Dominique Michel, OC, CQ (born ''Aimée Sylvestre''; September 24, 1932 in

Sorel-Tracy Sorel-Tracy (; ) is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada and the geographical end point of the Champlain Valley. It is located at the confluence of the Richelieu River and the St. Lawrence River, on the western edge of Lac Saint-Pierre, down ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

) is a

comedian, actress, singer and artist.

Biography

She began her career in

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

s performing songs written by

Raymond Lévesque Raymond Lévesque (October 7, 1928 – February 15, 2021) was a Canadian singer-songwriter and poet from Quebec. One of the pioneers of the ''chansonnier (singer), chansonnier'' tradition in Quebec, he was best known for writing ":fr:Quand les ho ...

and subsequently sang with Jean Coutu. She made her television debut co-hosting a variety show then widened her audience with her first sitcom '' Moi et l'autre'' in which she co-starred with

Denise Filiatrault Denise Filiatrault, (born May 16, 1931) is a Canadian actress and director. Biography Filiatrault attained star status on TV in the 1960s, co-starring with Dominique Michel in the Radio-Canada television series '' Moi et l'autre'' (1967–71 ...

. The show was an enormous success during its run from 1966 to 1972 and made Michel a household name in Quebec. She has been married only once in 1958 to

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

all star Camille Henry but later divorced in 1960. From 1977 to 1982, she had numerous leading roles in television programs such as ''Dominique'', ''Chère Isabelle'' and ''Métro-boulot-dodo''. Michel's first film role was in ''

Hold on to Daddy's Ears ''Hold on to Daddy's Ears'' (), also known as ''What the Hell Are They Complaining About?'',Gerald Pratley, ''A Century of Canadian Cinema''. Lynx Images, 2003. . p. 237. is a Canadian comedy film, directed by Jean Bissonnette and released in 197 ...

(Tiens-toi bien après les oreilles à papa)'' with

Yvon Deschamps Yvon Deschamps (born July 31, 1935, in Montreal, Quebec) is a Quebec author, actor, comedian and producer best known for his monologues. His social-commentary-tinged humour propelled him to prominence in Quebec popular culture in the 1970s and 1 ...

in 1971. She played for cineast

Denys Arcand Georges-Henri Denys Arcand (; born June 25, 1941) is a Canadian filmmaker. During his four decades career, he became one of the most internationally-recognized director from Quebec, earning widespread acclaim and numerous accolades for his "inten ...

in two movies well known outside of Quebec: ''

The Decline of the American Empire ''The Decline of the American Empire'' () is a 1986 Canadian sex comedy-Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard, Pierre Curzi and Dorothée Berryman. The film follows a group of intellectual fr ...

(Le Déclin de l'empire américain)'' and its sequel ''

The Barbarian Invasions ''The Barbarian Invasions'' () is a 2003 Canadian-French sex comedy-Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard, Stéphane Rousseau and Marie-Josée Croze. The film is a sequel to Arcand ...

(Les Invasions barbares)''. She is also a comedian. She notably co-starred with Daniel Lemire and has hosted the '' Festival Juste pour rire'' multiple times. Michel also showed her multiple comedic talents in the year-end review show '' Bye Bye'' from

Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...

in which she would do multiple impressions on top of hosting the 90 minutes special. In 1992, Michel received the

Governor General's Performing Arts Award The Governor General's Performing Arts Awards are an annual Canadian award, presented to honour distinguished achievements in Canadian performing arts and culture. Administered by the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards Foundation in associ ...

for Lifetime Artistic Achievement in broadcasting. In 1994, she was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

"for her encouragement of humour and her contribution to the cultural life of the country." In 2002, she was made a Knight of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec ( French: ), also known as the Order of Quebec, is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governor Jean-Pierre Côté granted royal assent to the (Natio ...

. In 1995, she received, jointly with Denise Filiatrault, the '' Grand Prix Gémeau'' from ''l' Académie canadienne du cinéma et de la télévision'' for lifetime achievements. In 2010, at 77, it was announced that she had colon cancer. After undergoing chemotherapy treatments, she declared in April 2011 that she was cancer-free.

Selected filmography

Movies

*''

(Tiens-toi bien après les oreilles à papa)'' - 1971 *'' Enuff Is Enuff (J'ai mon voyage!)'' - 1973 *'' There's Always a Way to Find a Way (Y'a toujours moyen de moyenner!)'' - 1973 *'' Les aventures d'une jeune veuve'' - 1974 *'' Far from You Sweetheart (Je suis loin de toi mignonne)'' - 1976 *'' The Crime of Ovide Plouffe (Le Crime d'Ovide Plouffe)'' - 1984 *''

(Le Déclin de l'empire américain)'' - 1986 *'' Night Zoo (Un zoo la nuit)'' - 1987 *''

Louis 19, King of the Airwaves ''Louis 19, King of the Airwaves'' () is a Canadian comedy film, released in April 1994. The film stars Martin Drainville as Louis Jobin, a television fanatic who wins a contest to be on television. Unbeknownst to him, however, his prize is to be ...

(Louis 19, le roi des ondes)'' - 1994 *'' Laura Cadieux II (Laura Cadieux...la suite)'' - 1999 *''

(Les Invasions barbares)'' - 2003

Television

*'' Moi et l'autre'' (from 1966 to 1972) *''Dominique'' (from 1977 to 1979) *''Chère Isabelle'' (1976) *''Métro-boulot-dodo'' (1982) *'' The Mills of Power (Les Tisserands du pouvoir)'' - 1988 *'' Montréal, ville ouverte'' (1992) *''

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

'' (from 1999 to 2003) *'' Virginie'' (from 2004 to 2005)

References

External link

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Michel, Dominique 1932 births Actresses from Quebec Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Canadian women comedians Knights of the National Order of Quebec Living people Officers of the Order of Canada People from Sorel-Tracy Comedians from Quebec French-language singers of Canada Canadian women singers Governor General's Award winners