As Harrison Houde sees it, his Hollywood dream isn’t over, far from it.
But with casting calls cancelled and studios shuttered, his hopes of stardom are now on hold, as he makes a strategic retreat in the face of insurmountable odds.
“No part-time job, no auditions, there’s nothing,” Houde said. “I didn’t think it was gonna get to the level that it is now.”
A 24-year-old actor from Vancouver Island, Houde has starred in shows for kids and teens like Finding Stuff Out and Some Assembly Required. Two years ago he moved to Los Angeles, hoping for his big break.
Houde admits it’s been difficult — like many who are trying to find their feet in Hollywood, he was counting on a part-time job to make ends meet. But then the coronavirus hit. Days before his first shift at a neighbourhood restaurant, California’s governor issued a stay-at-home order.
“I texted my new boss and he’s like, ‘Yeah, we’re closed.’ So I’m like, yikes, this is not good. I need to figure something out,” Houde said.
WATCH | Harrison Houde’s YouTube compilation of what he did in 2019
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Since California issued the order on March 17, thousands of Canadian entertainers who live in the Los Angeles area find themselves in the same boat — one that has now run aground.
Those who can’t rely on royalties or residuals from past work to tide them over during the shutdown are struggling without many of the safety nets that protect other Canadian workers.
With few prospects and no income, Houde says he can no longer afford his rent in Los Angeles. So this week he gathered dozens of study boxes and a roll of tape.
“I’m making the move back to Vancouver because … there’s no work,” Houde says. “I might as well move back and try to save some money if I can.”
‘I’m a Canadian in America’
Many Canadian entertainers in the U.S. are now caught betwixt and between: ineligible for many U.S. unemployment benefits because they’re not American citizens, but also ineligible for many Canadian benefits because they’re living abroad.
Singer Sarah Daye worries that the loss of gigs might mean more than the loss of revenue – namely, that her working visa in the U.S. might be in jeopardy, too. (Sarah Daye)
The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), for instance, is only available for citizens who reside in Canada. And the government says it offers no income support program for Canadians who reside abroad.
“I’m not American. I’m a Canadian in America,” says R&B singer Sarah Daye. “I don’t have a green card and I’m on a visa, so I’m not eligible.”
The Toronto native has been nominated for a Grammy, fronted the Kevin Eubanks Band (formerly the house band on The Tonight Show) and opened for Lenny Kravitz. But now, her shows are cancelled and she’s forced to chase people down for cheques she’s owed.
“So I’m kind of at the point where I’m having to be very creative about how am I going to make money,” Daye says.
That includes trying to find platforms “where they actually pay you” for performing, and even reaching out to fans for donations.
“You’ve got to kind of humble yourself and put yourself out there and ask for the support.”
‘Hoping and praying’
As if worrying about food and rent weren’t enough, many Canadians working stateside in the entertainment industry share another pressing concern: their immigration status.
Many, like Daye, are allowed to work in the U.S. thanks to an O-1 non-immigrant visa, which is reserved for those who have demonstrated an “extraordinary ability or achievement” in the arts.
However, to maintain their visa status, they have to prove they’re working continuously. In February, the Trump administration tightened immigration rules to further restrict entry to those deemed likely of needing social assistance.
Daye says she’s already on a visa extension and is scared she might not be able to renew it.
“I’m just really keeping the faith that it’s all going to work out,” Daye says. “And I’m hoping and praying that there is some support, you know?”
According to one Canadian immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, Canadian artists in the U.S. may be eligible for more support than they realize.
Zoe Kevork, managing attorney at Kevork Law and president of Canadians Abroad in Southern California, says there’s a lot of confusion about how the shutdown will affect the visa status of Canadians working in the U.S. (Zoe Kevork)
Zoe Kevork, managing attorney at Kevork Law and president of Canadians Abroad in Southern California, says she is being bombarded with questions from Canadian clients worried about how they can renew or extend their visas if the projects they’re working on are shut down.
The answer isn’t simple. “There are varying opinions on at what point are you considered to be out of status or that your visa is no longer valid,” Kevork says, especially for workers who have been furloughed.
“Is that a material change to your status where now you need to plan for another visa? There is no guidance. It’s unclear.”
Few supports for artists in U.S.
Kevork says Canadian artists on an O-1 visa for extraordinary ability are allowed a 60-day grace period without work. But if they believe they’ll be out of work for longer, “definitely people should be consulting with their immigration lawyers.”
But there is some good news. Kevork says Canadian artists in the U.S. need not fear that applying for unemployment insurance will impact their immigration status. And those $1,200 stimulus cheques from the Trump administration for coronavirus relief?
“If you’ve paid your taxes, then you are eligible for it,” she says.
