Rolland & Paul BÉDARD,
well-known QC actors,
shared the same father,
Alonzo "Bozo" BÉDARD
who married Adèle "Addie" BOURQUE (Alexis+Olivine FUGÈRE) in 1912 in Montréal, QC. Addie gave birth to her only child, Rolland, in November 1913. In January 1915, she died of Meningitis.
Three years after the death of Addie, Alonzo married Marguerite AUDET (Alexis+Virginie BOUTHILLIER) in February 1918, who bore 7 children: Jean-Jacques, Marielle, Joseph-Charles, miscarriage, Paul, Marie-Anne, Joseph-Robert-Lucien. Alonzo died in 1945; therefore, Marguerite remarried & died in 1973.
Although born of the same father, Rolland & Paul were not close, nor did the former have much contact with his father's second family. Rolland felt that he was put aside by his step-mother, Marguerite, who, according to Rolland, treated him like a "slave" in that, being the eldest, he had to tend to most of the family chores. Rolland seems to have resented his step-mother to whom he did not speak for several years. He moved out of the family home at a young age & set out on his own.
Rolland's first job was as a tailor's assistant thinking he would eventually learn the trade & open his own shop. He was soon discouraged & went to work for Lasnier's Candle Shop where he made candles by hand-dipping them. This job lasted 4 years. He survived the Depression by doing odd jobs (painting, hanging wallpaper, moving helper, truck driver). From age 17, though, he also had small acting parts in radio plays and continued his career part-time by singing, acting & being a comedian till it became a fulltime job.
Paul, known in the family as "Ti-Paulo," was born in 1924 in Longueuil, QC. He had an easier life than his half-brother, Rolland, whom he admired because of his acting career, which he hoped to emulate. But, already having a BÉDARD actor in the family, Paul was advised to take on a stage name so as not to be confused or compared with Rolland. Paul decided to take the stage name of PAUL BERVAL, the name by which he became known for the rest of his life.
I have recently read the biography of each of the half-brothers and found it fascinating to discover that each, having lived in the same household, had experienced vastly different emotions despite similar surroundings.
1) ROLLAND BÉDARD, COMÉDIEN by André BOULANGER, published in 1984, gives us an intimate look into the psychological effects that living with a step-mother had on Rolland. This aspect of family life was not discussed in his brother's biography.
2) VIVRE POUR LE RIRE, biographie de PAUL BERVAL by Pierre DAY, published in 2004, relates the daily life of a typical blue-collar Québec family living on the south shore of Montréal, QC.
BÉDARD
(1)
Isaac BÉDARD
Marie GIRARD
1644-03-10
Calvinist Temple, LaRochelle, Aunis, FRANCE
(2)
Jacques BÉDARD
Élisabeth DOUCINET
1666-10-04
Québec City, QC
(3)
Jacques BÉDARD
Jeanne Élisabeth RENAULT/RENAUD
1702-11-27
Charlesbourg, QC
(4)
Joseph BÉDARD
Marguerite LABERGE
1760-02-18
Charlesbourg, QC
(5)
Jacques BÉDARD
Marie-Angélique DUMAIS/DEMERS
1788-11-17
Saint-Mathias-sur-Richelieu, Rouville County, QC
(6)
Alexis BÉDARD
Catherine SÉGUIN dite LADÉROUTE
1815-01-10
Marieville, Rouville County, QC
(7)
Zéphirin BÉDARD
Edwidge LASNIER dite BELLEHUMEUR
1844-10-29
Marieville, Rouville County, QC
(8)
Amédée BÉDARD
Philomène GARCEAU
1887-07-25
St-Pierre-de-Sorel, Richelieu County, QC
(9)
Alonzo BÉDARD
Adèle BOURQUE
1912-09-30
Immaculée-Conception parish, Montréal, QC
Marguerite AUDET
1918-02-09
St-Antoine-de-Pade, Longueuil, Chambly Coutny, QC
No comments:
Post a Comment