An extraordinary event occurred at the Côte Saint-Luc Gymnasium on Saturday, September 24. The sixth annual La Relance ballroom dancing competition, presented by DanseSport Québec, was one professionally run operation.
The competition included several dancing styles, including Latin (cha cha, samba, rumba, paso doble and jive) and standard (waltz, tango, foxtrot, Viennese waltz and the quick step) ballroom dance routines. The competitors were from Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick and even Vermont, with championship rounds in the youth, adult and senior categories. Competitors ranged in age from 11 to 60 and older.
Jean-Francois Rousseau, the president of Danse Sport Québec, was on the dance floor as well with his wife and dance partner Nathalie Ladouceur. They are the Ten-Dance Quebec Senior 1 champions.
When I walked into our gym, I barely recognized it. The folks from Danse Sport had totally remodeled the interior with spectacular lighting, a state-of-the-art sound system and a dance floor surrounded by tables for seating – each outfitted with golden tablecloth curtains. Councillors Dida Berku and Allan J. Levine joined my family with their spouses. Hats off to Alvin Fishman of our Parks and Recreation Department for being the liaison with this group for the past few months and working a 16 hour shift.
We did get the word out to local residents to attend, but I am afraid too late. They do not know what they missed. The dance moves were mesmerizing and I caught a few of them for you on video.
I also spoke to dance icon Jean-Marc Généreux, best known perhaps as the charismatic judge on the just cancelled CTV show So You Think You Can Dance Canada. He was in the house because his 15 year old son Jean-Francis performed earlier in the day.
Excitement is building in the City of Côte Saint-Luc for the prestigious sixth annual La Relance 2011 competition on Saturday, September 24 (1 p.m. to 11 p.m). Mayor Anthony Housefather and members of city council are thrilled that Danse Sport Québec chose the Côte Saint-Luc Gymnasium to hold this large scale event.
Here is an example of the kind of excitement you can expect:
More than 500 people are expected to be in attendance to watch latin (cha cha, samba, rumba, paso doble and jive) and standard (waltz, tango, foxtrot, Viennese waltz and the quick step) ballroom dance routines, featuring competitors from Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick and even Vermont. There will also be championship rounds in the youth, adult and senior categories, with competitors ranging from the age of 11 to 60 plus. Jean-Francois Rousseau, the president of Danse Sport Québec, will be on the dance floor as well with his wife and dance partner Nathalie Ladouceur (pictured below). The couple practice and train with many of the stars who have performed on the recent edition of So You Think You Can Dance Canada. They are the 10 Dances Quebec Senior 1 champions.
Danny Arbour (pictured at the bottom), who was a top 10 finalist in the first season of So You Think You Can Dance Canada and season two top two finalist Vincent Desjardins, will be in attendance as will other past competitors from the hit CTV show and perhaps even some surprise guests.
“The Quebec Danse Sport Federation is an organization which brings together amateur dancers in this province,” Rousseau explains. “Our goal is to promote dance. All of the people who work with us do so on a volunteer basis.
“Our competitions,” he continued, “can be compared to figure skating as all of the couples in each category perform together at the same time on the dance floor. Judges must deliberate at the same time. Our music is not decided in advance. We only know the type of dance that will be required. We are very excited to be be holding this competition in Côte St-Luc puisque as the people there have been very nice and accomodating and the facility is nice."
Francois Pruneau (right), who made this season's SYTYCDC Top 10, has been part of this competition tin the past.
Tickets cost $35 for adults and $15 for children. Côte St-Luc residents who show their Fun Cards will benefit from a reduced rate of $15 for adults and $5 for teenagers and children 16 years and younger . For more information go to www.dansesportquebec.com or call 514-418-TANGo (8264).
An extraordinary thing has occurred in Côte Saint-Luc. With the former Blue Bonnets Raceway located just across the Canadian Pacific Railway tracks andjust steps away from the Decarie Square section of our city, residents and visitors have been enjoying great audio from the world's top rock band.
Many people are congregating near Decarie Square, where you can even see the stage. In District 2 of the city, Marc Chagall Avenue has been the place to be. Check this amazing photo taken by aircam.ca. A gentleman pulled his car up near the snow dump on Marc Chagall and took out a giant blimp-like stricture from his trailer. Lifting it up 500 feet in the air like a kite, he snapped pictures through a video screen which many people gathered around to view.
If you need to hire someone for aerial shots, call Patrick Fernandez at 514-247-2266 or email info@aircam.ca.
The newly formed Côte Saint-Luc Dramatic Society presented its first show last Sunday at the City Hall Auditorium before a capacity crowd of more than 200 people. Dining Out included an evening of scenes, sketches and songs and a cast of more than 30 people, including Mayor Anthony Housefather and Councillor Mitchell Brownstein.
“We got together a group of youth, seniors, residents, city staff and even elected officials to all participate as one family in a truly enjoyable experience,” commented Brownstein. “One of the ladies in our cast told me this was the best activity she has participated in, for as long as she can remember.”
