Yvon Deschamps

Deschamps, Yvon

Yvon Deschamps, actor, comedian (b at Montréal 1935) left school early and worked at Radio-Canada as a messenger before taking private drama lessons from Paul Buissonneau. Deschamps played his first roles at the Théâtre Universitaire Canadien with Paul Hébert in 1958-59. In 1959 he made his first television appearance on Radio Canada, and Buissonneau hired him as an actor at the Roulotte. He played at La Poudrière and at L'Égrégore in 1960 and, beginning in 1961, appeared at Claude Leveillee concerts. Buissonneau hired him as an assistant in 1963 and, the following year, they founded (with Claude Léveillée and Jean-Louis Millette) Théâtre de Quat'Sous.

Deschamps appeared in his first revues in 1963 and in his first film, Délivrez-nous du mal, in 1964. But above all he is known for his satirical, political monologues, which he began to perform in 1967 in restaurants and clubs such as the Boîte à Clémence. He became famous especially after his participation in L'Osstidcho, a revue that also brought Louise Forestier and Robert Charlebois into the limelight, because he could fill halls every night during the week with people listening to his monologues. In the area of community work Deschamps has helped to finance Le Chaînon, a Montréal house for women in distress. He has won many awards and was chosen Personnalité de l'année in the arts by La Presse in 1994.