Clairette (April 3, 1919 – October 28, 2008) was a Quebec-based French actress, singer and owner of Montreal's Chez Clairette nightclub, a typical bar-restaurant on Rue de la Montagne that became a popular hangout for students from the University of Montreal, Radio Canada producers, well-to-do doctors, lawyers and businessmen.

Contents 1 Background 2 Entertainer/Empresaria 3 Last years 4 Honours 5 Death 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Background

Born as Claire Oderra, she grew up in Marseille, France, where she early exhibited a love of singing. By 20, she was waiting on tables at the canteen of a local movie studio. She ended up there after dropping out of school at 12 and doing a series of odd jobs, including at a hairdressing salon, a soap factory, and as a film developer at the studio, which was owned by writer and filmmaker Marcel Pagnol. After being fired from the studio, Clairette was sent to work at the canteen by Charles Pons, the studio's general manager.

[edit] Entertainer/Empresaria

Pagnol provided her with a role in a film, and changed her name to Clairette. The movie was La fille du puisatier, a 1939 drama about a widower in Provence, raising six daughters by himself. Clairette played the second daughter. She was soon recruited for a radio drama, where she also became known as a singer, and then made her debut on the stage. During the Second World War, she made three other movies but mostly toured France on stage and in variety shows.

It was a 1949 tour that brought her to Quebec for the first time. She married at age 21, but the union lasted only four years. She would continue shuttling between Canada and France until 1957, when she came to Quebec to stay. She spent about two years playing at Faisan Doré and the Café St-Jacques before opening the eponymous Chez Clairette, where, every Monday afternoon, she held auditions to scout out artists. On show nights, she sometimes took the stage herself for a few songs, but mostly she would scan the room, seeing to details and making sure that the often unruly audience gave her artists a proper welcome. Known affectionately as "Mother Superior" by the students from the University of Montreal, she scolded anyone who misbehaved.

Her introductions often took the form of exhortations. “Now shut up and listen … because the kid here is gonna sing, and she's very good.” Among the performers whose careers she helped launch were Robert Charlebois, Claude Dubois, Diane Dufresne and France Castel. A regular in the audience at that time was Luc Plamondon, who would become one of Quebec's most prolific lyricists. At Chez Clairette, he spotted the pianist-composer André Gagnon, and would go on to write hits for several artists he met there.

The success of Chez Clairette was due, in part, to her companion, Jacques Aqué. They first met in 1952 when she was vacationing in her native France. It was Aqué who suggested that she open Chez Clairette, which he helped her manage. Clairette called Aqué her husband, although they were never officially married. In 1960, he died from complications of a brain tumour. Shortly after, Chez Clairette closed. A second Chez Clairette opened later a bit farther north on the rue de La Montagne and it stayed in business for a decade. When it closed, she was reportedly nearly broke, acknowledging that others had taken advantage of her.

[edit] Last years

She continued to perform on TV, in nightclubs and in hotels. While running Chez Clairette, she appeared from time to time on the Quebec television series, Au pied de la pente douce. She also took up teaching and coaching and opened her own academy for singers at the home of her younger sister, Danielle Oderra, who was also a well-known Quebec singer. Clairette performed regularly, even in old age.

She gave her last performance in June 2008 at the Théâtre Denise-Pelletier on Saint Catherine Street. In an homage show that featured several Quebec artists, including her sister, Clairette sang from her wheelchair and received an ovation that lasted several minutes.

[edit] Honours

She was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 2003^[1] and a Knight of the National Order of Quebec in 2002.^[2]

[edit] Death

She died in Montreal on October 28, 2008, aged 89. She had suffered from osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. She is survived by her younger sister, singer/actress Danielle Oderra.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• IMDb
• Globe and Mail obituary
• Fanset8 - notice of Clairette's death