Pictured: Patrick Hivon and Jean Lapointe star in À l’origine d’un cri.

Veteran actor and former Senator Jean Lapointe is set to receive a lifetime achievement award, the Prix Jutra-Hommage, at this year’s Quebec film awards, the Jutras, on March 13.

Born in 1935, the comedian, singer-songwriter and actor recently starred in the hard-hitting film À l’origine d’un cri but made his debut at the Caprice cabaret in Montreal in 1953. A popular performer, for decades in Quebec Lapointe appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1967 and at the Olympia in Paris in 1966, 1967, and 1974.

In 1973 Lapointe began a career as a film actor and went on to star in a number of well-known Quebec films, including Ti-Mine, Bernie pis la gang, OK la liberté, Angela (with Sophia Loren), Les Ordres, J.A. Martin photographe, L’eau chaude, l’eau frette, and Une histoire inventée. He also was the former premier of Quebec in the televised series Duplessis.

He was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1984 and was named to the Senate by Jean Chrétien in 2001 where he sat as a Liberal until reaching retirement age of 75 on December 6, 2010. (On his 75th birthday, control of the Canadian Senate passed into the hands of the Conservatives.)

Other recipients of the Jutra award are René Malo (2010), Fernand Dansereau (2009) and Jean-Claude Labrecque (2008).

The Jutra award nominees will be announced February 9th.