O Canada official lyrics
O Canada! Our home and native land! True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise, The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee
O Canada lyrics to be reviewed
Get ready to memorize new words to the national anthem.
Parliament is to be asked to review the "original gender-neutral wording of the national anthem," says the throne speech delivered by Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean on Wednesday.
O Canada includes the lyrics "true patriot love in all thy sons command," and there may be interest in changing that line to something more inclusive.
O Canada, with music composed by Calixa Lavallée in 1880, became the national anthem in 1980, replacing God Save The Queen.
Its English lyrics have been adapted several times over the years, but the current version is based on a poem written in 1908 by Stanley Weir.
It begins: "O Canada Our home and native land! True patriot love thou dost in us command. We see thee raising fair, dear land, The True North strong and free."
The official English version now in use incorporates changes recommended in 1968 by a joint committee of MPs and senators that added the lines "from far and wide" and "God keep our land glorious and free!"
The surprise proposal to review the lyrics had parliamentary observers buzzing. The throne speech gave no indication what prompted the plan.
Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said the initiative to change the lyrics is the kind of "symbolic gesture" the Conservative government makes when it doesn't want to do anything real.
"Anything that makes a national anthem more gender-sensitive is a good thing," he told CBC News.
"But, I mean, no disrespect to those who feel strongly on this issue, but, for heaven's sake, we have some very important challenges and every time the government is asked to do something real, it does something symbolic.
"There's lots of things to do for women that are more important than changing the words of the national anthem, just as there are lots of things to do for pensioners and seniors that are more important than having a Seniors Day."
Crosby's goal wins gold, Canada beats US 3-2 in OT
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – This was the best possible way to end the Olympics for Canada.
Sidney Crosby, shut down most of the tournament, wristed a shot past Ryan Miller 7:40 into overtime after the United States tied it with 24.4 seconds left in regulation, and Canada survived a tense, taut game to beat the Americans 3-2 in the men's hockey final Sunday. It capped Canada's record gold rush in the Vancouver Games and set off a national celebration.
In one of the greatest games in Olympic history, Canada's collection of all-stars held off a young, despecans, it was a monumental letdown.
Before the game, Crosby received a brief text message from Penguins owner Mario Lemieux that said: "Good luck."
Now, Crosby joins Lemieux — whose goal beat the Soviet Union in the 1987 World Cup — and Paul Henderson, who beat the Soviets with a goal in the 1972 Summit Series, among the instant stars of Canadian hockey. At age 22, Crosby has won the Stanley Cup and the Olympics in less than a year's time.
Minutes after the game ended, delirious fans chanted, "Crosby! Crosby! Crosby!" and IOC president Jacques Rogge gave a raise-the-roof sign to the fans before presenting Crosby with his medal.
"Our team worked so unbelievably hard," Crosby said. "Today was really tough, especially when they got a goal late in regulation. But we came back and got it in overtime."
To win, Canada withstood a remarkable and determined effort from a U.S. team that wasn't supposed to medal in Vancouver, much less roll through the tournament unbeaten before losing in the first overtime gold medal game since NHL players began participating in the Olympics in 1998.
Miller, the tournament MVP, was exceptional, and Zach Parise scored a goal that — if the U.S. had won — would rank among the storied moments in American Olympic history.
With less than a half minute remaining and Miller off the ice for an extra attacker, Patrick Kane took a shot from the high slot that deflected off Jamie Langenbrunner to Parise, who shot it off Roberto Luongo's blocker and into the net.
Parise is the son of J.P. Parise, who scored two goals for that 1972 Canada Summit Series team.
Three minutes before Parise scored, Kane — who also set up Ryan Kesler's goal in the second period — knocked the puck off Crosby's stick on a breakaway that would have sealed it for Canada.
Canada goalie Roberto Luongo didn't outplay Miller, but still proved he is a big-game goalie — something he has never been previously — by making 34 saves in his own NHL arena. Luongo went 5-0 in the tournament and 4-0 after replacing Martin Brodeur following America's 5-3 win the previous Sunday.
Canadian women earn hockey gold against U.S.
VANCOUVER — Canada kept the medal momentum going Thursday as the women’s hockey team grabbed the gold in a convincing 2-0 win over the United States.
Marie-Philip Poulin of Beauceville, Que., scored twice and goaltender Shannon Szabados of Edmonton — an Olympic rookie — made 28 saves to notch the first-ever shutout win in an Olympic women’s hockey final.
The win followed a four-medal day for Canada — matching the country’s best one-day showing in a Winter Olympics — and came on the heels of a critical 7-3 win over Russia on the men’s side to keep alive the possibility of a sweep of the hockey golds.
Earlier on Thursday, Finland beat Sweden 3-2 in overtime to win the women’s hockey bronze medal.
On Wednesday, Canada won a gold and a silver in women’s two-man bobsled, a silver in the women’s 3,000-metre short-track relay and a bronze for speedskater Clara Hughes in the women’s 5,000 metres, the last race of her career.
Canada has won four Winter Games medals in a single day only four other times: twice in Turin, Italy, in 2006, and twice in Salt Lake City in 2002.
Following Wednesday’s critical win over Russia, the men’s hockey team returns to the ice Friday to face Slovakia to determine which team will advance to contend for Olympic gold.
Alexander Medvedev, the president of the Russian domestic league, was still stinging a day after watching his national team get bounced by Canada. He said he was surprised by the poor play of his countrymen.
“Obviously experts and coaches should analyze, but I have feeling the game was lost in the first five minutes,” Medvedev said.
Earlier Thursday, Canada’s already-shining medal hopes in women’s curling got even brighter as Cheryl Bernard moved on to the final by knocking off two-time silver medallist Mirjam Ott of Switzerland 6-5.
Bernard took a 6-4 lead into the 10th end and won when Ott missed on a takeout attempt with her final stone. Ott was able to knock Bernard’s rock out of the rings but her shooter sailed too far, forcing the Swiss to settle for one.
Ott looked down at the ice in despair following the miss, while Bernard’s rink hugged in celebration.
