We could have used all sorts of colorful animal expressions, such as a rare bird and a funny sparrow, but since he uses the expression himself, we dare to call François Morency a “baby.” After all, you have to call everything by its name.
Published at 1:45 am. Updated at 7:00 a.m.
“Bébite” because François Morency has never experienced a down phase in his 30-year career (anniversary he celebrates in 2023). “Bébite” because those around him suspect him of arranging his T-shirts by color. And “Baby”, because in an interview the main character openly admits that outside of work there are “not that many things” that he enjoys in everyday life.
“Being in the forest with my huskies: that’s my happy bubble. It’s my only escape. The only place where my work doesn’t exist. The rest of the time it is constant. When I go to the gym, people see me walking in circles. You see my lips moving. I look like a schizophrenic. But because they know me, they know. I try out a text or write. »
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
François Morency
I’m often very, very, very, very in my head. It’s hard to free myself from it.
François Morency
François Morency chose this situation. Because he loves his job. He loves to write, rehearse, play, understand, learn, hold meetings… Even when he goes on vacation (which isn’t often), he goes away with his computer so he can approve changes.
“We write far too many emails to each other outside of working hours,” confirms the producer of “Discussions with my parents”, Guillaume Lspérance. François isn’t always bad. In six years, I’ve never heard him say, “I don’t have time.” It’s great to work with someone so dedicated. »
PRESS PHOTO ARCHIVE
The Café de l’humour, organized in 1995 by the young François Morency
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, LA RESSE ARCHIVE
Normand Brathwaite and François Morency at the Artis Gala 2007
PHOTO DENIS COURVILLE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
Geneviève Brouillette and François Morency, stars of the film Nuit de noces by Émile Gaudreault, in 2001
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Goal: longevity
François Morency has always been disciplined. After dropping out of the National School of Humor during a pub crawl in 1993, the aspiring stand-up comedian quickly realized he would have to pull several strings together if he wanted to continue in the industry. In this pre-social media era, that meant going on stage every night and hoping to get noticed.
Recalling these memories, François Morency insists that the era of organized comedy nights as we know them today, which bring together a captive audience of in-the-know to listen to the person at the microphone, is far from here is. “We disturbed people who wanted to drink their beer in peace. We gained our audience, one drunk at a time. »
PHOTO ARMAND TROTTIER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
François Morency was a star presenter on CKOI in the late 1990s.
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
François Morency and Bonhomme Carnaval, 2009, at a Just for Laughs gala
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
In 2002, at the Just for Laughs gala, a unique rapprochement occurred between François Morency and Laurent Paquin
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François Morency has visibly achieved his goal of diversification, because three decades later his particularly varied career includes 15 years in radio (as editor, presenter and producer), 4 solo shows (675 performances and 500,000 tickets sold), twenty galas (Olivier, Artis, Just for Laughs), 2 bestsellers and 3 television shows, including Discussions with Parents, which continues to appear in the top 3 most listened to fiction in Quebec, behind STAT and Indéfendable.
“I didn’t want to wait for the phone to ring,” explains the comedian. I wanted to be proactive and start my own business. It gave me a range of options and contingencies. I was no longer a slave to a medium or person in a position of power who could end my career with the snap of my fingers. »
PHOTO ARMAND TROTTIER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
François Morency hosted the Artis Gala three years in a row in the early 2000s.
The fact that François Morency never took on a long desert crossing is also due to the fact that he always quickly got back on his feet after professional disappointment, for example when TVA pulled the plug on his talk show “Merci bonoir!” in 2004 or when CKOI stopped Midi Morency in 2011.
On the phone, Martin Langlois, who has managed his career for 18 years, confirms his resilience. “François bled from the heart in Tabarouette, as a thank you, good evening! It’s over. It hurt him, but he returned the same day to do a show. It forced him to move forward. And when his parents died [son père en 2019, sa mère en 2021], it was a big shock. But he didn’t run away. It didn’t stay in a little ball in his closet. »
Between sips of pink Gatorade, François Morency uses a hockey metaphor to illustrate his “fighting” side. “I’ve always done a lot of sport. It taught me one thing: you don’t give up. Even if you lose 6-0 after two periods, you can’t go home. You go back to play the third. You’re trying to get back on track. »
reconciliation
And now the crucial question: With his foot firmly on the accelerator, will François Morency manage to balance his professional and private life after a 30-year career? After a few seconds of thinking, the comedian tries to answer.
“I have friends who need a relationship. Not because they are weaker than me. It has nothing to do. But if a girl dumps them or they dump a girl, they’re a match two weeks later. But how do you find a blonde who turns you on so quickly? »
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
François Morency
It’s different for me. And over time, I accepted who I was: a lonely baby.
François Morency
“I’ve met some extraordinary girls,” continues the eternal bachelor (who reveals he recently had “a new girlfriend”). “I messed up relationships because I was too committed to work. I am fully aware of this. I’m still friends with these girls. You have children with other men. Could I have been less of who I was if I had continued to be with them? Perhaps. But at the same time, you are what you are, buddy. »
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESS ARCHIVE
François Morency on the set of the series Conversations with my parents, with Marie-Ginette Guay and Vincent Bilodeau
The following
François Morency recently started writing a potential seventh season of Discussions with My Parents, which just won the prestigious Audience Award at Gémeaux. He secretly develops a variety show. A pilot film was also filmed.
In a few years the workaholic could go on tour again and present a fifth one-man show. (“You know, Jerry Seinfeld is 69 years old. He still performs five nights a week, like Jay Leno. Don Rickles was a stand-up until his death. So was George Carlin.”)
It’s obvious: he’s passionate about his job and although he has no intention of retiring in the short, medium or long term, he’s thinking about slowing down. Possibly.
