things for y'all, but most of you know the bad news by now: NBC has dropped "The Listener." Suckage. So we either pray to the television gods that another American or cable channel gets it or else all we Americans will have to (figuratively) press our noses against the glass while our Canadian cousins enjoy the hawtness that is Craig Olejnik.

And someone taught me how to say Ohl-nick. That is supposedly how you pronounce it, but just to be safe: Craig Olejnik, if you ever google yourself and stumble over this site, please to be uploading a video to YouTube teaching us how to say your name.

Speaking of Craig Olejnik finding this site, I got an email from someone claiming to be Craig Olejnik. My response to this email will be up on this site some time in the near future.

I maintain that "The Listener" would have done better if NBC had done, oh, I don't know, some sort of press campaign outside of sticking Craig Olejnik on the Today Show for 30 seconds. Bite me, NBC. 

YET ANOTHER UPDATE: I'll be updating all afternoon. I've found a lot of neat stuff, so get your popcorn ready for the premiere tonight! 

UPDATE: No, I haven't forgotten this site or squeeing over Craig Olejnik. My life got swallowed by, well, life. I promise there will be lots of NEW goodies for the North American premiere of "The Listener" June 4, even if it kills me. You never know; it might.  

FEB. 4: There's a new Listener fanpage on Facebook and it's got a really cute video, so check it out.

This is a promo clip for "The Listener," so watch it. Oh, you should have Apple Quick Time. And be sitting down, because, like, wow. 

NEW: Craig Olejnik has signed with the William Morris Agency, which does entertainment and literary representation. I'm guessing this is a good thing, 'cos the agency is a good 120 years old, and I've actually heard of it. Hopefully, this means the agency sees him as marketable, meaning we'll all see a lot more of him.

LISTNER UPDATE: Yes, the CTV has screwed you, Canadians. And I think your taxes pay for that shit. I'm not 100 percent sure. So you have to wait until the rest of us North Americans (except for Mexico and those peeps -- lucky bastards). So, I'm sad I don't get spoilers, but I'm happy y'all can't taunt me.

In other news, apparently Fox is making a big brouhaha over premiering "The Listener," which is good. Cos I knew that Craig has international star quality.

Just remember ... I was here first. How this is important, I do not know, but I maintain that I was here first. 

ANNOUNCEMENT: Look, I'm not one-hundred percent sure of this information, but it looks like CTV will NOT be running "The Listener" this January. I have come to this conclusion based on 1) the total lack of any promotion for the show, less than a month before it is scheduled to run, and trust me, I have my peeps up in Canada with their eyeballs peeled and looking for it, and 2) buzz that NBC, impressed with the success of Canadian shows recently released in the States, has asked that CTV wait so the show can be shown in the States and Canada at the same time.

However, as far as I can tell, it WILL run internationally on FOX, beginning the first week in March, so if you live in England or Singapore or something, you're in luck. I hate you, by the way.

And back to your regularly scheduled squeeing ... 

DOWN HERE, UNDER ALL MY MUTTERING, IS MY VERSION OF CRAIG OLEJNIK'S BIOGRAPHY

Look, I can't tell you a lot about Craig Olejnik. There just isn't a lot out there. So I made this Web site to collect what little pieces of information that are available in one convenient place.

Why did I do it? 'Cuz Craig Olejnik is pretty damn talented, cute as hell and he's about to become very popular. However, I was here first. I just want to note that, okay? No other Craig Olejnik sites out there right now. Just this one.

So, maybe, one day, Craig Olejnik might Google himself. And he'll find this site. Maybe he'll take pity and drop an email, let us know what's going on with him professionally. Maybe. Look, don't try to crush my dreams. People Google themselves all the time. Just leave it be, okay? A girl can hope.

Anyway, what do we know about Craig Olejnik? He's 30 years old, having been born on June 1, 1979 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, which also makes him Canadian. Let's pause for a minute here to be jealous of Canadians, because they have Craig Olejnik and I don't. I mean, we don't. Of course, that's what I meant.

Apparently, his nickname is Junior or that's what the Internet Movie Database would have us believe. I'd like to postulate that this means he may be Craig Olejnik Jr., but I'd only be postulating. I don't have a clue. I do know he's got amazing blue eyes, that I know.

Moving on, Craig Olejnik has appeared in five feature films, two made-for-television movies and four television shows.

He also was a writer/producer/cinematographer in "Interview with a Zombie," an independent short film shot in ... Canada. I know, I was surprised, too. It's a fifteen-minute long dark comedy, with the premise that a film star who happens to be dead sits down for an interview. I have no idea where you can get it. I looked, and I couldn't find it. Stupid Amazon.

His first movie was ... an independent. I am starting to see a pattern here. Why do I have to celebrity crush on people who make small/independent films? Must I be attracted to the quirky? Why can't I appreciate the Zac Efrons of the world?

