Hart and Lorne

Websites:  No
Origin: Toronto, Ontario, 🇨🇦
Biography:

Hart & Lorne were a distinctive Canadian comedy duo whose sharp, literate humour bridged the worlds of radio, television, and recorded comedy at the close of the 1960s. Formed while both were students at the University of Toronto, the partnership paired Hart Pomerantz, a law student with a talent for sly absurdity, and Lorne Michaels (born Lorne Lipowitz), an English graduate whose restrained delivery and structural instincts grounded their satire. Together, they developed a style built on mock interviews, character-driven sketches, and gently subversive commentary on Canadian politics, culture, and identity.

The duo first gained national attention as a recurring feature on CBC Radio’s The Russ Thompson Show during the 1967–1968 season. Their weekly sketches quickly became a highlight of the program, combining wordplay, irony, and a distinctly Canadian sensibility that set them apart from broader, American-style sketch comedy. Material from those broadcasts was captured on the LP The Comedy of Hart & Lorne (1968), released by CBC/Radio-Canada. The album showcased signature pieces such as “Election Interviews,” “Bank Robber,” and “Canadian Indian,” preserving their radio work in scripted form and marking their first commercial recording.

Among their most memorable creations was the Canadian Beaver, portrayed as an anxious national emblem perpetually negotiating its relationship with the dominant American Eagle. Through characters like this, Hart & Lorne explored national self-image with humour that was pointed yet accessible, often disguising social commentary within seemingly casual dialogue. Their work was articulate rather than slapstick, relying on timing and language rather than punchlines.

In 1968, Hart & Lorne relocated to Los Angeles, where they were hired as contributing writers for American television, including Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and The Phyllis Diller Show. The move exposed them to high-pressure network production and broadened their approach to sketch writing, experience that would soon feed back into Canadian television.

CBC invited the duo to return north to headline The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour, a fast-paced variety and sketch series broadcast during the 1970–1971 season. The show blended blackout sketches, filmed segments, and musical guests, and featured a remarkable supporting cast that included Dan Aykroyd, Andrea Martin, Victor Garber, and Paul Mooney, along with performances by contemporary singer-songwriters. Though short-lived, the series is now widely viewed as a formative step in the development of modern sketch comedy, foreshadowing both the tone and production style that Michaels would later refine.

After the series ended, the partnership gradually dissolved. Michaels returned to the United States, where he went on to create Saturday Night Live in 1975, becoming one of the most influential figures in television comedy. Pomerantz resumed his legal career while remaining a familiar presence in Canadian media, notably through television series that blended humour with legal analysis.

For a brief but influential period, Hart & Lorne occupied a critical space in Canadian comedy history, capturing a moment when national humour
-Robert Williston