Bob & Doug McKenzie: How 'Strange Brew's Original Hosers Took Off, Eh?

Bob McKenzie, played by Rick Moranis, and his brother Doug, played by Dave Thomas, appear at Flip Side Records in Chicago, Illinois, January 14, 1982. (Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images)

Before Bob and Doug McKenzie, Strange Brew's beer-swilling brothers, nobody called each other "hoser" (not even Canadians, really). But these two rubes from the Great White North taught us all about the lovable stereotypical Canadian we never even knew. Played by Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, the McKenzie brothers loved hockey and bacon, they wore big puffy coats and earmuffs and they had half-baked ideas -- what Cheech and Chong did for stoner humor, Bob and Doug McKenzie did for Canadian buffoonery and knucklehead-ism.

What started as an improvised time-filler on a sketch comedy show struck a chord with viewers all over North America, and at the height of their popularity the duo was seen on TV and in the movies, and had a Grammy-nominated album. And everyone was telling each other to "Take off, you hoser."

Grab your touques, a donut, and some beer, because we are going take off to the 1980’s Great White North for a look at everyone’s favorite dim-witted Canadians, Bob and Doug McKenzie! Here are some strange brewed facts you might not remember about Bob and Doug McKenzie and their hilarious satire of all things Canadian, eh?