“Do nothing?” NO. I think I would be very happy with a few months as I have traveled very little. I only saw North America. I haven’t seen Asia, Greece, Italy… I’m geographically deficient. I would like to correct that. But when I come back, I know I’ll be like, “Okay, what’s next?” »
ICI Télé broadcasts “Discussions with my parents” on Mondays at 7:30 p.m.
François Morency in six stages
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
François Morency
Although he is not nostalgic for the past, François Morency agreed to look back and highlight his 30-year career.
The New Values (1997–1998)
PHOTO LAURENCE LABAT, PROVIDED BY FRANÇOIS MORENCY
François Morency in his first solo exhibition
François Morency starts his first solo exhibition in which he talks about taboo topics such as religion and homosexuality. “We sold out Cabaret Juste Pour Laughs for 35 nights in a row. I lived a 5 minute walk away. I was like in Las Vegas, but in Montreal. It was an extraordinary thrill. »
The following year he went on tour and attracted 70,000 spectators. This success, which confirms his arrival in the “big leagues”, is the result of an unusual experience: the opening of Céline Dion shows. “I remember the Molson Center because it was obviously packed. The first night when they turned out the lights and announced my name… I will always remember the mini-putt applause as I walked on stage! »
Midi Morency (1999–2001 and 2004–2011)
PHOTO ARMAND TROTTIER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
François Morency at the Midi Morency microphone at CKOI, September 1999
With Éric Nolin, Pierre Prince and Cathya Attar, François Morency dominates the airwaves during dinner. Midi Morency, the star of CKOI, has been named Best Humorous Radio Show at the Olivier Awards four years in a row.
For this FM adventure, the comedian thanks today Mario Cecchini, former boss of Corus Quebec (which currently runs the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League), the media group that owned the Montreal antenna. “He came to get me. He gave me a chance. He trusted me. »
Despite an abrupt end in 2011 after 1,700 broadcasts, François Morency retains the memory of “extraordinary” but breathtaking years, as he was “everywhere” during that time.
“I was on tour, I was on stage four nights a week in addition to the corps. I hosted the Artis Gala and the Just for Laughs Galas. I did commercials for Oasis, I played at Café Caméra… It was a strong rhythm. »
Wedding Night (2001)
PHOTO NICOLE RIVELLI, PROVIDED BY CINÉMAGINAIRE INC.
Geneviève Brouillette and François Morency on their wedding night
Alongside Geneviève Brouillette, François Morency plays the lead role in “Nuit de noces”, a moral comedy by Émile Gaudreault (“From Father to Policeman and Liar”), which tells of the misadventures of a young couple who come to Niagara Falls with parents and friends, to get married there. The film grossed $2,800,000 at the Quebec box office and won the Golden Reel at the Genie Awards, an award for the highest-grossing feature film in the country.
“I knew Émile Gaudreault and Marc Brunet from the School of Humor. I had heard between branches that they were writing a film… I had two or three auditions and got the part. »
“I learned a lot while making the film. I learned to manage my energy by watching other actors like Yves Jacques. It was new for me to be on standby for four hours to shoot a one-minute scene. »
Thank you good night ! (2003-2004)
PHOTO ROBERT MAILLOUX, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
François Morency in September 2003 in the studio of Merci bonoir, his new show on TVA
François Morency succeeds Julie Snyder (Le Faust J) and Marc Labrèche (The Tall Blonde with a Devious Show) at the helm of TVA’s evening talk show. The comedian who once watched David Letterman and Johnny Carson religiously is making a dream come true. The viewers are there, but after just one season the broadcaster pulls the plug on the show for budget reasons.
“It just ended sooner than I would have liked. I felt like the ground had been pulled out from under me. I thought we’d been gone for five years. »
François Morency does not think he will have the chance to repeat the experience and host another show of this kind. “Talk shows aren’t what they used to be. Even in the USA, ratings are falling. In Quebec there are more talk shows than guests. And that without podcasts. »
The Oliviers (2014, 2016–2017)
PHOTO ULYSSE LEMERISE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
Francois Morency hosts the Les Olivier gala in December 2017
François Morency took over the management of the humor gala in 2014 and was a huge hit with critics and audiences. He returned to the helm in 2016 and 2017, and each time the ceremony took place amid controversy: a censored number by Mike Ward and Guy Nantel, then, the following year, allegations of harassment and sexual assault against Gilbert Rozon.
The pressure is on, but Morency is doing well.
“When hosting a gala, the 3-3-3 rule applies: you work for three months for a show that lasts three hours, and after three days no one talks about it anymore. It’s over. And that’s normal. It’s also a lesson in show business. People have lives. You have a spouse, kids, mortgage to pay, a dentist appointment… you can be the talk of the town [sujet chaud] for a few days, but then it’s over. The world keeps turning. »
Conversations with my parents (since 2018)
PHOTO KARINE DUFOUR, PROVIDED BY RADIO-CANADA
François Morency with Vincent Bilodeau (Jean-Pierre) and Marie-Ginette Guay (Rollande) in conversations with my parents
François Morency presents the television adaptation of last year’s bestseller of the same name, in which he tells family anecdotes about his parents. With 826,000 viewers in the first season, the series was an instant success on ICI Télé. Its ratings only increased in the following years, reaching a peak of 1,329,000 in 2021.
“The chances of my next project going so well are almost zero. I am aware. And that’s why I take full advantage of it,” says the comedian.
“It’s the combination of everything I’ve done before: stage, radio, gala entertainment… Before, I was perhaps too selfish to work in a team. I think I would have kept more gags to myself, I would have pulled the cover off my page, whereas today it’s fine if Marie-Ginette Guay or Vincent Bilodeau [qui incarnent ses parents à l’écran] steal the show. I’m in zero danger. »