Nicole Germain
Nicole Germain, C.M. (born Marcelle Landreau; November 29, 1917 – February 11, 1994) was a Canadian actress in Quebec radio and film in the 1940s and 1950s and later as a journalist. In 1974, she was named a member of the Order of Canada.
Personal life
Germain was born Marcelle Landreau. Her father was George Landreau, director of the Montreal Conservatory.[1] She was also niece to Chief Justice Rinfret.[2] She studied at the LaSalle Conservatory.[1] Her daughter is Liette Desjardins.
Career
Germain began acting in radio in 1939 and became so popular she was voted the French Canadian "Miss Radio 1946".[1][3][4]
Success in radio led Germain to a role starring in the French version, La Fortresse, of the 1947 film Whispering City which is notable as one of the earliest attempts of a Canadian film to break into the U.S. market. The film, popular in Quebec, the English version failed to find an audience, either in the United States or Canada.[5]
In 1949, she played Donalda in the film adaptation of Claude-Henri Grignon’s novel Un homme et son péché, followed by the film Séraphin a year later.[1] In 1952, she played a concert pianist in Le rossignol et les cloches. She then had a long career as a television journalist and moderator. She was a panelist on the 1950s Quebec version of What's My Line?, Chacun son Metier. In 1955 she appeared as a contestant on the American What's My Line? (Episode #242), first as a contestant, then joining the panel next to Bennet Cerf.[6]
She was co-chairman of the 1960 Christmas Gift Campaign for the Quebec Division of the Canadian Mental Health Association which raised gifts for Quebec's hospitalized mentally ill.[7]
At a conference on the French language held at the Menton, France in 1971, Germain urged the creation of an organization to find substitute French words when new English words are created.[8]
In 1974 Nicole Germain was named a Member of the Order of Canada for her efforts to promote the French language.[9]
References
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Caption to photo of Germain calls her "French Canadian Miss Radio 1946"
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External links
- Nicole Germain at the Internet Movie Database
- (French) Video of 1958 TV interview on YouTube by Germain with NHL player Butch Bouchard.
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- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with French-language external links
- Articles using small message boxes
- 1917 births
- 1994 deaths
- Actresses from Montreal
- Canadian women journalists
- Canadian television personalities
- Canadian radio actresses
- Canadian film actresses
- Female broadcasters
- Journalists from Quebec
- Members of the Order of Canada
- 20th-century women writers
- 20th-century Canadian actresses
