due South
Season 1 Background Information

General Information

When a veteran Canadian Mountie is shot and killed in the line of duty, his son sets out for Chicago in search of the killer. Through a series of adventures, Benton Fraser finds his father's killer and solves the mystery of his murder. His actions result in the embarassment of several high ranking Canadian officials though, so Fraser is permenantly transferred to the Canadian Consulate in Chicago, Illinois.

Fraser becomes friends with Chicago Detective Ray Vecchio who helped him investigate his father's murder. The two team up unofficially to help solve crimes in the Chicago area. Ray and Fraser are complete opposites, which helps to strengthen their bond of frienship.

Fraser spends much of his time trying to adjust to his new life in Chicago. Things are much different in the big city compared to his Northwest Territories. Ray tries to help his friend out the best he can, when he's not being annoyed by the Mountie.

Main Characters

• Constable Benton Fraser: Adjusting to life in the big city proves to be a constant adventure for Fraser who is more at home in the remote regions of the Northwest Territories. Fraser has a basic trust in people and believes in the goodness inside everyone.
• Detective Raymond Vecchio: A streetwise cop, Ray is used to life in the big city. The complete opposite of Fraser, he believes that everyone is up to something. Very outspoken and likes to complain, but a good cop who believes in doing his job the best way he can. Ray tends to wear very flashy outfits during this season.
• Diefenbaker: Fraser's deaf wolf (1/2 wolf actually) and companion. Diefenbaker is fiercely loyal to the Mountie and has been with Fraser for quite some time. However, his deafness is sometimes wondered about as the wolf tends to develop selective hearing. Different dogs played the role in the Pilot episode and the rest of the season.
• Civilian Aide Elaine Besbriss: Whenever you need information, Elaine is the one to ask at District 27. A whiz at computers, she can find just about anything you need quickly. However, she just can't seem to attract the eye of Fraser.
• Detective Jack Huey: One of Ray's rivals, Jack (and his partner Louis Gardino) compete with Ray for cases and generally helps to get on the other Detective's nerves. Known as being the more level-headed of the 'Duck Boys.'
• Detective Louis Gardino: Another one of Ray's rivals at District 27, Louis (and his partner Jack Huey) takes particular delight in irritating Ray Vecchio. Louis is very loud and outspoken.
• Lieutenant Harding Welsh: The Detective's superior officer, Welsh oversees all actions for the Violent Crimes division of District 27. He is a tough but fair boss.

Memorable Supporting Characters

• Fraser Sr.: Fraser's father appears alive (briefly) in the Pilot episode, but returns in voice and later as a ghost.
• Francesca Vecchio: Ray Vecchio's loud and outspoken sister. Definitely has feelings for the Canadian Mountie.
• Victoria Metcalf: The one love of Fraser's life. He talks about her briefly in a few episodes. She finally appears towards the end of the season in the "Victoria's Secret" episodes.
• Duncan 'Buck' Frobisher: Long time family friend of the Fraser family. Benton tries to help Buck face his fears in the episode "Manhunt." Played by legendary actor Leslie Nielsen.
• Ian MacDonald: Introduced in the episode "The Man Who Knew too Little," Ian is a character that you either love or hate. A pathological liar, Ian occasionally slips bits of the truth into his constant ramblings.
• State's Attorney Louise St. Laurent: Appearing late in the season as she attempts to bring charges against Fraser and Ray, this no nonsense attorney believes the Mountie and Detective are dirty cops.
• Dr. Esther Pearson: Medical Examiner for the 27th precinct, Dr. Pearson makes occasional appearances to give her medical rulings, and as Lt. Welsh's love intrest.
• Ray's Father: Just as Fraser's father appears to his son as a ghost, Ray's dead father pops in from time to time to offer his son advice.

Locations

All locations for this season (except for stock Chicago footage) are located in Toronto, Canada. The show was filmed in Canada because of the cheaper rates of producing a television series. For a partial list of Filming Locations, please see: http://home.hiwaay.net/~warydbom/duesouth/location.htm.

• Fraser's Apartment: 221 West Racine, apartment 3J. The apartment is in a run-down building not noted for being in a nice area of town. Fraser likes it for practical reasons -- it is close to work.
• Canadian Consulate: The Consulate where Fraser works remained constant throughout this season. The building housing the Consulate was changed during season 2, and was moved again as part of the storyline in Season 3.
• District 27th Precinct: The precinct remained the same all season. During the break between seasons 1 and 2 the building was torn down, so a new building was used in season 2.

Awards

For a list of awards that due South won for this season, please see: http://home.hiwaay.net/~warydbom/duesouth/awards.htm

Interesting Trivia

• In the Pilot episode, Ray's boss was Captain Walsh. However when idea was formed to turn due South into a series, the part was recast with a different actor and became Lt. Welsh.
• Different dogs were used to play the part of Diefenbaker in the Pilot and the rest of Season 1.
• Originally, due South was supposed to have been just a made-for-TV movie. However when the ratings of the movie earned much higher than anticipated ratings for CBS, the US network began formulating plans to turn the concept into a regular television series.
• CBS cancelled the show after the first season. CTV managed to secure funding to produce a second season of the show in Canada. When CBS's fall lineup failed in 1995, they ordered more episodes of the series as a mid-season replacement.
• Many characters are named after famous people in the world. Diefenbaker was named after the former Canadian Prime Minister John G. Diefenbaker.
• The tradition of the 'Duck Boys' begins with Jack Huey and Louis Gardino. They are collectively known as the 'Duck Boys' because of the curious similarity of their names to Donald Duck's nephews: Huey and Louie.

Crew

Executive Producer - Paul Haggis
Co-Executive Producer - Kathy Slevin
Co-Executive Producer - Jeff King
Line Producer - Norman Denver
Co-Producer (109-122) - George Bloomfield
Creative Consultant (101-108) - Stephen Neigher
Creative Consultant (109-122) - Peter Lefcourt
Creative Consultant (120-122) - Kimberly Hill
Story Editor (101-108) - David Cole
Story Editor - David Shore
Story Editor (115-122) - Carla Kettner
Director of Photography - Malcolm Cross
Production Designer - Harold Thrasher
Costume Designer - Suzette Daigle
Music - Jay Semko, John McCarthy, Jack Lenz
Editor (Even Episodes) - David B. Thompson
Editor (Odd Episodes) - Eric Goddard