Sandra Faire ( Allard; died February 27, 2019) was a Canadian television producer and philanthropist. She created music specials for Canadian entertainers such as

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian country, pop and adult contemporary music singer who has sold over 55 million album copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray has won four Grammys including the Grammy ...

, and was executive producer of ''

So You Think You Can Dance Canada ''So You Think You Can Dance Canada'' is a dance competition and reality show that aired on CTV. Based on the original American TV show ''So You Think You Can Dance'', the Canadian series showcased the best in Canadian dancing talent. Each sea ...

''. Her career lasted over four decades.

Early life

The daughter of Alice Tonstad and broadcaster Jim Allard, Sandra Allard was born in

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

, Alberta. She attended

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

before beginning work at television station

CJOH CJOH-DT (channel 13) is a television station in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, serving the National Capital Region as part of the CTV Television Network The CTV Television Network, commonly known as CTV, is a Television in Canada, Canadian Engl ...

in Ottawa, Ontario.Langan, Fred (March 4, 2019).
Canadian TV producer Sandra Faire created top-rated shows, from Anne Murray specials to So You Think You Can Dance Canada
", ''The Globe and Mail''. Retrieved March 6, 2019.

Career

In 1972, Faire began her television-producing career as associate producer for '' Half the George Kirby Comedy Hour'', which was taped in Toronto. From the 1970s into the 1990s, Faire was a producer with

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

, where she created and produced variety entertainment programs such as '' The Joyce Davidson Show'', '' Video Hits'', and ''

Comics! ''Comics!'' was a Canadian television series, which aired on CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network ow ...

''. In 1997, she founded and operated her own private production firm, Sandra Faire & Associates, which produced programming primarily for CTV and

The Comedy Network CTV Comedy Channel (often shortened to CTV Comedy) is a Canadian English-language discretionary specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. subsidiary Bell Media which focuses primarily on comedy programming and operates two time-shifted feeds, runni ...

. The company's productions include ''

Comedy Now! ''Comedy Now!'' is a Canadian comedy television series which debuted in 1997 and ended in 2014 featuring the newest in Canadian comedic talent. The show has won numerous Gemini Awards as well as many international awards. It is broadcast in Canad ...

'', '' Comedy Inc.'', ''

The Holmes Show ''The Holmes Show'' is a Canadian television sketch comedy series that premiered on CTV on September 24, 2002. The 22-episode series stars Jessica Holmes, Roman Danylo and Kurt Smeaton. Filming took place at the CTV studios in June and August 2 ...

'' and ''

'', as well as television specials for musicians such as

k.d. lang Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang (stylised in all lowercase), is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical pe ...

Rita MacNeil Rita MacNeil (May 28, 1944 – April 16, 2013) was a Canadian singer and songwriter from the community of Big Pond, Nova Scotia, Big Pond on Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island. Her biggest hit, "Flying On Your Own", was a crossover Top 40 hit in ...

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a British and Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He is estimated to have sold between 75 million and more than 100 million album, records and Single (music), si ...

Buffy Sainte-Marie Buffy Sainte-Marie (born Beverley Jean Santamaria; February 20, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and social activist. Sainte-Marie's singing and writing repertoire includes subjects of love, war, religion, and mysticism, and h ...

, Corey Hart,

The Rankin Family The Rankin Family (also known as The Rankins) are a Canadian musical family group from Mabou, Nova Scotia. The group has won many Canadian music awards, including 15 East Coast Music Awards, six Juno Awards, four Society of Composers, Authors, an ...

Amanda Marshall Amanda Meta Marshall (born August 29, 1972) is a Canadian Juno award winning pop-rock singer and songwriter. She has released four studio albums; the first was certified diamond in Canada, with the second and third certified 3× platinum and p ...

and

. The company also produced the feature film '' My Own Private Oshawa''. In 2008, she received an honorary doctor of laws from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

. In 2012, she was awarded a

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal () or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. There are four versions of the medal: one iss ...

for culture and the arts.

Personal life

She took the name ''Faire'' when she first married; the couple had one daughter, and the marriage ended in divorce. She later married

Ivan Fecan Ivan Fecan is a Canadian media executive producer and philanthropist. Fecan was the president and chief executive officer of Baton Broadcasting and its successor CTVglobemedia from 1996 to 2011, and chief executive officer of the CTV Television N ...

, an executive with CTV. The marriage lasted 37 years, ending with her death. The couple were involved in philanthropy, acting as patrons or sponsors of institutions such as the

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; ) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Dundas Street, Dundas Street West in the Grange Park (neighbourhood), Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, the museum complex takes up of phys ...

, the

National Ballet of Canada The National Ballet of Canada is a Canadian ballet company that was founded in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, with Celia Franca, the first artistic director. A company of 70 dancers with its own orchestra, the National Ballet has been led since 2022 ...

Soulpepper Theatre Company Soulpepper is a theatre company based in Toronto, Ontario.Keith Garebian"Soulpepper Theatre" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', November 4, 2010. History Soulpepper was founded in 1998 by twelve Toronto artists aiming to produce lesser-known theatri ...

, the Hospital for Sick Children and

,"Sandra Faire and Ivan Fecan urge graduates to give to society"
. '' YFile'', June 18, 2008. as well as creating the Sandra Faire and Ivan Fecan Dance Fund, a scholarship fund for dance students which has also provided prize money to non-winning finalists on ''So You Think You Can Dance Canada''.'So You Think You Can Dance Canada' winner crowned
", Canadian Press via CTV News. September 12, 2011. Faire died on February 27, 2019, at her home in Toronto.Vlessing, Etan (March 1, 2019).
Sandra Faire, Pioneering Canadian TV Producer, Dies
", ''The Hollywood Reporter''. Retrieved March 2, 2019.

References

External links

Sandra Faire & Associates
2018 cache from

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Faire, Sandra 2019 deaths Canadian television producers Canadian women television producers Canadian women philanthropists Canadian philanthropists People from Edmonton Year of birth missing