There are few Canadian-based programs for artists living south of the border.
Rodney Murphy, who manages all of SOCAN’s U.S. activities, believes those who ‘have the talent to succeed will find a way to rise above this.’ (Jeff Knights/SOCAN)
The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), for example, says it’s helping its 800 or so members who live in the L.A. area.
“I’ve been in contact with quite a few of them,” says Rodney Murphy, who manages SOCAN’s U.S. activities. “There definitely is a loss of revenue there.”
To help offset those losses, SOCAN created a $2-million Cdn royalty advance program for its members. “So if someone applies for an advance today [the money] is in their bank within a week,” Murphy says.
David Hope, the executive director of the Actors Fund Canada, says the focus of their programs is helping Canadians in Canada, and that the U.S.-based Actors Fund might be in a better position to help Canadians stateside. (When asked for comment, the Actors Fund did not reply.)
The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) isn’t offering any specific relief for U.S.-based members. In an email, the organization says it’s “been sharing information with our 27,000-plus members,” and points to its website, which catalogues a list of financial benefits like CERB, most of which are only available to Canadian residents.
Comic Renée Percy, seen performing in Las Vegas in November 2019, insists that if you can’t find ways to laugh during the current shutdown, then ‘you’re just going to cry all the time.’ (Tina Compise/Quickstyle Photography)
“There’s no union for us,” says comedian Renée Percy. “It’s a solo thing from beginning to end, for better or for worse.”
Adapting to the situation
Percy, who is from Toronto, settled in Los Angeles 10 years ago. She says before the current shutdown, she was doing six to eight shows a week. Now, she says, life is like a day off — but it’s the same day, over and over again.
“Normally, I’m on stage every night and now I’m on my couch every night,” Percy says. “I was supposed to be doing a tour of Europe next month and being in Barcelona and Luxembourg and all these amazing places. And now I’m just doing a tour of my house: from the bathroom to the kitchen to the bedroom and back.”
Some Canadian entertainers are able to eke out a living during the shutdown by adapting and improvising, something that comes naturally to Percy. She continues to teach improv, but now her class is online instead of in person.
“People don’t have to worry about traffic or parking … or pants even, because they’re mostly sitting down,” Percy says. “It doesn’t even have to be people in L.A. Now I have somebody in South Africa who might be joining my class.”
Percy says she tries not to think about how dire her situation is or she’ll “freak out,” concentrating instead on finding material amid the madness.
Renée Percy, top right, takes a picture of the improv class she has begun teaching online. (Renee Percy)
“If you can’t laugh, then yeah, you’re just going to cry all the time,” Percy says. “There is humour and comedy out there and there always will be. And I think the darker the situation, the more we need it.”
Getting creative ‘to rise above this’
Despite the challenges facing the Canadian artists he represents, Murphy believes those who “have the talent to succeed will find a way to rise above this.”
“This experience will help them create great work and great art, and re-wire the creative brain to do new and better things,” Murphy says.
Even though he’s in the middle of packing for his move to Vancouver next week, Harrison Houde still finds time to collaborate online with his writing partner Dakota Daulby on their first film.
If there is any good news hidden amid the chaos in Houde’s Los Angeles apartment, it’s that his writing, he says, has never been better.
“It’s been kind of therapeutic to some degree,” Houde says. “Maybe our writing has improved because we’ve been locked inside and we just have a lot of time to just think.”
Houde is hoping the worst of the pandemic is over by the end of the summer. Then, he says, he’d like to come back, get another apartment in L.A. and pick up where he left off.
He’s versatile, open to anything. But there’s one project he says he wants no part of.
“I’m certain there’s gonna be like 10 Hollywood films next year called ‘Quarantine’ that all take place in one room, and I’m dreading that.”
TORONTO – He’s firmly among Canada’s top three-year-olds but My Boy Prince faces a stiff test Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack.
The ’24 King’s Plate runner-up will be part of a global field in the $1-million Woodbine Mile turf event. Not only will it be My Boy Prince’s first race against older competition but among the seven other starters will be such horses as Naval Power (Great Britain), Big Rock (France) and Filo Di Arianna (Brazil).
My Boy Prince will race for the first time since finishing second to filly Caitlinhergrtness in the Plate on Aug. 23.
“It’s his first try against older horses and it’s hard to say where he fits in,” said trainer Mark Casse. “This time of year running a three-year-old against older horses, it’s like running a teenager against college athletes.
“We’re doing it because we believe a mile on the turf is his preferred surface … we wanted to give him a shot at this. (American owner Gary Barber) is someone who likes to think outside the box and take calculated risks so we’re going to see where he fits in.”