Hold on, this is supposed to be about Craig Olejnik.

Anyway, his first movie was "Margaret's Museum." It was shot primarily in Nova Scotia. He's not a main character, but is Helena Bonham Carter's character's brother.

In case you were curious, it won a boatload of Genies -- but none for Craig Olejnik in particular, so moving on -- and the Most Popular Canadian Film at the 1995 Vancouver International Film Festival. He was only 14, but he was on to some good stuff already.

"Margaret's Museum" also is featured in the 2004 documentry "Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche," where you can see some archive footage of Craig Olejnik.

Only they misspell his last name as Olojnik because Olejnik is so hard to spell. It took me a whole two minutes to learn it, even. And, no, I am not making up the name of the documentry. Apparently, Canada is all about snow and weird sex. Well, I guess if I were snowed in all the time, I'd have time to think up some pretty kinky stuff.  

After his first film, Craig Olejnik (or is it Olojnik?) waits for four years before making something else. Do we know why? Nope. Maybe he was busy going to high school or somesuch. Anyway, next movie ... "Teen Sorcery." This is pretty much his "Zac Efron Moment," only Disney didn't shovel it down our throats until we begged for mercy and agreed to buy their shitty merchandise ... oh, I'm getting off topic again, aren't I?

Anyway, he was 20, and he got to go hang out with A.J. Cook in Romania, so we'll give him a pass, shall we? Like Craig Olejnik cares ...

So then he waits another two years, and I'll tell you what, thank goodness I waited until now to crush on him, because if I had done it early in his career, these gaps would have been painful. So then he goes Disney Channel with a guest shot on their paranormal tween series, "So Weird," then regained his mind and ran back to Canada, where he did another two-shot guest appearance on the werewolf-centric series "Wolf Lake," which appeared on CBS, got axed, moved to UPN and died quietly in its sleep.

Craig Olejnik must like the paranormal stuff, because his next project was the feature film "Thir13en Ghosts," in which he played a kid who died in what must have been a pretty awful car wreck, since half of his body is hamburger. It sucks that this is one of the most high-profile project he's done, and he's a walking maggot museum. However, watching him leer at the living and try to whack the bejeezus out of them with a baseball bat made me smile. I'm not sure I was supposed to, but he looked like he was having a great time.

Also, if you watch the documentry short "Thir13en Ghosts Revealed," you'll see him in archive footage and get to drool over Matthew Lillard at the same time. That's really excellent, right there.

Following "Thir13en Ghosts," he went to Vancouver and played the boyfriend in "Flower & Garnet," which also didn't do too badly with awards, including the 2002 Vancouver International Film Festival, where Director Keith Behrman won the Best New Western Canadian Director award.

Craig Olejnik must want to spite me, because he took another three year hiatus before making "Interview with a Zombie" in 2005. However, he obviously doesn't want me to die, because he made the Lifetime Channel movie "Obituary" the next year. Yet another paranormal film and the fact that the writers thought someone writing obituraries could move up to a senior reporting position tickled the hell out of me, but who cares? Craig Olejnik is a hot mailroom boy -- swear to God, I can not make this stuff up -- and has a very creepy end.

Things look up when Craig Olejnik gets a reoccuring role on the drama "Runaway" about a family who goes on the lamb after the dad is wrongfully accused of a crime. Yay! Only one problem: It's on the CW. Yeah ... it got canceled after maybe two episodes. Hey, at least he got to hang with Donnie Wahlberg for a while.

Then, in 2007, he appears in a minor role in "In God's Country," a made-for-television movie which capitalized on all of the polygamist sect news and was apparently based on a true story. Craig Olejnik refuses to cross the border to come and see me, because this was made in Ontario for Lifetime. I'm going to have to start watching that channel.

I can't tell you too much about "The Timekeeper," which is supposed to be released in Canada this year. That's because there's virtually zero information on it. It's been completed. I think. Craig Olejnik stars in it, however, and that is enough for me. BIOGRAPHY UPDATE: It premeried Aug. 21. Yes, I could have worked that smoothly into the paragraph, but I'm lazy.

However, I've picked the perfect time to celebrity crush on Craig Olejnik, because he's gone back to his paranormal roots as a telepathic paramedic on NBC's "The Listener." It premieres in Spring 2009, and he's starring as "tortured hero" Toby Logan. So, when I start getting mad hits in the spring: Ladies, I was here first. Get in line. UPDATE: Dammit. It's been canceled on NBC and is barely hanging on at CTV. Sign the petition and keep my dreams of buying the series on DVD alive.

Apparently, Craig Olejnik enjoys the outdoors, as he likes to hike, camp and kayak. Fabulous. I've always wanted to be bitten by something poisionous or drown.

In case I've gotten something horribly wrong or you are actually Craig Olejnik and want to email me, here it is: artemisrexmoon@yahoo.com.