The 43-year-old from Calgary moves on to the gold medal game Friday against Sweden’s Anette Norberg, the defending Olympic champion, who beat China 9-4 in the other semifinal.
Bernard would become the first Canadian woman to win Olympic curling gold since Sandra Schmirler in 1998.
“It wasn’t a stellar game, but I think the nerves and maybe a little bit of the inexperience kind of crept through,” Bernard said of her rink’s performance.
“What we did do is make the shots when we needed them.”
Kevin Martin, a perfect 9-0 in round-robin competition, advanced to the men’s curling final with a 6-3 victory over 24-year-old Niklas Edin of Sweden, who did Martin a favour Wednesday when he knocked off reigning world champion David Murdoch of Britain.
Martin’s rink will play Norway in the final on Saturday.
At the women’s free skate, Canada was waiting to see whether Joannie Rochette, the 24-year-old from Ile-Dupas, Que., could deliver another top-tier performance in the wake of the death on the weekend of her 55-year-old-mother, Therese.
After a heart-wrenching, teary-eyed routine in Tuesday’s short program, Rochette was sitting in third place, behind Korean superstar Kim Yu-Na, whose coach is former Canadian figure skater Brian Orser, and Mao Asada of Japan.
At Cypress Mountain, where Canada has had good medal fortunes so far, three Canadians were part of the 12-man field in the men’s aerials: Steve Omischl, 30, of North Bay, Ont., and Warren Shouldice, 26, and Kyle Nissen, 30, both of Calgary.
O Canada!
O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Zombie romance, sci-fi horror, singing vampires among Canadian flicks for '09
Genres collide in next year's crop of Canadian films, with upcoming storylines incorporating trailer park hijinks, teen tragedy, zombie romance and rock 'n' roll vampires.
Projects in the offing include Bruce McDonald's Pontypool, Mike Clattenburg's Trailer Park Boys sequel, Atom Egoyan's Adoration, and newcomer Rob Stefaniuk's musical vampire comedy Suck.
"There's some really, really exciting things happening," Telefilm Canada's Dan Lyon said of the broad spectrum of films slated for 2009.
"What we've noticed is increasing genre diversity. In other words, a little less reliance on traditional drama and moving more toward comedies, thrillers and other genres."
One of the most highly anticipated films is McDonald's Pontypool, about a zombie-like invasion that traps the staff of a small-town radio station in a church basement studio on a snowy Valentine's Day.
McDonald, the renegade director behind cult favourites Hardcore Logo and Highway 61, is loathe to slot the picture in the horror genre, insisting that Pontypool is more of a love story with an edge.
"We're sitting down with the marketing dudes and the company that's going to present it to the world [and there's] a lot of thought [such as]: 'Well, what is it going to look like? What's the poster and the trailer? What's the vibe we put out there?"' he said at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
"It shares some things with zombie movies, but they're not zombies and we don't want to disappoint the zombie people."
All-star appearances
The melding of genres continues with the outrageous Suck, a wild romp billed as a rock 'n' roll vampire comedy starring Rob Stefaniuk (who also writes and directs) and Jessica Paré, with appearances by Malcolm McDowell, Alice Cooper, Moby, Iggy Pop, Henry Rollins, Carole Pope and Dave Foley.
"I've been watching dailies and it is absolutely a crowd-pleaser," said Lyon, who expects Suck to be ready for theatres next fall.
Big things are also expected of the sci-fi/horror movie Splice, directed by Vincenzo Natali of Cube, and starring Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley.
"It's about a couple of scientists, played by Adrien and Sarah, who are crossing ethical lines in creating a human-animal hybrid, with disastrous results," Lyon said, noting that the film is now in post-production.
Steve Gravestock, with the Toronto International Film Festival, said he is most excited by the scheduled May release of Egoyan's family drama Adoration. Starring Scott Speedman and Rachel Blanchard, the politically tinged tale touches on lies, technology and racism. It garnered mixed reviews on the festival circuit last year, but netted Egoyan the Ecumenical Jury Prize, which honours directing, at Cannes.
Other TIFF-screened films hoping to find audiences include the Inuit film Before Tomorrow, by directors Madeline Piujuq Ivalu and Marie-Hélène Cousineau, which will screen at the Sundance Film Festival next month, and Michael McGowan's road movie One Week, starring Joshua Jackson, which is due in March.
Coming-of-age story
First-time feature filmmaker David Bezmozgis is preparing to debut his coming-of-age story, Victoria Day, at Sundance in January. The story follows 16-year-old Ben as he grapples with budding romance, family pressures and the role he may have played in a boy's mysterious disappearance.
"It's not a genre film, it's not an either-or film, it's not a comedy, it's not a tragedy," Bezmozgis said earlier this year about the movie, which takes place over the course of one week in 1988.
"With teenage life you have all these roiling emotions — the romantic, the domestic and all the things happening with friends. So that was really the impetus — to write a good film about teenage life."
Also in production is Defendor, with first-time director Peter Stebbings. Starring Woody Harrelson, Elias Koteas, Sandra Oh and Kat Dennings, it's about a man who thinks he's a superhero and tries to clean up his city.
More arty fare comes by way of Cairo Time, directed by Ruba Nadda and starring Patricia Clarkson as a Canadian woman who joins her husband in Cairo but ends up forging a close friendship with an Egyptian man.
Those looking for sheer escapism have the Trailer Park Boys sequel to look forward to, and some are already predicting boffo box office success for the delinquent Julian, Ricky and Bubbles.
The foul-mouthed, pot-smoking troublemakers scored big with fans and critics with 2006's Trailer Park Boys: The Movie, and are slated to return to the big screen next fall with Trailer Park Boys – Countdown to Liquor Day.
Lyon says the recent box office success of Paul Gross' war epic Passchendaele and the smaller film, YPF (a.k.a. Young People F---ing), has many in the movie business optimistic that homegrown fare can thrive.
"We're feeling pretty inspired by the success of`Passchendaele," Lyon said, noting that the film hit $4.4 million at the Canadian box office. "It's just given them a tremendous spike of confidence, for films at all levels.
