The René Angélil legacy

[celine4evauk]

The media is free to report what they want since we have freedom of the press here in Canada. The fact that the funeral was a public affair will make them release the figures when they are avaialble. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but to say peple from Quebec are stupid and that Canada is insane is quite frankly rude.

 

Well said.

A state funeral is public. Therefore all the logistics around it is public, or at least can be available to the public.

I just don't like it when things are reported but aren't fact etc. Like in this instance, people are verbally attacking / criticising celine when not all the facts are written.

All government papers should be available to the public. Except the high security /classified stuff obviously.

[ehild]

Most people have to pay for their loved one's final expenses, etc. Which is why most of us have (or should have!) life insurance; so we don't leave that burden for our loved ones. Now this is slightly different with the state funeral and all but I agree....$700k is quite a lot!! Celine and Rene being the type of people they are I'm sure they'll pay for it. Rene being the business man he was and the detail he took in the planning for Celine, I'd be surprised if he also didn't have some form of life insurance to settle the final bill.

 

Even if not, they have sooooo much money I don't see $650k as being a huge debt to them.

[rhapsodion]

The English speaking Canada is picking up the story today. Aldo, u better do the job and get the family to pay the entire expense. Thanks the government for the offer, but the family will cover all the expenses. Neither Celine nor Rene should receive all these preventable attacks, when we know they are the charitable couple, not a greedy couple.

[LukeD]

Human beings are so gross. This funeral turned into a money issue. So pathetic.

[Ororo Munroe]

Don't check facebook it's trending right now and the comments are ugh real bad

 

After what Céline and René brought to their countrie, the behaviour of the journalists is unbearable. If they want to destroy the good reputation of Céline, Good job, it's on the way and it could have a big impact on her career. She can thank Quebec !! They act like sharks and we live in a period where everything spreads so queeckly... I can't believe it.

[incognito]

It's not going to impact her career. Calm down.

[Peppercorn1991]

It's not going to impact her career. Calm down.

 

This kind of news won't be great...

 

Kev x

[québecflower]

It's not going to impact her career. Calm down.

it is the same people who hates her no matter what who spreads their hate, in the comment section , mainly on CBC.ca, nothing new.

[Ororo Munroe]

it is the same people who hates her no matter what who spreads their hate, in the comment section , mainly on CBC.ca, nothing new.

 

Are you sure about that ?

[québecflower]

After what Céline and René brought to their countrie, the behaviour of the journalists is unbearable. If they want to destroy the good reputation of Céline, Good job, it's on the way and it could have a big impact on her career. She can thank Quebec !! They act like sharks and we live in a period where everything spreads so queeckly... I can't believe it.

you know nothing about the situation here , you should just stop. Nothing is happening here, the situation is ok, the governement will pay like a normal national funeral, even a little less . And her reputation is not in question in Quebec.

[rhapsodion]

 

 

After what Céline and René brought to their countrie, the behaviour of the journalists is unbearable. If they want to destroy the good reputation of Céline, Good job, it's on the way and it could have a big impact on her career. She can thank Quebec !! They act like sharks and we live in a period where everything spreads so queeckly... I can't believe it.

 

The journalists did nothing wrong, they did not fabricate any facts in the article. It is public interest, something that the public has a right to know as it involves their tax dollars. We can claim that celine and rene's contribution to the province worth way more than $50,000, but to many ordinary people out there, $50,000 could be spent on other people more in needs.

 

Put yourself in their shoes, if you are not a fan of celine, or if this happens to another singer that u are not a fan of, would you feel the same way?

Edited April 1, 2016 at 07:08 PM by rhapsodion

[québecflower]

Are you sure about that ?

as i live here , i know more than you. It is not a big story i8n quebec, there've been some talking and it is over. Edited April 1, 2016 at 07:08 PM by québecflower

[Ororo Munroe]

The journalists did nothing wrong, they did not fabricate any facts in the article. It is public interest, something that the public has a right to know as it involves their tax dollars. We can claim that celine and rene's contribution to the province worth way more than $50,000, but to many ordinary people out there, $50,000 could be spent on other people more in needs.

 

Put yourself in their shoes, if you are not a fan of celine, or if this happens to another singer that u are not a fan of, would you feel the same way?

 

Your country has weird way to celebrate somoene who brings so much. And you should read the reactions in France, here it's going to become a big affair.

[rhapsodion]

 

 

Your country has weird way to celebrate somoene who brings so much. And you should read the reactions in France, here it's going to become a big affair.

 

I would be disappointed if my country does not have people and journalists that make sure our government is accountable. And frankly, Celine and Rene are not saint, they might have brought in large revenues for tourism, musicians, and paid huge taxes to the government, but many ordinary people are also doing a lot and contributing a lot to our country, and they are not wealthy, the proportion of money that they are donating in ratio to their wealth could be even larger than Celine's, yet when they die, they don't get to have a state funeral nor getting any subsidy.

