HISTORY THROUGH OUR EYES

March 20, 1985: Melissa Auf der Maur

Readers of the Montreal Gazette got an early introduction to Melissa Auf der Maur, the wellknown bass player with Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins, among others.

When she was growing up in Montreal, her father, Nick Auf der Maur, often featured her in the columns he wrote for the Gazette. Auf der Maur was a well-known and popular man about town. He served several terms as a Montreal city councillor. Almost 3,000 people attended his funeral in 1998.

On March 20, 1985, Gordon Beck’s photo of the 13-year-old future rock star appeared on the front page, accompanied by a column in which her father described how the birthday card she was holding came to be signed by then-prime minister Brian Mulroney and U.S. president Ronald Reagan.

Having the leaders sign the card at their Shamrock Summit in Quebec City had been her idea, the columnist wrote, after he had mentioned to her that he had been invited to the event.

It happened to fall on her birthday, March 17.

Realizing that his chances of getting close to either leader would be slim, Nick Auf der Maur called up Mulroney’s press secretary and asked him whether he could arrange for the card to be signed.

That was not a small request, but Auf der Maur figured it was worth a shot, and he stressed the symbolism of his daughter’s being a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen, on account of her mother, Linda Gaboriau, being American.

Sure enough, Melissa got her card.

And Montrealers — and music fans around the world — went on to hear a lot more of Melissa.