{"id":129,"date":"2025-12-01T01:14:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T06:14:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/codgerstv.com\/?page_id=129"},"modified":"2025-12-01T01:24:51","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T06:24:51","slug":"meet-derek","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/codgerstv.com\/index.php\/whats-the-show-about\/meet-derek\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Derek"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meet Derek<\/h2>\n
\"
Derek and one of his “uke”s<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Derek\u00a0<\/strong> has spent a lifetime turning ordinary moments into stories that sparkle. Long
\nbefore *Codgers Television<\/strong>* was born, he was a young folk-rocker in 1960s New York \u2014
\nsinging lead, playing guitar and five-string banjo, and soaking in the city\u2019s electric mix of
\nmusic and rebellion. Those years shaped everything that came after: the rhythm, the
\ncuriosity, and the belief that a good story is always worth telling.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

By the 1970s, Derek<\/strong> had traded smoky clubs for bright studios, founding his first
\nproduction company and launching a television career that would span more than three
\ndecades. He went on to produce nearly 700 network programs, including two long-running
\nCanadian classics \u2014 *Celebrity Cooks<\/strong>*<\/em> with Bruno Gerussi and *Do It For Yourself<\/strong>*<\/em> with
\nMary Bellows. Both series celebrated everyday people doing extraordinary things, a theme
\nthat has defined his work ever since.<\/p>\n

Now in his eighties, Derek hasn\u2019t slowed down<\/strong> \u2014 not in spirit, not in humor, and certainly
\nnot in song. With *Codgers Television*, he and his partner Maggie have built something
\nentirely their own: a heartfelt, mischievous, and deeply human series that finds beauty in
\nthe later chapters of life. Derek\u2019s ukulele, now his signature instrument, strums through the
\nshow\u2019s original music \u2014 from anthems like \u201cCodgers Arise\u201d to the tender \u201cLast Hurrah
\nWaltz.\u201d Backed by his band *The Grumpy Old Men*, Derek reminds us that music and
\nlaughter still matter, perhaps now more than ever.<\/p>\n

A producer, performer, and lifelong storyteller, Derek Smith continues to craft work that\u2019s
\nfunny, hopeful, and grounded in truth. His rallying cry, \u201cCodgers Unite,\u201d isn\u2019t just a slogan \u2014<\/strong><\/em>
\nit\u2019s a philosophy, and one he lives every day.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Derek Derek\u00a0 has spent a lifetime turning ordinary moments into stories that sparkle. Long before *Codgers Television* was born, he was a young folk-rocker in 1960s New York \u2014 singing lead, playing guitar and five-string banjo, and soaking in the city\u2019s electric mix of music and rebellion. Those years shaped everything that came after:…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":42,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-129","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry","no-media"],"yoast_head":"\nMeet Derek - Codgers Television<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meet Derek - Codgers Television\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Meet Derek Derek\u00a0 has spent a lifetime turning ordinary moments into stories that sparkle. 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