Casse, 16 times Canada’s top trainer, is a Hall of Famer both here and in the U.S. He’s also a two-time Woodbine Mile winner with filly Tepin (2016) and World Approval (2017).
Sahin Civaci will again ride My Boy Prince, Canada’s top two-year-old male who has six wins and 10 money finishes (6-3-1) in 11 career starts. The horse will be one of three Casse trainees in the race with Filo Di Arianna (ridden by Sovereign Award winner Kazushi Kimura) and Win for the Money (veteran Woodbine jockey Patrick Husbands aboard).
Naval Power, a four-year-old, has finished in the money in eight of nine starts (six wins, twice second) and will race in Canada for the first time. He comes to Woodbine with second-place finishes in two Grade 1 turf races.
Big Rock, another four-year-old, makes his North American debut Saturday. The horse has five wins and five second-place finishes in 14 starts but has struggled in ’24, finishing sixth, 10th and fifth in three races.
Filo Di Arianna is a four-time graded stakes winner with nine victories, three seconds and a third from 17 starts. It was Canada’s ’22 top male sprinter and champion male turf horse.
Other starters include Playmea Tune, Niagara Skyline and Secret Reserve.
Playmea Tune, a four-year-old, is trained by Josie Carrol. The gelding has made three starts, winning twice and finishing second in the Grade 3 Bold Venture on Aug. 23.
Woodbine-based Niagara Skyline is a six-year-old with 13 money finishes (six wins, five seconds, twice third) in 24-lifetime starts. The John Charlambous trainee has reached the podium (1-1-1) in all three races this year.
Secret Reserve, also a six-year-old, has finished in the money in 15-of-26 starts (six wins, one second, eight thirds). The horse, at 44-1, was third in the Grade 2 King Edward Stakes over a mile on the E.P. Taylor turf course.
The Mile highlights a stellar card featuring six graded stakes races. Also on tap are the $750,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes (fillies and mares), $500,000 bet365 Summer Stakes (two-year-olds) and $500,000 Johnnie Walker Natalma Stakes (two-year-old fillies), all Grade 1 turf events.
The Mile, Natalma and Summer winners earn automatic entries into the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar in November.
Casse has won all four races, earning his first E.P. Taylor title last year with filly Fev Rover, Canada’s horse of the year and champion female turf horse. Fev Rover will defend her title Saturday against a field that includes Moira, the ’22 King’s Plate winner and Canada’s horse of the year trained by Woodbine’s Kevin Attard.
“It (E.P. Taylor) was definitely on my bucket list because it had eluded us,” Casse said. “But I honestly hadn’t realized I’d won all four of them, hadn’t really thought about it.”
Casse will have horses in all four turf races Saturday. Arguably the most intriguing matchup will be between Moira and Fev Rover, who ran 1-2, respectively, in a photo finish Aug. 11 in the Grade 2 Beverly D. Stakes, a 1 3/16-mile turf race, at Virginia’s Colonial Downs.
“What’s funny is the two of them went all the way to Virginia and she beat us by a nose,” Casse said. “We could’ve done that at Woodbine.
“There’s two of the best fillies in the world both from Toronto and they’re going to be competing Saturday.”
Some question having so many solid races on a single card but Casse likes the strategy.
“I think it’s a good thing,” he said. “On Saturday, the main focus on horse racing in the world will be on Woodbine and that’s because it’s such a great card.
“It’s an international day, there’s horses coming from everywhere and we’re going to do our best to represent Canada.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — Maria Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam singles champion, led the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan vote her first year on the ballot — an important part to possible selection to the hall’s next class.
The organization released the voting results Friday. American doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan finished second with Canada’s Daniel Nestor third.
The Hall of Fame said tens of thousands of fans from 120 countries cast ballots. Fan voting is one of two steps in the hall’s selection process. The second is an official group of journalists, historians, and Hall of Famers from the sport who vote on the ballot for the hall’s class of 2025.
“I am incredibly grateful to the fans all around the world who supported me during the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan votes,” Sharapova said in a statement. “It is a tremendous honor to be considered for the Hall of Fame, and having the fans’ support makes it all the more special.”
Sharapova became the first Russian woman to reach No. 1 in the world. She won Wimbledon in 2004, the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008. She also won the French Open twice, in 2012 and 2014.
Sharapova was also part of Russia’s championship Fed Cup team in 2008 and won a silver medal at the London Olympics in 2012.
To make the hall, candidates must receive 75% or higher on combined results of the official voting group and additional percentage from the fan vote. Sharapova will have an additional three percentage points from winning the fan vote.
The Bryans, who won 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, will have two additional percentage points and Nestor, who won eight Grand Slam doubles titles, will get one extra percentage point.
The hall’s next class will be announced late next month.
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