"The tide is really changing in Canada in terms of English language film," Lyon continued, noting that last year's Oscar nominations for Away From Her and Eastern Promises were an added morale boost.
"When you combine that kind of success with the continuing good news of all the Canadian films coming up at Sundance in January, and the commercial success of Passchendaele and YPF and so on, we have really a lot of reason to be optimistic."
In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
McCrae's "In Flanders Fields" remains to this day one of the most memorable war poems ever written. It is a lasting legacy of the terrible battle in the Ypres salient in the spring of 1915. Here is the story of the making of that poem:
Although he had been a doctor for years and had served in the South African War, it was impossible to get used to the suffering, the screams, and the blood here, and Major John McCrae had seen and heard enough in his dressing station to last him a lifetime.
As a surgeon attached to the 1st Field Artillery Brigade, Major McCrae, who had joined the McGill faculty in 1900 after graduating from the University of Toronto, had spent seventeen days treating injured men -- Canadians, British, Indians, French, and Germans -- in the Ypres salient.
It had been an ordeal that he had hardly thought possible. McCrae later wrote of it:
"I wish I could embody on paper some of the varied sensations of that seventeen days... Seventeen days of Hades! At the end of the first day if anyone had told us we had to spend seventeen days there, we would have folded our hands and said it could not have been done."
One death particularly affected McCrae. A young friend and former student, Lieut. Alexis Helmer of Ottawa, had been killed by a shell burst on 2 May 1915. Lieutenant Helmer was buried later that day in the little cemetery outside McCrae's dressing station, and McCrae had performed the funeral ceremony in the absence of the chaplain.
The next day, sitting on the back of an ambulance parked near the dressing station beside the Canal de l'Yser, just a few hundred yards north of Ypres, McCrae vented his anguish by composing a poem. The major was no stranger to writing, having authored several medical texts besides dabbling in poetry.
In the nearby cemetery, McCrae could see the wild poppies that sprang up in the ditches in that part of Europe, and he spent twenty minutes of precious rest time scribbling fifteen lines of verse in a notebook.
A young soldier watched him write it. Cyril Allinson, a twenty-two year old sergeant-major, was delivering mail that day when he spotted McCrae. The major looked up as Allinson approached, then went on writing while the sergeant-major stood there quietly. "His face was very tired but calm as we wrote," Allinson recalled. "He looked around from time to time, his eyes straying to Helmer's grave."
When McCrae finished five minutes later, he took his mail from Allinson and, without saying a word, handed his pad to the young NCO. Allinson was moved by what he read:
"The poem was exactly an exact description of the scene in front of us both. He used the word blow in that line because the poppies actually were being blown that morning by a gentle east wind. It never occurred to me at that time that it would ever be published. It seemed to me just an exact description of the scene."
In fact, it was very nearly not published. Dissatisfied with it, McCrae tossed the poem away, but a fellow officer retrieved it and sent it to newspapers in England. The Spectator, in London, rejected it, but Punch published it on 8 December 1915.
Sam the Record Man sign to be lit up
TORONTO - The iconic Sam the Record Man sign in downtown Toronto will be turned on one last time for the city's Scotiabank Nuit Blanche festival.
For decades, two giant neon spinning records served as a beacon to music lovers shopping on Yonge Street.
But the legendary flagship store closed last year and the site is now owned by Ryerson University.
Ryerson says the sign will be lit Oct. 4 in celebration of Nuit Blanche, an all-night art crawl.
The university plans to build a student learning centre on the site.
It says the sign, which consists of more than 800 lights, will be taken down beginning Oct. 6 and remounted in a new home on the Ryerson campus.
Toronto's ROM Crystal celebrated by slew of Canadian talent
The Royal Ontario Museum celebrated the official unveiling of its new addition with a showcase of Canadian talent including David Foster, K'naan and Natalie McMaster on Saturday evening.
The gala celebrated the public opening of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal; the ROM's bold new $135-million addition that juts out over Toronto's Bloor Street.
Legendary composer David Foster shared one of three stages with singers Deborah Cox, Jann Arden, rapper K'naan, Canadian Tenors, jazz singer Dione Taylor, and fiddler Natalie McMaster.
Actor Gordon Pinsent and environmentalist David Suzuki also made appearances, while Governor General Michaëlle Jean dedicated the structure's opening.
Suzuki took the opportunity to speak to the country's determination to battle climate change.
"I believe we've turned a corner, that we're on our way to a more sustainable Canada," Suzuki said.
Thousands of people of all ages lined the streets for the concert entitled "A World of Possibilities," which was hosted by actor Paul Gross.
Tickets for the event were issued at noon on Saturday but crowds began to gather early in the morning.
The event, which also featured a stunning fireworks display, was designed to tell the story of humankind's evolution through the ages.
The 75-minute show marked the end of the six-year development project for Canada's largest museum that cost $270 million to complete.
Conceived by architect Daniel Libeskind, the crystal has been met with both scorn and adoration.
The 175,000-square-foot aluminum-and-glass-covered structure reaches 10 storeys in the air and houses seven galleries.
Architectural buffs chided the addition saying it does nothing to enhance the streetscape and fails to blend with the rest of the heritage building.
Supporters believe the bold design will promote experimental architecture in the city, something Toronto has lacked for a number of years.
Ottawa introduces anti-piracy bill to target movie bootleggers
New legislation meant to crack down on film piracy was introduced by the federal government on Friday, two days after former action star and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
In a noon-hour announcement Friday, Canadian Heritage Minister Bev Oda revealed the government's plan to amend the Criminal Code "to deter the unauthorized recording of movies — camcording — in movie theatres."
The government is seeking to introduce two new offences:
- The recording of a movie in a movie theatre without the consent of the theatre's manager.
- The recording of a movie in a movie theatre without the consent of the theatre's manager for the purpose of selling, renting, or other commercial distribution of a copy of the recording.
Under the new bill, the first offence could draw up to two years in jail, and the second, a penalty of up to five years.
Currently, under the Copyright Act, a person who commercially distributes a movie they filmed in a theatre can be prosecuted, but Justice Minister and Attorney General Robert Douglas Nicholson said there is a gap in the law.