Brownstein credited director Anisa Cameron for allowing people to express their creative talents, “but teach each one of us how to work together as one family. The values you teach our youth in the many productions you have directed helps them become good human beings.” Noted West End physician Jerold Rappaport performed and acted as an assistant to Cameron.
Here is a scene involving Brownstein from the Little Shop of Horrors "Be a Dentist."
Canadian jazz vocalist Ranee Lee will meet donors at the annual Côte Saint-Luc blood donor clinic, which takes place on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 from 1:15 pm to 8 pm at the municipal Gymnasium at 7500 Mackle Rd.
“We’re issuing a challenge this year to regular blood donors to bring someone who has never given before,” said Councillor Ruth Kovac, a long-time blood donor who is the chairperson of the event. “Only 3 percent of Quebecers who are eligible to donate blood actually give this gift of life. That number is too low, especially as the need in hospitals is so great.”
Special guest Ranee Lee will meet donors from 2 pm to 3:30 pm. Lee won a Juno Award in 2010 for her album Ranee Lee Lives Upstairs. She lives in Montreal.
I have always been a big fan of Ranee. Many years ago I did a series of stories on her son Darryl Henegan, a champion kickboxer. Ranee and I connected at CJAD a few times in the past year. She is a lovely person and when I asked if she would visit our Blood Donor Clinic she graciously agreed.
Here she is on stage:
Anyone who is at least 18 years old and in good health can donate blood once every 56 days, which is six times per year. Review the donor qualifications at www.hema-quebec.qc.ca or call 1-800-343-4264.
The four most common blood types are 0 blood (46 percent), A blood (42 percent), B blood (9 percent) and AB blood (3 percent).
NY Times bestselling author/filmmaker Ian Halperin specializes in undercover investigations. He is the author of seven bestselling books and has directed three films, including the highly acclaimed documentary The Cobain Case. Halperin has appeared on hundreds of TV/radio shows including Dateline, Anderson Cooper, Howard Stern, Geraldo Rivera and The CBS Early Morning Show. He is a native of St. Laurent and attended Dawson College and Concordia with me.
I read his very popular blog on a regular basis and I would like to thank him for the kind words he gave to me which you can read here.
I had the pleasure of being interviewed on CTV Montreal January 16 about the station’s 50th anniversary.
In its day, CFCF TV was known for much more than its newscasts. A lot of original programming came out of its Park Extension headquarters at 405 Ogilvy Avenue: Mr. Chips, The Tapp Room, Flashback, Kin to Win, McGowan’s Montreal, Travel Travel, Fighting Back, Sportsnight, The Habs This Week, Grand Prix Wrestling, Magic Tom, As It Is and much more. There was even an attempt to have The Q 92.5 FM morning man Aaron Rand to his then side kick Tasso Patsikakis (Paul Zakaib) host their own late night comedy show a la Letterman and Leno.
Today, known as CTV Montreal, the station’s programming is limited to an outstanding newscast which airs three times weekly and twice on weekends. This week longtime co-anchor Bill Haugland is being reunited with sportscaster Dick Irvin and weather forecaster and program host Don McGowan. At www.ctvmontreal.ca there is a wealth of nostalgia to view.
These days the CTV Montreal newscast is overseen by news and public affairs director Jed Kahane and executive producer Barry Wilson. They work with a large crew of researcher, producers, camera operators and many others.
Mutsumi Takahashi has been the co-anchor for 24 years now. She is joined by the smooth Todd van der hayden while Debra Arbec handles late night and Tarah Schwartz and Paul Karwatsky do weekends. Lori Graham delivers the weather, with Lise McAuley covering weekends, and Brian Wilde, Randy Tieman, André Corbeil and occasionally Paul Graif handle sports. The reporting team includes Annie DeMelt, Stéphane Giroux, Maya Johnson, Tania Krywiak, Christine Long and Mose Persico (entertainment), Kai Nagata (Quebec City), Aphrodite Salas, Cindy Sherwin, Anne Lewis and Caroline Vlan Vlaardingen. Behind the scenes there are people like assignment editor Amy Fernandez and researchers Peter Schiavi and Holly Haimerl.
And whom can we remember from newscasts past? There are Herb Luft, Brian Britt, Robert Vairo, Lynn Desjardins, Joe Singerman, Andrew Marquis, Mike Donegan, Mike Piperni, Liz Travers, Sandy Krawchenko, Bob Benedetti, Ron Francis, Brian MacGorman, John Grant, Ralph Noseworthy, Frank Cavallaro, Brian Nelson, Leslie Roberts, Brian MacFarland, Ken Ernhoffer, Howard Schwartz, Rob Faulds, Jack Curran, Suzanne Desautels, Jeannie Lee, Tom Velk, Ron Reusch Dr. Mitch Shulman, Del Archer and many more. Whom have I missed? Let me know by email at info@mikecohen.ca
I have received a lot of amazing feedback to this posting.
