Remembering the Legacy of Guy Latraverse: The Father of Quebec Show Business

2023-10-18 02:06:00

Moved by the wave of love that has swept over since the announcement of the death of her brother Guy Latraverse, nicknamed the “father of Quebec show business”, Louise Latraverse collects these tributes with humility: “This love is beautiful… The family receives him with him, through him. Guy brought a lot of joy with all the festivals, shows…”

• Read also: Death of Guy Latraverse: local artists pay tribute to him on social networks

• Read also: The Quebec “father of show business”, Guy Latraverse, is no longer

One of the founders of the Quebec Association of the Recording, Entertainment and Video Industry (ADISQ) and the Francofolies de Montréal, daring producer, behind the careers of Robert Charlebois, Claude Léveillée, Diane Dufresne, Louise Forestier and many others others, Guy Latraverse died Saturday evening following a long illness at the age of 84. As soon as his death was announced, reactions from cultural and political circles flooded newspapers and social networks.

In 1981, producer Guy Latraverse was at the helm of the big machine Kebec Spec. Archive photo

A few days after the death of her brother, Louise Latraverse brings back memories of their childhood. When she looks back, the 83-year-old artist already sees the beginnings of the great man he later became.

“He was the little king, the little boss. [Rires…] A born organizer, a leader. He was the one who decided, and I had to get out of his way! I tried to take my place, but it wasn’t easy with him. Even when we worked together, he told me: “There is no room for two Latraverses at Radio-Canada”. And I worked my way through that.”

Ironically, it’s Louise Latraverse – “I was the artist in the family!” – who led his brother into the cultural world. One evening, while her lover at the time, Claude Léveillée, was struggling to get paid by a venue manager, Louise Latraverse called her big brother for help. “Guy arrived straight away and said: “You pay for it, otherwise Mr. Léveillée will leave! “Claude found him so good that he asked him to take care of his business,” she says, laughing.

It was the early 60s.

“One thing led to another, he did this job. I introduced everyone to him,” she says.

A very prolific career followed, with Guy Latraverse becoming an artist manager and producer of shows such as I saw the wolf, the fox, the lion with Félix Leclerc, Gilles Vigneault and Robert Charlebois and co-founder of ADISQ, among other accomplishments.

In 1981, producer Guy Latraverse surrounded by Yvon Deschamps and Jean-Guy Moreau. Archive photo

A generous man

Louise and Guy Latraverse, sister and brother, followed each other through their journeys in the artistic world. Did they advise each other? “As a little boss, he knew everything. [Rires…] I don’t think I played the role of advisor to my brother. Above all, he needed me to give him my contacts. We exchanged ideas, but we can’t say that we hung out that much, even if we often had dinners with artists… If he had a question, he called me. It was always sharp. That’s all. It wasn’t a chatterbox.”

Guy Latraverse and Jean-Pierre Ferland Archive photo

It is mainly around family that they have found each other over the years. “At my grandfather, the patriarch, there were huge parties with more than 60 children. There were always lots of people at home. We inherited this sense of celebration from our childhood. My brother had wonderful parties at his house in Saint-Hilaire. Guy organized a wonderful party for my 80th birthday, with all my friends. He was very generous.”

This great generosity often comes back to the mention of Guy Latraverse. “My brother was in love with Quebec and its artists. He said to himself “Why don’t we make our artists known? ”History is created by the actions we take. Guy has done many great things for Quebec. It will remain in its history.

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