"Sometimes, many times, the individual who is actually doing the camcording is not in the business of commercial redistribution. Afterwards, that individual may be just paid for that particular activity," he said.
"It's that particular activity that we intend to address."
On Wednesday, amid Schwarzenegger's visit to Canada, the U.S. actor-turned-politician met with Harper. Among many other issues, the two are believed to have discussed movie piracy.
The Motion Picture Association of America, a trade organization led by the major Hollywood studios, has long painted Canada as a haven for movie pirates and lobbied the federal government for stronger laws to prosecute those caught illicitly filming in theatres. In the U.S., legislation enacted in 2005 made the act a felony.
The campaign has ramped up over the past year.
Canada put on 'priority watch list'
In February, Canada was named to a "priority watch list" of countries believed to be responsible for high rates of piracy.
Hollywood studios have also threatened to delay Canadian releases and, last month, Warner Brothers announced it would cancel preview screenings in Canada, blaming the rampant, unauthorized pirating of new releases north of the border.
However, online advocacy groups have argued that the studios are shifting too much of the focus on so-called "camcording" versus pirating from legitimate copies of movies.
A study by AT&T in 2003 found that about 23 per cent of online movie file sharing networks got their material from camcording.
The other 77 per cent of movies available on the internet came from screeners — industry-issued, high-quality copies of films sent to people such as actors, reviewers and film award voters — and other commercially sold copies.
Roots, childhood fantasies spark cross-Canada White Stripes tour
Jack White admits there's little that makes practical sense about the White Stripes' upcoming tour through Canada — an ambitious journey that involves stops in every province and territory, from B.C. to Newfoundland to Nunavut.
He doesn't expect the expansive — and expensive — trek to make any money. And in large part, it's rooted in childhood fantasies of life in the North.
"Even when it doesn't break even, it's still not the point of it, you know," White said by phone from a recording studio in Nashville, Tenn.
"As a kid, I saw some cowboy TV shows where they talked about the Yukon a lot, and the Alaskan-Yukon border. Sometimes there'd be like a bank robber or some kind of a cowboy outlaw that kind of went across the border to the Yukon side of it, and these cowboys or Lone Ranger types couldn't get to them … That was always exotic to me. I always liked that word — Yukon."
Besides, it's the rock duo's 10th anniversary this year, and to mark it, the guitarist and his drummer Meg White are on a mission to visit every region in Canada and the United States.
They start their 18-city Canadian adventure in Burnaby, B.C., on June 24 and wrap it up in St. John's, N.L., on July 16. The U.S. leg that follows includes stops in the 16 states they have yet to visit.
Canadian roots
But the rocker with the wild dark mane is also on a quest to discover his Canadian roots. White notes that family from his father's Scottish side spent "a couple generations" in Nova Scotia before heading south to work in Detroit car factories.
"There's family all throughout there — all around Sydney Mines and Antigonish and all those places," said White, whose family background is also half Polish.
"Supposedly there's ties from me to [fiddlers] Ashley MacIsaac, Natalie MacMaster."
White admits he has no proof of this, so fans may want to take that claim with a grain of salt.
After all, the man's own relationship with bandmate Meg White has long been a bone of contention since they claimed early in their career to be brother and sister. Court documents subsequently revealed them to be divorced.
White steers clear of questions that get too personal, but nevertheless insists that a highlight of the tour is a stop in Glace Bay, N.S., on July 14 — the band's 10th anniversary. White said the confluence of that landmark date with the Maritime province was a happy coincidence.
"I'd always wanted to go to Nova Scotia, I'd never been there and it landed on our 10th anniversary — it was kind of perfect," White said.
"We found this beautiful theatre, it's all red and white and black inside, and it seemed to be a 'God-bless-the-moment.' Hopefully it'll be a good show."
Most of the Stripes' other Canadian stops involve provincial capitals, but there are also smaller communities often ignored by rock itineraries.
For a time, larger centres like Montreal and Toronto were left off the Whites' list altogether.
"I first started off saying I don't want to play the major cities in Canada," White said.
"That's where my head's at. Let's just play everywhere else in Canada that we can. But, you know, you got to make the tour work, you got to pay for the bus and the truck that's got your gear in it. There's got to be something that makes sense business-wise, I suppose."
Tour economics aside, White insists that smaller shows tend to equal bigger fun. They often draw diverse crowds that are more appreciative of the performance, he said.
"Playing in a smaller club is better than playing in a big arena, playing in a small town is better than playing in a big town, and playing in a town that is on the outskirts that people don't usually go to is, of course, way better than playing a huge, major city in any country," he said.
"You're always going to have better shows because people are just more involved. In the bigger towns, sometimes you'll find crowds that kind of go to rock 'n' roll shows and kind of treat it like they're going to watch a movie or sit in front of a television. They're not involved actively in any way, and it's disappointing. Because the show, it could be so much better if people would sort of put forth some energy. Sometimes you're dying up there. You need a helping hand."
'Heavy record" set for release
The White Stripes' sixth studio album, Icky Thump, comes out June 19.
White said the name is derived from the expression "ecky thump," a traditional phrase from northern England that his wife, model Karen Elson, would use.
"I was just saying it out loud when we were writing the song and it sort of summed up that song and it started to sum up the entire album, and that sort of started to sum up the whole 10 years we've been together … It just felt right every time the word got written or said."
White said fans can expect "a heavy record" that touches on a wide range of genres including Scottish music, mariachi music, speed metal and southern American country music.
Amid all the tour planning, White is also hard at work on his second Raconteurs disc. He said they've put down about 20 tracks so far.
Canadian actors' contract talks break down
TORONTO (Hollywood Reporter) - Talks between North American producers and Canada's actors union have broken down, setting the stage for a strike in the new year.
The current impasse follows marathon negotiations that began November 23 and culminated Wednesday with the producers, including a host of Hollywood studio representatives, putting their first wage proposals for a new Independent Production Agreement, which governs wages and workplace conditions.
The actors were offered a one-percent wage increase in the first year, another two-percent increase in the second year and a one-percent increase in the third year of the proposed agreement. Representatives for ACTRA (the Alliance of Canadian Cinema Television and Radio Artists) promptly rejected the offer.
