Salah Bachir: key obituary facts
Is Salah Bachir dead? Yes. Salah Bachir died on October 9, 2026, at age 71.
Cause of death: Salah Bachir's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Salah Bachir known for?
He was a Magazine publisher.
More about Salah Bachir
Salah Bachir, a Canadian business executive and entrepreneur, died October 9, 2026, aged 71.
Born in Lebanon on October 3, 1955, Bachir built a career spanning media, publishing, business and philanthropy. He founded Phamous Characters, a media, production, publishing and sponsorship venture, and from 2005 to 2021 served as president of Cineplex Media.
In that role, he published Cineplex Magazine, negotiated theatre naming rights with Scotiabank and co-founded the Scene loyalty program. Bachir was appointed the fourth chancellor of Toronto’s OCAD University in June 2017. His work in business and the arts also included collecting art and fundraising, and he was named a Member of the Order of Canada. Five universities—Alberta, Ryerson, York, OCAD and Wilfrid Laurier—awarded him honorary doctorates. In 2023, Penguin Random House Canada published his memoir, First to Leave the Party: My Life with Ordinary People …Who Happen to Be Famous. Bachir’s varied work brought together commercial media, cultural institutions and philanthropy, with leadership roles in both the cinema exhibition industry and art education. His publishing career included overseeing a national magazine, while his work at Cineplex helped develop partnerships and a loyalty program for theatre audiences.