Micheline Charest

Micheline Charest (March 16, 1953 – April 14, 2004) was a Canadian television producer and founder (and former co-chairman) of the Cinar (later Cookie Jar Entertainment and now DHX Media/WildBrain) television company.

Micheline Charest
BornMarch 16, 1953
London, UK
DiedApril 14, 2004 (aged 51)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Spouse(s)Ronald A. Weinberg
Children2

Biography

Born in London and raised in Quebec, Charest returned to the UK to attend the London International Film School. In 1976, she traveled to New Orleans where she met her future husband, New Yorker and Tulane graduate Ronald Weinberg. While in New Orleans, Charest and Weinberg organized an event for a women's film festival, and worked at distributing foreign films to US theatres. The couple moved to New York and formed Cinar, then a budding film and television distribution company.

In 1984, Charest and Weinberg changed their focus from media distribution to production, and moved the business to Montreal, where they concentrated on children's television programming because of the favorable tax situation for development and distribution of TV shows. During this time, Charest served as either producer or executive producer for dozens of popular animated series for children, including The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Animal Crackers, Emily of New Moon, Mona the Vampire, and The Wombles. As a production company, Cinar was also involved in the work of Are You Afraid of the Dark?, The Busy World of Richard Scarry, Madeline, Space Cases, Zoboomafoo, Caillou, and Arthur. By 1999, Cinar boasted annual revenues of $150 million (CAD) and owned about $1.5 billion (CAD) of the children's television market. The company had become known for quality, non-violent children's programs broadcast in more than 150 countries and was one of the founding partners in the Canadian cable television channel TELETOON.

Scandal

The success of Charest, Weinberg, and Cinar ended in March 2001, when an internal audit revealed that about $122 million (US) was invested into Bahamian bank accounts without the boardmembers' approval.[1] Cinar had also paid American screenwriters for work while continuing to accept Government of Canada grants for content. The names of Canadians, most notably Micheline Charest's sister, Helene via the alias 'Eric Alexandre'(Eric and Alex Weinberg are the names of Charest Weinberg's sons), were credited for the work, allowing Cinar to benefit from Canadian tax credits. While the province of Quebec did not file criminal charges, Cinar denied any wrongdoing, choosing instead to pay a settlement to Canadian and Quebec tax authorities of $17.8 million (CAD) and another $2.6 million (CAD) to Telefilm Canada, a Canadian federal funding agency. The value of Cinar stock plummeted, and the company was soon delisted.[2]

In 2001, as part of a settlement agreement with the Commission des Valeurs Mobilières du Québec (Quebec Securities Commission) Charest and Weinberg agreed to pay $1 million each and were banned from serving in the capacity of directors or officers at any publicly traded Canadian company for five years. There was no admission of guilt and none of the allegations have been proven in court. In March 2004, Cinar was purchased for more than $140 million (US) by a group led by Nelvana co-founder, Michael Hirsh.[3] Charest and Weinberg reportedly received $18 million (US) for their company shares.

In August 2009 Claude Robinson, a graphic artist and writer, won a copyright case against Cinar, Weinberg, Charest and Co. in relation to his work, Robinson Curiosité, which was plagiarized for the internationally successful animated series Robinson Sucroë.

Personal life

Charest and Weinberg had two children together.[4]

Death and legacy

Charest died on April 14, 2004, due to complications ensued after elective plastic surgery.[5] Charest was ranked 19th in The Hollywood Reporter's 1997 list of the 50 most powerful women in the entertainment industry.[2]

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References
  1. Swift, Michael. "Cinar Co-Founders Fined $1 Million Each, Banned From Company For Five Years". March 15, 2005. Archived from the original on June 28, 2012. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
  2. "In Depth: Micheline Charest". CBC News Online. April 14, 2004. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
  3. "Cinar sold for $143.9 million US; new owner outlines growth strategy". CBC News Online. October 31, 2003. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
  4. "Micheline Charest, co-founder of Cinar, dies". CTV.ca. April 15, 2004. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
  5. Times Staff and Wire Reports (16 April 2004). "Micheline Charest, 51; Firm She Co-Founded Won Emmys Before Scandal Led to Losses". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
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