Alice Robitaille (February 3, 1923 – May 28, 2011), from

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...

, "petite Alys" (little Alys), was a French Canadian singer mainly remembered for her later French interpretations of Latin American songs, who performed under the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Alys Robi.

Youth

Born in 1923 in the

neighbourhood of Saint-Sauveur, Robitaille displayed talent for singing and acting at a very young age. She first performed on-stage at the Capitol Theatre at 7. At the time, she had already sung on-air with the CHRC radio station and was a real phenomenon in the whole city.

Career

At 13 she moved to the Théâtre National, on

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

Saint Catherine Street Sainte-Catherine Street (french: rue Sainte-Catherine) () is the primary commercial artery of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It crosses the central business district from west to east, beginning at the corner of Claremont Avenue and de M ...

. Under the direction of

Rose Ouellette Rose-Alma Ouellette OQ, (August 25, 1903 – September 14, 1996) also known by her stage name La Poune was a Quebec actress, comedian, theatre manager and artistic director. Ouellette was born to François Ouellette and Josephine Lasanté in the f ...

, she learned acting and singing during a 75-week engagement. She continued her career in the Montreal

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

s, making radio appearances. For a time during the war, she also hosted a French radio show named ''Tambour battant'' ("Rumbling drum"). Touring Canadian military bases propelled her career across Canada. During the 1940s, she started producing 78s and she became renowned far beyond

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. She captured popular imagination with

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

titles like ''Besame Mucho'' and ''Tico tico'', after translating herself the Spanish or Brazilian songs into French. She sang in chic

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

cabarets by the mid forties and in 1947, she travelled to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

where she made an appearance on the first regular BBC television programme.

Mental health

In 1948, while traveling by car to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

, she was injured in an accident, and entered a period of depression. After a series of unfortunate diagnoses, and a failed romance, she suffered a

mental breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitt ...

and was interned for several years in a Quebec City asylum. She was at some point subjected to a

lobotomy A lobotomy, or leucotomy, is a form of neurosurgical treatment for psychiatric disorder or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy) that involves severing connections in the brain's prefrontal cortex. The surgery causes most of the connections t ...

against her will. She credited the operation with her recovery: ''"Je me réveillai guérie et j'ai compris plus tard que j'avais été un des rares cas réussis de lobotomie"'' (I woke up better and later understood that I was one of the rare lobotomy success stories).''Long Cri dans la nuit: Cinq Années à l'Asile'', cited i
Alys Robi
, lamiredegisele.com In 1952, she was released. The same year, she came back on stage at the Casa Loma and the Montmartre, but her efforts were impeded by

taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannic ...

s about mental problems and she never regained the same level of popularity.

Later years

In the early 1990s, Alys returned into the public eye after the massive success she had with a song written for her by

Alain Morisod Alain Morisod (born 23 June 1949) is a Swiss musician and television producer, known for forming Sweet People who had a UK number 4 hit in 1980 with "Et Les Oiseaux Chantaient (And the Birds Were Singing)". Early life Morisod grew up with an ...

("Laissez-moi encore chanter"). Books,

theses A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144 ...

, plays and

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...

were written about her. A movie was released in December 2004: '' Alys Robi: Ma vie en cinémascope'' ("Alys Robi: My Life in Cinemascope"), titled ''Bittersweet Memories'' in English. Robitaille has published two

autobiographies An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English pe ...

: ''Ma carrière, ma vie'' ("My Career, My Life", 1980) and ''Un long cri dans la nuit: Cinq Années à l'Asile'' ("A Long Cry in the Night: Five Years in the Asylum", 1990). The last autobiography title comes from the song ''Un long cri dans la nuit'', written and composed for Lady Alys by the songwriter

Christine Charbonneau Christine Charbonneau (18 October 1943 – 29 May 2014) was a French Canadian singer and songwriter. La Presse Canadienne (CP/PC), Most popular songs ''Du fil des aiguilles et du coton'' recorded by France Castel in 1972 and sung by Céline Di ...

in 1989. Several of Robi's songs have been used for commercial ads. Sico, notably, played on the similarity between its

brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...

and the title of "Tico Tico" to produce a very catchy campaign based on a spoof of the song. Robitaille died in the

Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, located in the boroughs of Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie and Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. It serves the eastern part of the city and offers 800 beds. It employs 5,000 peopl ...

, Montreal, at the age of 88, on May 28, 2011.

Discography

* ''Diva'' (2005) (recorded in 1946 at the CBC) * ''Laissez-moi encore chanter'' (1989)

Compilations

* ''Alys Robi, Collection QIM'' (2005) * ''Alys Robi, l'anthologie'' (2004) * ''La Collection – volume 1 & 2'' (1995) * ''La Collection – volume 1'' (1995) * ''Les Succès d'Alys Robi'' (1962, 1995)