Here is what Del Archer had to share:
"I arrived in Montreal from Vancouver on the weekend Pierre LaPorte's body was found in the trunk of his car. I had listened to the coverage while driving across Canada, spent that night in a motel on the Ontario side of the border and saw the military roadblocks set up on the westbound (Quebec) side as I was driving east. I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into but it was an amazing time to be in the province. I met with Bert Cannings and Mike Donegan on the Monday and was on air the same day. I stayed with 'CF for seven years, moving over to the television side in about 1973 as a reporter and later became a fill-in anchor for Andrew Marquis. The night of the Parti Quebecois election, I was offered the opportunity to join CTV network News and I remained there for the next 23 and a half years. Montreal in the 70's was an exciting, LIVING, storybook with a new chapter virtually every day and I loved every minute of it. Thanks for giving me the chance to add my name to your list." See my story on page 40 in this January 19 edition of The Suburban Newspaper.
It has been more than 30 years since Dubarry Furs Inc. began operating in Montreal. Owner Ivan Katz manufactures superior quality garments and provides personalized service at his Old Montreal location.
Dubarry offers a wide selection to choose from. This includes fine and sheared furs, reversibles, cashmere and alpaca capes with fur trim, shearlings, soft leather, hats, scarves, purses, headbands and muffs. There are hundreds of accessories in stock.
As Mr. Katz, a Côte Saint-Luc resident, points out, Dubarry strives to provide their customers with the latest styles of the finest quality fur garments. In fact, the extensive inventory available enables Dubarry to cater to a variety of tastes, sizes and styles. Custom made material is also available.
Shearling coats and jackets are available for both women and men. “They are made from the finest quality skins, are lightweight yet warm and designed for the fashion conscious and discriminating customer,” says Mr. Katz, whose father originally started the business in Europe prior to WWII. “We also have ultra soft leathers which are made in Montreal. They come in various colours and styles.”
Among the company’s services are cleaning, repairs, remodelling, trade-ins and storage. Mr. Katz welcomes customers to come in for a complimentary consultation. Remodelling is a nice option. With their years of experience, Dubarry can work magic on your old, heavy fur garment and turn it into a lightweight, sheared, reversible coat! A testament to their success is seen in the letters of thanks on display in the store.
Dubarry offers generous trade-in allowances towards the purchase of new items. Meanwhile, a lot of people do take advantage of storing their valuable furs during the off-season in their secure, fully insured climate-controlled vault.
At Dubarry, you never know which celebrity will walk through the door. Such was the case just over a week ago when actress and talk show host Rosie O’Donnell dropped by unannounced to look for a fur coat. She reportedly came to town with her own film crew to do some research on a very recent finding that she may have some French Canadian ancestors. “My husband called and said that she was in the store,” noted Elizabeth Katz. “At that point Rosie took the phone and started to talk to me. She was charming.”
Dubarry Furs is located at 206 St. Paul Street West in Old Montreal at the corner of St. Francois-Xavier and near the Place D’Armes Metro. For more information call 514-844, 7483 or 514-816-7483. You can also email info@dubarryfurs.com or log on to www.dubarryfurs.com.
Last week marked the two year anniversary in Montreal of the Portable People Meter (PPM), a pager-sized device that is carried by a representative panel of radio listeners which the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement (BBM) uses to officially determine local radio listenership.
Results unveiled last week for people surveyed between August 30 and November 28 showed Virgin Radio FM as the top anglo market performer. In the all important aged 25 to 54 demographic, Cat Spencer and Lisa Player (below) lead the morning show competition followed by CJAD’s Andrew Carter and Aaron Rand of The Q.
Between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Virgin is also at the top, followed by The Q, CHOM, CJAD and THE TEAM 990. The drive home has newcomer Cousin Vinny keeping Virgin in the lead ahead of CHOM’s Bilal Butt, Ken Connors and Donna Saker from The Q, Ric Peterson of CJAD and Mitch Melnick (below) of THE TEAM 990, whose ratings have definitely come up since the advent of the PPMs.
The man behind Virgin Radio's impressive programming controls is Mark Bergman, formerly the drive home show host (The Rush). He has been at the helm for less than a year now and clearly has a steady touch. Mark, a longtime Côte Saint-Luc resident, is the son of D'Arcy McGee Liberal MNA Lawrence Bergman.
When the cult hit television show Lost concluded its dramatic six year run last May, as a devoted fan I went into withdrawal. Recently, I received the DVD box set of the final season. That helped ease the pain a bit. In November I met the man who played the pivotal role of Jacob, actor Mark Pellegrino. He was in Montreal shooting the much anticipated new original drama called Being Human, a North American version based on the British series. Look for it on SPACE TV in Canada and t he SyFy Network in the USA in January. After I interviewed him for my column in The Suburban Newspaper my friend and colleague Daniel Smajovits, helped me film this chat with “Jacob.”
Although Pellegrino only joined Lost at the very end of the second to last season, his character was the key to making sense of all of the plotline mysteries. Meeting him was a real thrill, Ever since Lost ended its run I held out hope that I would meet a cast member and be able to ask them the same kinds of questions all fans had on their minds. Pellegrino was an absolute delight: polite, humorous and very open. We met in the lobby of his hotel. He was wearing glasses and reading a book. When he stood up I was surprised to see how tall he was – six-foot-three- and in what phenomenal physical condition he’s in.
