Aragon a ‘true pro’ says Martin Sheen

Advertisement

Advertise with us

WHY would an American acting icon interrupt shooting of his new Netflix series, co-starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, to chat about a 14-year-old Winnipeg singer who's about to release her debut single?

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/08/2014 (4386 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WHY would an American acting icon interrupt shooting of his new Netflix series, co-starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, to chat about a 14-year-old Winnipeg singer who’s about to release her debut single?

It’s the first question put to Martin Sheen, known for his standout roles in the film Apocalypse Now and as the American president on TV’s The West Wing. It turns out that he is a long-distance fan of Maria Aragon.

“If you’ve seen this 14-year-old girl from Winnipeg, you would understand why I’d do this,” he says over the telephone from Los Angeles. “I think she’s got a big career in front of her. She’s in the same genre as a young Michael Jackson. I’m delighted to show my support at this point in her development.”

Maria Aragon has an admirer in actor Martin Sheen.
Maria Aragon has an admirer in actor Martin Sheen.

Sheen is prepared to issue his presidential seal of approval after seeing her perform twice, the first time being when Aragon was barely 12, at a Toronto children’s hospital fundraiser for which the 73-year-old Sheen was a host.

“I was quite overwhelmed by her performance,” says Sheen, who plays Fonda’s husband in the new Netflix comedy series Grace and Frankie. “It was equally stunning to witness her poise and her ability to sing in front of a huge audience. I was quite taken with her. I couldn’t believe she was 12 years old.”

Sheen was in Winnipeg about a year ago for We Day, and again got to watch Aragon entertain — this time in front of 15,000 young people.

“You see all these kids coming up on America’s Got Talent or The Voice, and they are all amateurs — a word I use loosely, but they are,” he says. “She comes off like a true professional. She’s already seasoned. It seems the bigger the crowd, the more comfortable she is.”

While in Winnipeg, he had an audience with Maria and her parents, and advised them to move slowly in developing her career. He told her to enjoy her youth, because she is not going to lose her talent, voice or opportunities.

“When you talk to her, please give her my love,” Sheen says. “Tell her we’re thinking of her and keeping her in our heart.”

— Kevin Prokosh

History

Updated on Monday, August 25, 2014 12:58 PM CDT: Audio added.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Bombers give would-be boo birds their marching orders

Taylor Allen 3 minute read Preview

Bombers give would-be boo birds their marching orders

Taylor Allen 3 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are being criticized by some fans online for booking the University of North Dakota’s marching band for Friday’s game against Montreal.

Read
Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

Former care home nurse fined $8,000 for ‘disturbing in the extreme’ 2025 incident

Morgan Modjeski 4 minute read Preview

Former care home nurse fined $8,000 for ‘disturbing in the extreme’ 2025 incident

Morgan Modjeski 4 minute read 5:00 PM CDT

A former nurse has been fined $8,000 and is facing numerous restrictions after making a mistake “no registered nurse should have made” by inserting 10 centimetres of gauze into a patient’s anus instead of dressing a nearby wound.

Kamaljeet Kaur Dherdi entered a guilty plea to professional misconduct as part of an inquiry committee panel of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba on June 2.

The incident took place on March 6, 2025 at the Holy Family Care Home on Aberdeen Avenue.

The inquiry panel’s decision, posted online Thursday, called Dherdi’s behaviour “disturbing in the extreme.”

Read
5:00 PM CDT

Late founder of Canad Inns celebrated with honorary street name

Joyanne Pursaga 3 minute read Preview

Late founder of Canad Inns celebrated with honorary street name

Joyanne Pursaga 3 minute read 5:40 PM CDT

The founder of Canad Inns will be remembered through an honorary street name, alongside his homegrown hotel chain’s Garden City location.

On Thursday, the city installed a sign to mark “Leo Ledohowski Way” on Jefferson Avenue between McPhillips and Watson streets.

“It is a lasting tribute … to a man who devoted so much of his life to this city and province and whose legacy will continue to inspire those who travel the road for years to come … From this day forward, Leo’s name will be part of Winnipeg’s landscape,” said Coun. Janice Lukes (Waverley West), city council’s acting deputy mayor.

Ledohowski died last year at the age of 81. He started the Canad Inns hotel chain in the 1970s. At an event to unveil the street sign, he was described as a tireless entrepreneur, philanthropist and hospitality leader, as well as a cheerleader for both Winnipeg and Manitoba.

Read
5:40 PM CDT

‘They’ve got confidence, but they do have their flaws’

Ken Wiebe 5 minute read Preview

‘They’ve got confidence, but they do have their flaws’

Ken Wiebe 5 minute read 6:07 PM CDT

The shoe has been on the other foot during the Winnipeg Blue Bombers golden years, so it’s tough to find anyone on the current roster ready to adopt the underdog mentality.

Going into Friday’s game with the league-leading Montreal Alouettes, though, the Bombers recognize they’re running into a buzzsaw.

At 9-1, the Alouettes are the cream of the crop in the CFL and it’s tough to identify any weaknesses in the team that bounced the Bombers from the playoffs last November.

“I love it,” said running back Brady Oliveira. “You want to play against the best every single week. I always talk about going up against the best defensive players every single week. That excites me.

Read
6:07 PM CDT

Bombers offensive co-ordinator Condell takes accountability for loss to Elks

Ken Wiebe 6 minute read Preview

Bombers offensive co-ordinator Condell takes accountability for loss to Elks

Ken Wiebe 6 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

Tommy Condell isn’t about to throw his hands up in frustration. That’s simply not the way the Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive co-ordinator is wired.

And while the state of the offence remains a source of consternation for many in the Bombers fan base, Condell continues to plug away at ensuring steps will be taken to raise the efficiency levels down the stretch.

The club appeared to have taken a significant step forward in that category last Friday, jumping out to a 16-0 lead in the second quarter that became a 10-point cushion at the half after the Edmonton Elks scored a late major.

Then came a head-scratching third quarter that featured a pair of two-and-outs for the visitors at Commonwealth Stadium in what eventually became a 22-19 defeat.

Read
Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

Thirteen accused in gun, drug trafficking network in rural Manitoba

Erik Pindera 4 minute read Preview

Thirteen accused in gun, drug trafficking network in rural Manitoba

Erik Pindera 4 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

RCMP and Winkler police have arrested more than a dozen people allegedly connected to a drug-and-gun trafficking network that operated in rural Manitoba.

The joint investigation began in December 2024, when officers from the Winkler Police Service asked the Mounties for help after learning kilograms of cocaine were being imported to a Winkler-area truck repair business, said RCMP Supt. Jeff Asmundson, who oversees the force’s Manitoba integrated law enforcement team.

Mounties and Winkler police gathered evidence for 19 months and expanded the probe, dubbed Project Dolor, as investigators learned other types of illicit substances and firearms were being trafficked by the network in a number of southern Manitoba communities, said Asmundson, whose team investigates serious and organized crime.

“It started as a cocaine trafficking investigation, and obviously, as we move along in a project or a file, evidence is gathered and an opportunity arose and we wanted to ensure public safety,” he told reporters Tuesday. “We were able to secure some firearms.”

Read
Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026