Atwood, Morissette Ottawa-born icons
Two Canadian icons. Both born in Ottawa. Both coffee junkies. Both powerful female artists, environmentalists, mothers of one and household names. Here are some fun facts on Alanis Morissette and Margaret Atwood.
ALANIS MORIS SETTE
Twitter: @morissette Age: 39 (Atwood was born in ’39) Birthday: June 1, 1974 Sign: Gemini (fitting, given she has a non-identical twin, Wade) Middle name: Nadine Place of birth: Ottawa Parents: Georgia (teacher) and Alan (school principal) Children: one, Ever (born on Christmas Day 2010) Recorded first song: age 11 First album: Alanis (1991, MCA Records Canada) at the age of 17 First major award in Canada: 1992 Juno Award for Most Promising Female Vocalist Achieved cult status with: Jagged Little Pill (1996), an album that won four Grammys (Album of the Year, Best Rock Album, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance and Best Rock Song for You Oughta Know) and two American Music Awards for Favourite Pop/Rock Album and Favourite Pop/Rock Female Artist Number of studio albums: eight Accolades: seven Grammy Awards (of 14 nominations), 12 Juno Awards (of 21 nominations), two American Music Awards (of four nominations) and two Golden Globe nominations Canada’s Walk of Fame? Yes Order of Canada? No Most recent work: Havoc and Bright Lights (2012)
MARGARET AT WO O D
Twitter: @MargaretAtwood Age: 74 (Morissette was born in ’74) Birthday: Nov. 18, 1939 Sign: Scorpio Middle name: Eleanor Place of birth: Ottawa Parents: Margaret (dietitian/nutritionist) and Carl (entomologist) Children: 1, Eleanor “Jess” (born in 1976, when Alanis was two years old) Started writing: age six First book: Double Persephone (1961; self-published) at the age of 20 First major award in Canada: Governor General’s Award for Poetry for The Circle Game (1964) Achieved cult status with: The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), which won the Arthur C. Clarke award in 1987 and the 1985 Governor General’s Award, and was a finalist for the 1986 Booker Prize Number of books published: dozens, including 14 novels, seven short-story collections, 10 non-fiction books and scads of poetry collections (visit margaretatwood. ca for the full bibliography) Accolades: one Booker Prize (has been shortlisted 5 times), two Governor General’s Awards (has been shortlisted three times), one Giller Prize (has been shortlisted twice), three Trillium Book Awards, a Guggenheim fellowship, the Arthur C. Clarke Award and 19 honourary doctorates Canada’s Walk of Fame? Yes Order of Canada? Yes Most recent work: MaddAddam (2013), Part 3 of the MaddAddam trilogy