[I Drove All Night!]

I don't really understand the controversy here.... In every news source I've read it is stated very clearly that Feelings gave the government a COST LIST, not a bill. To me that means that Céline's camp basically said, "Here's what the funeral cost, pay what you are willing and we'll cover the rest." I'm sure Céline knew very well that Quebec wouldn't pay $700,000 for his funeral and I highly doubt she ever would have asked them to.

 

It's frustrating knowing how humble she is and that when it comes down to it she orchestrated the funeral the way René wanted it done. I'm sure they were well aware of the cost before he even passed, I doubt the fact that they were offered a National funeral changed the cost of the funeral very drastically.

 

I hope Aldo and his team are taking measures to shield Céline from this stuff and are just handling it behind closed doors... goodness knows she doesn't need to feel stressed about laying the love of her life to rest.

[Ororo Munroe]

I don't really understand the controversy here.... In every news source I've read it is stated very clearly that Feelings gave the government a COST LIST, not a bill. To me that means that Céline's camp basically said, "Here's what the funeral cost, pay what you are willing and we'll cover the rest." I'm sure Céline knew very well that Quebec wouldn't pay $700,000 for his funeral and I highly doubt she ever would have asked them to.

 

It's frustrating knowing how humble she is and that when it comes down to it she orchestrated the funeral the way René wanted it done. I'm sure they were well aware of the cost before he even passed, I doubt the fact that they were offered a National funeral changed the cost of the funeral very drastically.

 

I hope Aldo and his team are taking measures to shield Céline from this stuff and are just handling it behind closed doors... goodness knows she doesn't need to feel stressed about laying the love of her life to rest.

 

 

 

In France, it's presented like they tried to impose the bill to the governement, so imagine how bad are the reactions !

Edited April 1, 2016 at 08:42 PM by Ororo Munroe

[incognito]

 

 

This kind of news won't be great...

 

Kev x

 

It was worse when she gave her ignorant opinion on how Muslims should dress. This is nothing.

[SuperLove4Celine]

 

 

It was worse when she gave her ignorant opinion on how Muslims should dress. This is nothing.

 

This is news to me. When did this happen?

[ryba]

Im sure she will pay for all of it. I cannot imagine her wanting the government to pay for the funeral. Thats not her style. Edited April 1, 2016 at 09:22 PM by ryba

[drove all night]

Why doesn't Aldo react? It's his job to prevent something like that to get out of hand. More and more I get the impression that he's simply not the right person to manage Céline's carreer. Obviously that whole thing wasn't fixed clearly - because otherwise it wouldn't have got out of hand. René would have NEVER acted in that way when money of the public's involved!

[Ororo Munroe]

It was worse when she gave her ignorant opinion on how Muslims should dress. This is nothing.

 

She was right, sorry, she never offended Muslims...

[Del]

Your country has weird way to celebrate somoene who brings so much. And you should read the reactions in France, here it's going to become a big affair.

Perhaps the journalists and those upset in your country shouldn't be as concerned as they are as this doesn't affect them in any way. Seems international fans are the ones most upset by this.

 

Why doesn't Aldo react? It's his job to prevent something like that to get out of hand. More and more I get the impression that he's simply not the right person to manage Céline's carreer. Obviously that whole thing wasn't fixed clearly - because otherwise it wouldn't have got out of hand. René would have NEVER acted in that way when money of the public's involved!

I don't see anything that's gotten out of hand. There's been some news articles, that's it. There's many other celebrities that get a lot worse press so I don't see any need for concern.

[Ororo Munroe]

Perhaps the journalists and those upset in your country shouldn't be as concerned as they are as this doesn't affect them in any way. Seems international fans are the ones most upset by this.

 

I don't see anything that's gotten out of hand. There's been some news articles, that's it. There's many other celebrities that get a lot worse press so I don't see any need for concern.

 

It's called good communication, in the case of Aldo, he is the boss now, so maybe it could be great to do an press point.

[Del]

It's called good communication, in the case of Aldo, he is the boss now, so maybe it could be great to do an press point.

I don't see the need for a press conference as this will all sort itself out, however I do see your point.

[yellowrose14]

I don't see how she could have refused the state funeral as that is a great honor, but I would think the state would contribute a standard fixed amount (or the cost of security/traffic) and the family would cover the rest. But, I would also think this would be the concern of the nation or the province-rather than an international brouhaha.

 

 

(You are right, Quebec Flower, about the crowd on the cbc website. I think I will ignore them from now on).