No new talks are scheduled before the current agreement expires December 31. Barring a last-minute breakthrough, ACTRA's members will be in a legal position to strike in early January.
"We're not going to give away the future for free. And we are not going to let our members' pay continue to erode compared to other performers in North America," said Stephen Waddell, ACTRA's national executive director.
John Barrack, chief negotiator for the Canadian Film and Television Production Assn. (CFTPA), defended the wage increase proposal, insisting it was the same pay increase offered and agreed to by the Writers Guild of Canada last May.
Justin edges Jeter
Prior to his big-league debut on June 10, 2003, Justin Morneau gathered with Minnesota Twins teammate Corey Koskie and Colorado Rockies star Larry Walker for an all-Canadian photo behind home plate at the Metrodome.
Afterwards Walker sent an autographed bat over to the Twins clubhouse with a message for the young phenom: "To Justin, Make Canada Proud."
The hulking 25-year-old first baseman from New Westminster, B.C., did just that Tuesday when he won the American League Most Valuable Player award in a tight vote over New York Yankees superstar Derek Jeter.
"I never asked for that, he did that on his own," Morneau said of Walker's gesture that day. "I thought that was pretty cool for a guy that's been around that long to do that for me. It's something I'll never forget."
The feat links Morneau, raised among the generation of B.C. baseball players inspired by Walker, with the star he grew up idolizing as the only Canadians to win the award in the majors. Walker was the National League MVP in 1997.
"Justin's breakthrough, his ability to get the big-leagues fast and do as well as he did, will really open up the doors for a lot of other kids to emulate him," said Ari Mellios, Morneau's coach with the North Delta Blue Jays in the B.C. Premier League in 1998 and '99. "It changes a lot of people's perceptions and attitudes toward Canadian kids."
Walker, of course, was the first player to accomplish that with his emergence as a Montreal Expos star in the early 1990s. Ryan Dempster, Jason Bay, Jeff Francis and Adam Loewen, to name a few, credit Walker for making them believe they could make a career in baseball and Morneau's award should inspire a new group of kids.
But Walker's help for Morneau went well beyond serving as a hero. At the World Baseball Classic this past spring, the Maple Ridge, B.C., native mentored Morneau as a coach. And when Morneau struggled out of the gate in April, text messages to Walker helped keep him straight.
"I'd say I don't feel that good and he'd give me something simple to try and not make me think. That was the biggest thing for him, just go up there and just hit," said Morneau. "For him to even care about what I'm doing makes you feel pretty good."
Advice came from other places, too.
Teammate Torii Hunter pressed on him to not get so down on himself when he struggled. Manager Ron Gardenhire did the same, giving him a stern talking to in an early May meeting that helped pull him from and capitalize on his vast talents.
The message eventually got through, as after a slow start in April (.208, five homers, 15 RBIs) on the heels of a disappointing 2005 that left some questioning his future, he tore up the league.
Morneau finished batting .321 with 40 homers and 130 RBIs. He became the first Twins player to hit 30 or more home runs in a season since 1987 and his 130 RBIs are the second-best in team history to Harmon Killebrew's 140 in 1969, when he won the MVP award.
"You can say he lit a fire under me maybe," Morneau of the meeting with Gardenhire. "I just felt better in my swing and all of a sudden something just clicked, I got a little confidence going and after that just kind of took off. I don't know if it was from that meeting getting me more focused and tuned in on what I needed to do on the field or not, it definitely woke me up."
The reigning MVPs in the AL, NBA (Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash of Victoria) and NHL (San Jose Sharks centre Joe Thornton of London, Ont.) are now all Canadian.
Morneau picked up 15 of the 28 first-place votes and 320 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, to finish 14 points ahead of Jeter, who had 12 first-place votes.
Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz finished third with 193 points, followed by Frank Thomas, who recently left the Oakland Athletics for the Toronto Blue Jays, and Chicago White Sox outfielder Jermaine Dye.
Morneau slept little Monday night while awaiting word on the vote and spent a tense morning at his girlfriend's Minneapolis apartment when the phone call came.
"Last night even I was saying I don't expect to get it. I might have given myself maybe a 50-50 chance," Morneau said. "I didn't want to set myself up for disappointment if I didn't get it."
Morneau is the second member of his team to win a major award this season, joining AL Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana.
"I'm putting my money on Justin Morneau," Santana said after his win last week. "Hopefully, he'll have a chance for everything he did for our team."
Morneau is returning home this weekend and will serve as Marshall for the Santa Claus Parade in New Westminster. He's also changing his off-season routine and will spend the winter in Vancouver working out with Loewen, Aaron Guiel and Adam Stern.
"I have to go out and prove myself again," said Morneau. "There's going to be a lot more eyes on me now, teams are going to be paying a little more attention and I just have to build on this year and get better."
Morneau can also now look his boyhood hero in the eye from more level footing with the MVP award on his resume. Walker was among the first to call him and congratulate him.
"He said he thought he was more excited than I was. He said, 'Just wait, it's going to be crazy, just have fun with it,"' said Morneau. "To be put next to a guy, who in my opinion should be in the Hall of Fame, the greatest Canadian position player that's ever played, to be alongside him is a real honour."
Canada's next Oscar entry is C.R.A.Z.Y.
C.R.A.Z.Y. has been chosen to represent Canada at the 78th annual Academy Awards in the category of best foreign language film.
The Quebec film recently won the best Canadian feature award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
C.R.A.Z.Y. is Jean-Marc Vallée's homage to the pop culture-saturated middle class of the 1970s. Variety.com's Jay Weissberg called it a "bouncy coming-of-age tale that coasts along on a terrific soundtrack and a spot-on feel for period detail."
Oscar nominations will be announced in Hollywood Jan. 31. Last year, 50 countries competed for a coveted nomination.
The Academy Awards will be handed out March 5.
The decision to go with C.R.A.Z.Y. was announced by Telefilm. It chairs a committee of Canadian film industry delegates that considered 12 eligible films.
In 2004, Denys Arcand's The Barbarian Invasions won the foreign language film prize.
