Jaclyn Linetsky

Jaclyn Linetsky
Linetsky in 2002
Born	Jaclyn Michelle Linetsky (1986-01-08)January 8, 1986 Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Died	September 8, 2003(2003-09-08) (aged 17) Brossard, Quebec, Canada
Cause of death	Traffic collision
Resting place	Kehal Israel Memorial Cemetery, Dollard-des-Ormeaux
Education	St. George's High School, Montreal
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1994–2003
Notable work	Kate's friend in Kart Racer (2003)
Television	Caillou (2000–2003) Mega Babies (1999–2000) What's with Andy? (2001–2003) 15/Love (2004–2006)

Jaclyn Michelle Linetsky (January 8, 1986 – September 8, 2003) was a Canadian actress who played the title character on Caillou and Megan O'Connor on 15/Love.

Early life

Jaclyn Michelle Linetsky was born on January 8, 1986, at the Jewish General Hospital to Jewish parents, Terry (née Weiner) and Larry Linetsky. She had two older siblings, Kelly and Derek. Linetsky was raised in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, then moved to Hampstead, a suburb in Montreal, Quebec. She graduated from St. George's School of Montreal in 2003, and she made a speech at the graduation ceremony.

Career

Linetsky began acting at age eight, performing in theatre productions. Her first major gig was in a milk radio advertisement at age 10.

Linetsky provided the voice of the title character in the animated series Caillou from 2000 until her death in 2003. She also provided the voices for Bitzi in the animated series Daft Planet (2002); Lori Mackney in the second season of What's with Andy? (2003–2004) replacing US voice actress Colleen O'Shaughnessey; Kit on Kit & Kaboodle. Shei-Hu, his cousin Shei-He, and a large group of other mice as well as additional voices on Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat; Yukari on Tommy & Oscar; Brenda on Rotten Ralph and Meg in Mega Babies.

Other roles in voice acting included, The Kids from Room 402, Wunschpunsch, The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures, Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings, Jim Button and video games Alex Builds His Farm and Evolution Worlds.

In 2003, Linetsky was cast in the tennis-circuit-themed dramatic series 15/Love on YTV. Her character, Megan O'Connor, was falling in love with Sebastian Dube, played by co-star Vadim Schneider.

Death

On September 8, 2003, Linetsky and Vadim Schneider were on their way to the set of 15/Love in Saint-Césaire, Quebec, in a Dodge Caravan. For unknown reasons, the Dodge Caravan went off its original trajectory around 12:15 P.M., and across the middle band of the highway, finishing in the wrong direction on Highway 10 West in Brossard. The van swerved into oncoming traffic, crossed the median, and struck a 20-foot semi-truck head on, causing the vehicle to burst into flames. The two actors were knocked unconscious by the impact.

Schnieder died instantly on impact from multiple physical trauma. Linetsky went into cardiac arrest and died hours later from the combined effects of physical trauma, severe injuries, and burns. They were both 17 years old.

On the day of Schneider and Linetsky's deaths, filming for 15/Love was delayed and went on a two-week hiatus. The cast and crew wanted to speak with the actors' families.

On September 10, 2003, a funeral was held for Linetsky, with over 1,500 mourners in attendance. She was buried in Kehal Israel Memorial Park in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec.

Linetsky was replaced by Annie Bovaird as the voice of Caillou. Her character in 15/Love was written to have died off-screen.

In a statement, Stuart Snyder, President and CEO of Cinar Corporation, wrote:

"Jaclyn's voice enchanted thousands of children and viewers and she brought her own special personality and character to Caillou. She was a very talented performer and will be deeply missed by us all. On behalf of everyone at CINAR, I want to express our most sincere and heartfelt sympathies to Jaclyn's family."

Tributes

The episode of What's with Andy? entitled "Nurse Jen" was dedicated to her memory, as was the 15/Love episode entitled "Curveballs P.1" and the Caillou film Caillou's Holiday Movie. The very last episode of 15/Love was also dedicated to her memory. In 2009, St. George's School of Montreal, Linetsky's alma mater, renamed their performing arts program "The Jaclyn Linetsky Performing Arts Program" in her honour.

Filmography

Animation

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures	Additional Voices
1998	Kit & Kaboodle	Kit
1998–1999	Jim Button	Additional Voices
1999	Tommy & Oscar	Yukari
	Mega Babies	Meg
1999–2001	Rotten Ralph	Brenda/Additional Voices
2000	The Kids from Room 402	Additional Voices
2000–2003	Caillou	Caillou	Lead role (seasons 2-3)
2000–2001	Wunschpunsch	Additional Voices
2002	Daft Planet	Bitzi
	Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat	Shei-Hu, Shei-He/Additional Voices	6 episodes
	Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings	Additional Voices
2003–2004	What's with Andy?	Lori	Season 2 only Some episodes aired posthumously

Live-action

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2004	15/Love	Megan O'Connor	13 episodes All aired posthumously

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2003	Kart Racer	Kate's Friend

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2002	Evolution Worlds	Ricardo / Yuko

External links

• Jaclyn Linetsky at IMDb
• Jaclyn Linetsky at Find a Grave