Edited April 2, 2016 at 01:10 AM by yellowrose14

[DionFanAlways]

I don't think Celine said anything against Muslims, if I remember correctly, she was asked a question and to make a long story short ( ) she basically said they should try to assimilate to the laws of the country that you are moving to. If I'm wrong please forgive me. I wish I could remember the year but it was recent.

[chocolatechip15]

This is Celine's comment about the veil, from a 2013 interview with McLean's. I'm surprised she answered the question, given how she tries to avoid politics completely:

 

Q: Lucien Bouchard once called you Quebec’s greatest ambassador. With that in mind, Amnesty International just declared Quebec’s controversial charter of values as a limit on fundamental rights that further stigmatizes vulnerable women. Do you agree with Amnesty?

A: It’s a very delicate question to answer because I’ll hurt some people and please others but you have to have an opinion. For me, it’s not about the veil—it’s beyond that. I’m not against what people wear but if you go to the hospital, and you are in Quebec and we have embraced you and opened our country for you to live in a better world, you have to adapt to our rules. If the doctor is a boy or a girl, you’re gonna see the doctor that [is] sent to [treat] you. You can’t just say, “My religion doesn’t permit me to see a woman or a male doctor.” That’s the problem for me. If I’m going to see a doctor and he is gay, I’m not going to have a problem with that. It should not be an issue.

Q: Yet you’ve stood up for women’s causes throughout the years.

A: Of course! It’s just that these women who practise the things they believe in have to adapt to our country. They have to not change our laws. Because you have a lot of Anglican or veiled women in a school—you can’t just take off the [Catholic] cross from the walls, or take down Christmas trees. If I go live in their country and have to be veiled, I will.

 

http://www.macleans....er-of-values-2/

Edited April 2, 2016 at 02:26 AM by chocolatechip15

[chocolatechip15]

The actual story in the Montreal Gazette is much less sensationalistic then the first accounts that came through. This actually makes more sense; Aldo sent the government a "price list" of what the funeral had cost, and they indicated the items they would pay for.

 

 

The Quebec government won’t be footing the entire bill for the larger-than-life funeral for Céline Dion’s husband René Angélil because it was too expensive.

 

Quebec had suggested to host a national funeral for the famous singer’s husband who died in January. This usually meant the government would pay the entire price.

Angélil’s funeral, however, ended up costing approximately $700,000, according to information received by Cogeco. That’s about 10 times more than the usual price tag of typical national funerals.

 

The government said Thursday it would not be spending a penny more than $49,770 for the bill.

It is not known what kind of financial agreement government officials and the families had agreed to.

The production company, Productions Feeling, declined to comment or confirm the alleged astronomical price of Angélil’s funeral.

 

The office of International Relations Minister Christine St-Pierre, however, confirmed that the “price list” had indeed been received.

It’s the ministry in question that is in charge of organizing national funerals.

Press attaché for St-Pierre, François Caouette, did not confirm the total price of the event but said Productions Feeling had sent a “price list” and not “a bill” to the ministry.

 

Earlier Thursday, the government said it would not spend more than $75,000. It is not yet known if the production company expected the government to pay for the bill in its entirety or if it will challenge Quebec’s decision to only pay a fraction of the amount.

No contract was signed between both parties.

 

Thus, Quebec will reportedly accept to pay for specific services like those of a photographer, the flower arrangements and the condolences books — for a bill that amounts to $49,770 and leaving the rest to Productions Feeling.

 

The cost of state funerals hasn’t varied much in the past. The ones held for former Canadiens player Jean Béliveau cost taxpayers $60,000 while those of Maurice Richard cost $56,000 and Claude Ryan’s celebration of life tallied at $71,000.

 

On Jan. 15, Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard announced the Angélil family had accepted the government’s proposal for a national funeral.

“We were touched by the death of René Angélil. We wish to respect the wishes of Céline Dion and her family. Quebecers will have the chance to bid farewell to a man that left a mark on the cultural landscape of our nation,” he said at the time.

 

http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/rene-angelils-national-funeral-was-so-expensive-quebec-will-only-pay-a-fraction-of-it

[scielle]

Yeah....well. Many media outlets jumped on the $700k, interpreted it as a bill & demand for payment, and incited all sorts of backlash. It's just sad that's the way it's being interpreted because I have no doubt Celine's more than prepared to pay for everything. And if she had said 'no, thanks' to the offer of a national funeral, the same folks would be saying she's ungrateful & disrespectful of the honour. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

[joaofilho]

I find it odd that the government initially offered to a Government of the State, and the Government of Quebec would pay all costs and now they come and say that the bill was higher and that will not pay the rest, so to that offered this funeral, is a bit strange, let the widow do everything and spend as if it had no limit, this is too weird, a little controversial, I am not advocating Celine, more sounds strange.

 

It may be that in Quebec this news is not something that is taking proportions, plus the news is spreading all over the world, leaving in newspapers magazines in the world and this is something negative.