Official Lyrics of O Canada!
O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
The History of the National Anthem
Summary
"O Canada" was proclaimed Canada's national anthem on July 1, 1980, 100 years after it was first sung on June 24, 1880. The music was composed by Calixa Lavallée, a well-known composer; French lyrics to accompany the music were written by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier. The song gained steadily in popularity. Many English versions have appeared over the years. The version on which the official English lyrics are based was written in 1908 by Mr. Justice Robert Stanley Weir. The official English version includes changes recommended in 1968 by a Special Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Commons. The French lyrics remain unaltered.
Full History of "O Canada"
Many people think of Calixa Lavallée as an obscure music teacher who dashed off a patriotic song in a moment of inspiration. The truth is quite different. Lavallée was, in fact, known as "Canada's national musician" and it was on this account that he was asked to compose the music for a poem written by Judge Adolphe-Basile Routhier.
The occasion was the "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français" in1880, which was being held at the same time as the St. Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations.
There had been some thought of holding a competition for a national hymn to have its first performance on St. Jean-Baptiste Day, June 24, but by January the committee in charge decided there was not enough time, so the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, the Honourable Théodore Robitaille, commissioned Judge Routhier to write a hymn and Lavallée to compose the tune. Lavallée made a number of drafts before the tune we know was greeted with enthusiasm by his musical friends. It is said that in the excitement of success Lavallée rushed to show his music to the Lieutenant Governor without even stopping to sign the manuscript.
The first performance took place on June 24, 1880 at a banquet in the "Pavillon des Patineurs" in Quebec City as the climax of a"Mosaïque sur des airs populaires canadiens" arranged by Joseph Vézina, a prominent composer and bandmaster.
Although this first performance of "O Canada" with Routhier's French words was well received on the evening, it does not seem to have made a lasting impression at that time. Arthur Lavigne, a Quebec musician and music dealer, published it without copyright but there was no rush to reprint. Lavallée's obit in 1891 doesn't mention it among his accomplishments, nor does a biography of Judge Routhier published in 1898. French Canada is represented in the 1887 edition of the University of Toronto song book by "Vive la canadienne", "A la claire fontaine" and "Un canadien errant".
English Canada in general probably first heard "O Canada" when school children sang it when the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall (later King George V and Queen Mary) toured Canada in 1901. Five years later Whaley and Royce in Toronto published the music with the French text and a translation into English made by Dr. Thomas Bedford Richardson, a Toronto doctor. The Mendelssohn Choir used the Richardson lyrics in one of their performances about this time and Judge Routhier and the French press complimented the author.
Richardson version:
O Canada! Our fathers' land of old
Thy brow is crown'd with leaves of red and gold.
Beneath the shade of the Holy Cross
Thy children own their birth
No stains thy glorious annals gloss
Since valour shield thy hearth.
Almighty God! On thee we call
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall,
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall.
In 1908 Collier's Weekly inaugurated its Canadian edition with a competition for an English text to Lavallée's music. It was won by Mercy E. Powell McCulloch, but her version did not take.
McCulloch version :
O Canada! in praise of thee we sing;
From echoing hills our anthems proudly ring.
With fertile plains and mountains grand
With lakes and rivers clear,
Eternal beauty, thos dost stand
Throughout the changing year.
Lord God of Hosts! We now implore
Bless our dear land this day and evermore,
Bless our dear land this day and evermore.
Since then many English versions have been written for "O Canada". Poet Wilfred Campbell wrote one. So did Augustus Bridle, Toronto critic. Some were written for the 1908 tercentenary of Quebec City. One version became popular in British Columbia...
Buchan version:
O Canada, our heritage, our love
Thy worth we praise all other lands above.
From sea to see throughout their length
From Pole to borderland,
At Britain's side, whate'er betide
Unflinchingly we'll stand
With hearts we sing, "God save the King",
Guide then one Empire wide, do we implore,
And prosper Canada from shore to shore.
However the version that gained the widest currency was made in 1908 by Robert Stanley Weir, a lawyer and at the time Recorder of the City of Montréal. A slightly modified version of the 1908 poem was published in an official form for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927, and has since been generally accepted in English speaking Canada. Following further minor amendments, the first verse of Weir's poem was proclaimed as Canada's national anthem in 1980. The version adopted pursuant to the National Anthem Act in 1980 reads as follows:
O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North, strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free !
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Many musicians have made arrangements of "O Canada" but there appears to be a scarcity of recordings suitable for various purposes.
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Calixa Lavallée
Calixa Lavallée was a "canadien errant", a man who left his country for greener fields, but who nevertheless loved Canada and returned to it, returned with a reputation well earned in the United States and France to become the "national musician" of Canada. He was, in his time, a composer operettas, at least one symphony, various occasional pieces and songs; he was a pianist and organist of considerable note and he was a teacher who wanted to found the first Canadian Conservatory.
The famous Canadian choral conductor Augustus Stephen Volt said of him: "I became acquainted with Lavallée in the 80's of the last century, when I was in Boston as a student of music, and he impressed me as a man of extraordinary ability - not merely as a clever executant of the piano, and not merely as an adroit deviser of pretty melodies and sensuous harmonies, but as a genuinely creative artist, a pure musical genius".
Calixa Lavallée was born in Verchères, Canada East, on December 28, 1842, the son of Augustin Lavallée, a woodcutter and blacksmith, who became an instrument repairman, bandleader and music teacher. Later when the family moved to St-Hyacinthe, the father worked for the famous organ-builder Joseph Casavant and led the townband. Calixa showed talent early and played the organ in the cathedral at the age of eleven. Two years later he gave a piano recital at the Théâtre Royal in Montréal.
In Montréal Lavallée met Léon Derome, a butcher who loved music. He became Lavallée's lifelong patron and friend, often coming to his aid in bad times.
About this time, Calixa tired of regular lessons and left Montréal to try his luck in the United States. In New Orleans, he won a competition which in turn won him a job as accompanist to the famous Spanish violinist Olivera. After touring with Olivera in Brazil and the West Indies, Lavallée joined the Northern army during the American Civil War.
