| Photos by
members of RDO
|
June 2005 saw Roy Dupuis return for his 3rd consecutive back-to-back charity marathon, meeting fans first from the event organised by the Rivers Foundation, followed by the one in support of Foundation Mira. These days it’s possible to hear Roy say, “Bye, see you tomorrow” – and not have to pinch yourself awake!
Both events had full programmes to entertain the attendees during the time they weren’t hanging on every Dupuis syllable, or bidding wads of hard earned dollars for autographed merchandise:-
The Rivers’ event ran a coach trip to Saint-Stanislas to see the home town and final resting place of the real Émilie Bordeleau, followed by a short trek through the Batiscan River Park, where a range of defensive strategies, from saturation in industrial-strength DEET to cute butterfly collars fashioned out of Bounce sheets, were deployed against the flying, biting members of the natural world. The following day, a record may have been set for the longest–lasting buffet in the history of catering.
Mira provided their tried and tested programme of a trip to Doggie HQ, a blindfolded breakfast where the unwary might be photographed chomping on a banana and, of course, the ever-popular Défi-Vision race at the Granby Autodrome, where Roy and his blind driver managed a creditable 3rd place in car 23 this year. In addition, some sensory-testing games reminded us of the drawbacks of storing our safety pins in rice jars.
Due to Roy’s prolific output over the past year, both organisers managed to arrange screenings of some of his latest films, so we gorged ourselves on Les États-Unis d’Albert, Manners of Dying and Mémoires affectives, the latter still being on release in Montreal for those with the time and inclination for 2nd and 3rd helpings of dessert.
But, undeniably, the pièce de resistance was the living presence of the man himself. His physical appearance had been the subject of some debate in the previous months, anticipating the impact of his role of Maurice Richard in Charles Binamé’s forthcoming film of the same name. Consequently, a smooth chin and dyed hair were expected, a look we’ve rarely seen in life or onscreen since the days of La Femme Nikita (with the notable exception of Jack Paradise). What wasn’t expected was the rejuvenating effect this had on his face – the 1940’s cut ruffled into contemporary boyishness, the philosopher’s guise replaced by a huge impish grin. Artlessly attired both days in the same tattered green cords and work boots, set off with $200 Rēvo mirrored shades (technology out of NASA), he turned up for two days of very hard work.
And what a performance. Never flagging but visibly glistening in the humid atmosphere, he charmed, listened, explained, joked, mimed, debated, dressed up, signed, and posed; doing everything he was asked and, on occasion, told to do. No-one was spared from his legendary intense gaze; novices and veterans alike fell under the spell. Sustained only by cigarettes and soft drinks, he toured the room for hours without a break, fully committed to the task, and apparently unfazed by the conspicuous decrease in the inhibitions of his audience compared with previous years. Hockey-practice injuries, sailing accidents, horse-mating and religious beliefs were just some of the topics added to the usual safe fare of work projects completed and planned; concentration, seriousness or hilarity were available at the drop of a hat. He was showered with gifts, each of which he accepted graciously; he also accepted compliments and apparently gave some too. But most of all, he gave himself, totally unselfishly and unselfconsciously, to the eager fans.
We should all feel very privileged to be fans of Roy Dupuis – whether as one of the small number lucky enough to be present, or as those to whom we all dutifully debriefed on the message boards over the subsequent weeks. Roy is an example to us all in his generosity, tolerance and good manners. We could do worse than follow that example within the community until next year. |
