René Claude Simard, , (born February 28, 1961) is a pop singer from

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He is the older brother of

Nathalie Simard Nathalie Simard (born 7 July 1969) is a pop singer from Quebec, Canada, and the younger sister of performer René Simard. Simard was born in Île d'Orléans, near Quebec City, and was discovered by producer Guy Cloutier. Her first role was in a ...

Early life

Simard was born in

Chicoutimi Chicoutimi () is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada. It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and com ...

, Quebec.

Career

In 1974, René Simard was awarded the Grand Prix by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

at the annual

Tokyo Music Festival The Tokyo Music Festival was an international music contest that ran from 1972 to 1992. It was organized by the Tokyo Music Festival Association. The first edition of the Tokyo Music Festival took place on 13 May 1972 with 12 participating countri ...

. In Canada, he hosted the

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

series, ''The René Simard Show'', from 1977 to 1979. Simard is also an occasional actor. He played the henchman Stu in the 1995 film ''

Kids of the Round Table ''Kids of the Round Table'' is a 1995 Canadian/American fantasy film written and directed by Robert Tinnell. Malcolm McDowell, Michael Ironside and newcomer Johnny Morina star in a modern-day adventure filled with medieval magic. Plot A boy nam ...

''. Between 2006 and 2008, he hosted the television series '' L'heure de gloire'' on

Radio-Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

. Simard was formerly managed by Guy Cloutier as well as his sister

Nathalie Nathalie is a female given name. It is a variant of the name Natalie/ Natalia which is found in many languages, and is especially common in French and English speaking countries. Notable people with the name include: * Nathalie, Italian singer * ...

. In 2004, Cloutier was convicted of sexually assaulting Nathalie when she was a child.

Michel Vastel Michel Vastel (20 May 1940 – 28 August 2008) was a Québécois journalist and columnist for '' Le Journal de Montréal'' and other medias. He was born in Saint-Pierre-de-Cormeilles, Eure, France and immigrated to Canada in 1970. Vastel ...

's 2005 book on the case, ''Briser le silence'' (Breaking the Silence), alleged that René co-operated with Cloutier in trying to hide the assaults. In 2005, Simard made a public statement in which he denied this. In 1999 he briefly played the role of The Phantom in the Toronto production of ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (April to May 23, 1999). He was succeeded by

Paul Stanley Paul Stanley (born Stanley Bert Eisen; January 20, 1952) is an American musician who is the co-founder, frontman, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. He is the writer or co-writer of many of the band's most popular ...

. Simard has been married to TV hostess Marie-Josée Taillefer since 1987. In 2014, Simard was named a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

" r his contributions to the development of Quebec culture as a performer, host and director."

References

External links

*
Singer René Simard denies helping hide sister's abuse
''CBC News'', November 18, 2005 * *
Queen's University Directory of CBC Television Series

via archive.org) {{DEFAULTSORT:Simard, Rene 1961 births Canadian male singers Canadian pop singers French Quebecers Living people Musicians from Saguenay, Quebec Singers from Quebec French-language singers of Canada Members of the Order of Canada