Leaving the U.S. army as a lieutenant, Lavallée returned to Montréal where he gave piano lessons and played cornet in a theatre orchestra.
In 1865 he returned to the United States to teach and give a series of concert tours. He married and began to work with Arnold de Thiers, with whom he composed a comic opera called "Loulou". The night before its first performance, the owner of the opera house was shot and the theatre closed. Lavallée, who had been conductor and artistic director of the theatre, the NewYork Grand Opera House, found himself out of a job.
He returned to Montréal in 1872 to a warm welcome from his friends, and had soon set up a studio with Jehin Prume and Rositadel Vecchio, well-known musicians. Success in Montréal brought him the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, to continue his musical education in Paris. A group of friends led by Derome made him a monthly allowance while he studied with Bazin, Boieldieu and Marmontel. A Lavallée symphony was performed by a Paris orchestra in 1874 and his teachers predicted a great future for him.
Lavallée decided to devote his life to the establishment of a conservatory in Canada. To prove that talent existed, he mounted a Gounod drama with an all-Canadian cast of 80. The venture was a great success and Lavallée had high hopes of interesting the government in his idea. But although the public responded warmly to his productions, official quarters gave nothing but vague promises.
It was during this Quebec period, in 1880 that Lavallée composed the music of "O Canada" for the "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français". But he could see nothing ahead but routine teaching and playing, so once again he took off for the United States.
Things took a turn for the better. He was appointed an organist and choirmaster; he toured with the famous Hungarian soprano Etelka Gerster; he increased his composing; many of his works were performed including "Tiq", a "melodramatic musical satire"on the Indian question and his comic opera "The Widow". As a member of the Music Teachers' National Association, he organized a number of very successful concerts, and finally, in 1887, was elected president.
In 1888 Lavallée represented the professional musicians of America in London and introduced American compositions in London where the Lord Mayor gave a dinner in his honour.
Lavallée's health had been poor for some years and after his return to Boston became much worse. By the autumn of 1890 he was bedridden and in financial straits. He died on January 21, 1891,at the age of 49, leaving some 60 works, only about half of which have been found.
Lavallée was buried near Boston but his body was brought back to Canada in 1933 and now rests in Montréal Cemetery Côte-des-Neiges.
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Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier
Adolphe-Basile Routhier was born in May 8, 1839 in Saint-Placide (Lower Canada). He studied at the University of Laval, and was a distinguished lawyer in Kamouraska.
He was appointed judge of the Quebec Superior Court in 1873, and later became Chief Justice of Quebec from 1904 until his retirement in 1906.
He was probably better known as a poet than as a judge, and it was natural that the Honourable Théodore Robitaille, Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, should turn to him to write the words of an hymn for the great "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français" in 1880. His poem "O Canada!" was widely praised on its first presentation.
Sir Adolphe was made a knight of the The Most Honourable Order of the Bath in 1911. He was a founding member of the Royal Society of Canada, and was president of that society from 1914-1915.
Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier died on June 27, 1920, at Saint-Irenée-des-Bains, Quebec.
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The Honourable Robert Stanley Weir
Robert Stanley Weir (1856-1926) was born in Hamilton, in what was then Canada West. He took all his higher education in Montreal, and was qualified for both teaching and the law. He chose law and rose rapidly in the profession, becoming in due course, like Routhier, a judge first as Recorder of the City of Montréal and later to the Exchequer Court of Canada (now the Federal Court of Canada). He wrote both learned legal works and poetry, and his fame as a writer won him election as a Fellow of the Royal Society which Routhier had helped found.
Weir had been a member of the Quebec Legislative Assembly for Argenteuil from 1903 to 1910, during which period he served in the Parent and Gouin Ministries as Minister without portfolio, Minister of Public Works or Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
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Parliamentary Action
By the time the World War broke out in 1914, "O Canada" was the best known patriotic song in Canada, edging out "The Maple leaf Forever" and others less well-known today.
1924 - The association of Canadian Clubs passed a unanimous resolution recommending the Weir version as suitable for use at Club meetings.
Since then the I.O.D.E. and the Canadian Authors Association have endorsed it and in 1958 the Native Sons of Canada found in favour of it.
1927 - An official version of "O Canada" was authorized for singing in Canadian schools and for use at public functions.
1942 - July 27. The Prime Minister, the Right Honourable William Lyon Mackenzie King, was asked if he did not think this an appropriate time for proclaiming a national anthem. He replied that "There are times and seasons for all things and this time of war when there are other more important questions with which parliament has to deal, we might well continue to follow what has become the custom in Canada in recent years of regarding "God Save The King" and "O Canada" each as national anthems and entitled to similar recognition." He said further that this was his opinion, his government's opinion and he had no doubt it was the opinion of most people in the country.
Some years later, his successor as Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Louis St-Laurent made a similar statement.
1964 - A government resolution authorized the formation of a special joint committee to consider the status of "God Save The Queen" and "O Canada".
1966 - January 31. The Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Lester B. Pearson, placed a notice of motion on the order paper "That the government be authorized to take such steps as may be necessary to provide that "O Canada" shall be the National Anthem of Canada while "God Save The Queen" shall be the Royal Anthem of Canada.
1967 - March 15. The special joint committee "unanimously recommends that the government be authorized to adopt forthwith the music for "O Canada" composed by Calixa Lavallée as the music of the National Anthem of Canada with the following notation added to the sheet music: With dignity, not too slowly.
"God Save The Queen" was found to be in the public domain as the Royal Anthem of Canada, but for "O Canada" the committee deemed it "essential to take such steps as necessary to appropriate the copyright to the music providing that it shall belong to Her Majesty in right of Canada for all time. This provision would also include that no other person shall be entitled to copyright in the music or any arrangements or adaptations thereof."
The committee recommended further study of the lyrics. It suggested keeping the original French version and using the Weir English version with minor changes - that is replacing two of the "Stand on guard" phrases with "From far and wide" and "God keep our land".
