The Quebec journalistic community is once again in mourning. Everyday veteran The Press, Gilles Normand died Wednesday evening following a cerebral hemorrhage. He was 77 years old.
Originally from Nicolet, he entered the daily life in 1965 Le Nouvelliste of Trois-Rivières, assigned to municipal politics. He is hired at The Press in 1967, a newspaper where he worked until 2005. He was a political columnist at the National Assembly from 1989 to 1998, then from 2002 to 2005.
In Montreal, the range of his fields of interest was remarkable; head of the general information division, he had been a legal columnist, for the arts and literature, a specialist in international sailing competitions. Enlightened art lover, he has multiplied interviews with illustrious Quebec painters for long portraits published by The Press.
By the 1980s, he had taken up long-distance running and had participated in several marathons, in Canada and the United States. By the end of the decade, at age 43, he had set the best time in Quebec for his age group, with a marathon of 2 hours 45 minutes.
Thursday, the former Liberal minister Jacques Dupuis underlined his sorrow at the disappearance of the man who had been his friend for 40 years. “Contrary to what some might think, sometimes politicians and journalists develop personal ties. This was my case with Gilles Normand, whose professionalism and style I first appreciated to then discover the hypersensitive, fragile and loyal being in friendship. I will miss him. »
A colleague “whom everyone will miss”
When he retired in June 2005, the National Assembly paid tribute to him. “What characterizes Mr. Normand is respect for his profession,” noted Louise Harel, then leader of the opposition. Mario Dumont, for the ADQ, had underlined “his devotion to the cause of information” and Pierre Paradis, Liberal minister, had evoked “his warm personality, his serene temperament and his deep humanism”.
“His kindness and friendliness made him a pleasant colleague, whom everyone will miss,” said Norman Delisle, retired from The Canadian Press, on Thursday. Many have noted his benevolent humor; ” a customer ! “, launched this tongue-in-cheek, each time his phone rang at The Press.
Since 1989 he had been the spouse of Gisèle Gallichan, a well-known political journalist. They lived in Sainte-Pétronille. “His love affair with Gisèle will remain the defining event of his life and no doubt explain why he was so happy on Île d’Orléans”, observed François Trépanier, a long-time colleague of Gilles Normand on Thursday. The Press ; they were friends for 40 years, and accomplices to memorable newsroom tricks.
“He had a fine pen and his texts were always clear and precise,” added Mr. Trépanier.