The singer and actress Guylaine Guy died during the night from Saturday to Sunday in Saint-Arnoult, France, at the age of 94.
Forgotten since she left Quebec to settle in Normandy, this Montrealer has performed on the biggest stages in the world, from Broadway to the Olympia. She sang with the greatest of her time, including Charles Aznavour and Louis Armstrong, who nicknamed her “the princess of rhythm”.
Born under the name Guylaine Chailler in 1929 in Montreal, Guylaine Guy was the sister of singer Colette Bonheur. She made her debut at the cabarets of Montreal’s Belles Nuits in the early 1950s. She performed at Au Faisan Doré, where Jacques Normand reigned; at Bellevue Casino; and in other clubs where she meets Dominique Michel, Raymond Lévesque, Denise Filiatrault…
She was elected Miss Radio-Television of the weekly Radioworld in 1953. At the end of that year, Guylaine Guy was hired as an understudy for Lilo, the singer of La Mome Pistache, during the creation of Cole Porter’s musical, Cancanwhich was a success on Broadway until 1955.
After Broadway, Charles Trenet took her under his wing. The singer of The sea wrote him some songs. In Paris, she sang at the Bobino and made a notable entrance at the Olympia, before going on tour in Europe, Brazil and the Middle East. Closer to us, in Quebec, Mme Guy makes a few appearances on television. In 1963, she played the title role ofIrma the sweet at the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, in a production by Jean Gascon.
After her marriage to lawyer Charles Libman, she put her singing career on hold. She made a brief return in the early 1970s, before settling in France and devoting herself to painting and tapestry. Two years ago, the author and journalist Catherine Genest dedicated a biographical novel to him, entitled The Princess of Rhythm (Boreal).
PHOTO PROVIDED BY BORÉAL
The Princess of RhythmCatherine Genest