There was no trouble with the music copyright which had by now descended to Gordon V. Thompson. They were willing to sell for $1, but the heirs of Judge Weir objected to the changes in the original version. Since Judge Weir died in 1926, the Weir version would not come into public domain until 1976. There was some doubt that the Weir family had legal grounds for objection since Thompson's apparently held copyright on both music and English words. However the committee preferred to settle the matter amicably if at all possible. The Government acquired the rights from G.V. Thompson in 1970.
The version recommended by the committee:
O Canada! our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
1972 - February 28 - The Secretary of State of Canada, the Honourable Gérard Pelletier, presented a bill in the House of Commons proposing the adoption of "O Canada" as the National Anthem of Canada. The recommendations of the 1967 study in Parliament are incorporated in the bill, which did not receive further study in Parliament and died on the order paper. The same legislation was reintroduced by Mr. Pelletier's successors at further sessions of Parliament; no action was ever taken.
1980 - June 18 - The Secretary of State of Canada, the Honourable Francis Fox, presented a bill, similar to previously presented bills on "O Canada", fulfilling a promise made earlier in the House that "O Canada" be proclaimed as Canada's national anthem as soon as possible in this year of the centenary of the first rendition. The bill was unanimously accepted by the House of Commons and the Senate on June 27; Royal assent was given the same day.
July 1 - The Governor General, His Excellency the Right Honourable Edward Schreyer, proclaimed the Act respecting the National Anthem of Canada, thus making "O Canada" an official symbol of the country. A public ceremony was held at noon on Parliament Hill in front of thousands of Canadians. Descendants of Weir and Routhier were on the official platform, as well as the successor of Robitaille, the Honourable Jean-Pierre Côté.
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Original Poem by Weir
Originally "O Canada" was a patriotic poem by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier, a Quebec judge. Calixa Lavallée, the well-known Canadian composer, was commissioned to set it to music, and it was first sung in 1880 during a national convention of French Canadians in Quebec City. Many English versions have appeared, but the one which was widely accepted was written in 1908 by another judge, R. Stanley Weir, in honour of the 300th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City. It was amended in 1913, 1914 and 1916 and published in an official form at the time of the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927 and during the Royal visit of 1939. A slightly modified version of the first verse of Weir's poem was proclaimed as Canada's national anthem in 1980. The original poem of 1908 by Stanley Weir reads as follows:
O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love thou dost in us command.
We see thee rising fair, dear land,
The True North, strong and free;
And stand on guard, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
Refrain
O Canada! O Canada!
O Canada! We stand on guard for thee.
O Canada! We stand on guard for thee.
O Canada! Where pines and maples grow.
Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow.
How dear to us thy broad domain,
From East to Western Sea,
Thou land of hope for all who toil!
Thou True North, strong and free!
Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.
O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies
May stalwart sons and gentle maidens rise,
To keep thee steadfast through the years
From East to Western Sea,
Our own beloved native land!
Our True North, strong and free!
Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.
Ruler supreme, who hearest humble prayer,
Hold our dominion within thy loving care;
Help us to find, O God, in thee
A lasting, rich reward,
As waiting for the Better Day,
We ever stand on guard.
Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.
English Translation of the French Version of the National Anthem
O Canada! Land of our forefathers
Thy brow is wreathed with a glorious garland of flowers.
As in thy arm ready to wield the sword,
So also is it ready to carry the cross.
Thy history is an epic of the most brilliant exploits.
Ch.
Thy valour steeped in faith
Will protect our homes and our rights
Will protect our homes and our rights.
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Music and lyrics
As the National Anthem Act only sets the melody for the anthem, musicians are free to arrange the score to suit their requirements.
There is no copyright on the melody and the words of the national anthem, the Act having declared them to be in the public domain. It is possible, however, to copyright the arrangements made to the melody.
It is possible to translate the words of the national anthem in languages other than English or French; it should be kept in mind, however, that this translated version will not have an official status.
Playing of anthems at events
There is no specific rule as to when it is appropriate to sing the national anthem at an event. It is up to the organizers to determine if "O Canada" will be sung at the beginning or at the end of a ceremony. If two anthems are to be played at the beginning of an event, "O Canada" should be played first followed by the other one. When anthems are played at the end of an event, "O Canada" should be played last.
Etiquette during the playing of the national anthem
As a matter of respect and tradition, it is proper to stand for the playing of "O Canada" as well as for the anthem of any other nation.
It is traditional for civilian men to take off their hats during the playing of the national anthem. Women as well as children do not remove their hats on such occasions.
There is no law or behaviour governing the playing of the national anthem; it is left to the good citizenship of individuals.
Commercial use
"O Canada" and "God Save The Queen" are in the public domain and may be used without having to obtain permission from the Government.
Miss Canada Is Crowned 2005 Miss Universe
BANGKOK, Thailand - Miss Canada, Natalie Glebova, was crowned Miss Universe in the 54th annual pageant held in the Thai capital of Bangkok. The brunette from Toronto was chosen over Miss Puerto Rico Cynthia Olavarria.
The two were among five contestants selected to answer questions onstage in the final round of the competition. The others were from Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
Glebova, 23, was asked what she considered the biggest challenge of her life. She said it was remaining optimistic.
"I always try to maintain a positive outlook on life," she said.
Earlier, the 12-judge panel narrowed the field of 81 contestants to 15, then 10 as the Miss Universe hopefuls modeled evening gowns and swimsuits.
During the event broadcast live, hosts introduced the contestants, judges and last year's winner, Australia's Jennifer Hawkins.
Thailand hopes that hosting the pageant will boost the country's tourism sector, which was badly hurt by last December's tsunami.
Contestants, who arrived in Thailand about three weeks ago, have visited tsunami-struck areas along the southern coastline and historic Buddhist temples around Bangkok.
They have also driven the country's famous three-wheeled motorcycle taxis, called tuk-tuks, and ridden atop elephants — Thailand's national symbol.
The Canadian National Anthem
English:
O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Français:
Ô Canada!
Terre de nos aïeux,
Ton front est ceint de fleurons glorieux!
Car ton bras sait porter l'épée,
Il sait porter la croix!
Ton histoire est une épopée
Des plus brillants exploits.
Et ta valeur, de foi trempée,
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits,
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits.