April 28, 2023 1:39 am

The Durbin unit would go on to make 100 Men and a Girl, Spring Parade, Three Smart Girls Grow Up, First Love and It Started With Eve. Pasternak also produced the Durbin vehicles Mad About Music, That Certain Age, Its a Date and Nice Girl? with other directors. Film critic Thomson wrote that she was hopelessly adrift in the role. The child-star persona affected her personal life as well. He was the screenwriter on her earlier films and produced her movies in the mid 1940s. Mr. David once said that he and Ms. Durbin had made a deal that he would protect her from spiders, mosquitoes and reporters., Ms. Durbin, who gave almost no interviews after she left Hollywood, did send reporters a letter in 1958 that read in part: I was a typical 13-year-old American girl. Edna Mae Durbin was born on Dec. 4, 1921, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and grew up in Southern California, where she studied singing. David announced her death through a fan newsletter,. No other details were given. In the real world there would have been a lot of anger and rage over the circumstances. I was saddened to read this news today. Durbin's death was initially reported by her son, Peter H. David, in the Deanna Durbin Society newsletter. . In the 1988 book The Genius of the System: Hollywood Filmmaking in the Studio Era, Thomas Schatz wrote that the film, which cost $300,000 to produce, was a bargain price for any musical let alone a runaway hit that vaulted an unknown ingenue to stardom., Boosted by Durbins appearances on Eddie Cantors radio show, Three Smart Girls was the studios biggest hit of the year. But Deanna Durbin -- a world-famous young movie actress during the 1930s and 1940s -- managed to do it right. She was 91. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Pl-qvA1X8, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDHgg1GUNlo, Save the date! Deanna Durbin, one of Hollywood's biggest box-office stars in the 1930s and early '40s, has died aged 91. Ms. Durbin was quickly handed to Joe Pasternak, who produced her first 10 movies, and to Henry Koster, who directed six of them: Three Smart Girls, One Hundred Men and a Girl, Three Smart Girls Grow Up, First Love, Spring Parade and It Started With Eve.. Deanna Durbin passed away. You cant hide that kind of light under a bushel, he wrote. Ms. Durbin had remained determinedly out of public view since 1949, when she retired to a village in France with her third husband. However, the public continued to love her light musical comedies. Audience Relations, CBC P.O. According to Brownie, Deannas favorite breakfast was brought to her each day French Fries and ketchup. Her pictures after the baby was born beginning with Something in the Wind revealed an unhappy Deanna who became more mechanical in her roles. She was discovered by an MGM casting director searching Los Angeles singing schools for someone to portray the opera star Ernestine Schumann-Heink as a child. We buried the hatchet and remained friends. I could never buy her marriage to Felix and how easily he relinquished complete custody to Deanna and never paid any kind of support. All of her films were shown and he was one of the guest speakers. (Getty Images), /celebs/international/reclusive-hollywood-actress-deanna-durbin-dies-at-91/eventshow/19820944.cms, Capitalising on her fame, Universal cast Durbin in a series of musical movies including "That Certain Age" and "Mad About Music" which made the actress with the sweet soprano voice into one of Hollywood's most popular stars. 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Deanna Durbin, the singing starlet with the bubbly personality and the jewel-tone voice whose enormously popular movies were widely credited with saving Universal Pictures from bankruptcy. So I watch Deannas movies to make sense of what is happening at that time in her personal life. The actress' son, Peter H. David, was quoted in a Deanna . No other details were given. Critics responded negatively to her attempts to be an adult on screen, as a prostitute in love with a killer in Robert Siodmaks bleak film noir Christmas Holiday (1944) and as a debutante mixed up in a murder plot in Lady on a Train (1945.). Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, American Idol singer C.J. (Getty Images) See more of : Deanna Durbin 04 / 6 She didnt want/need the money but she sure would have appreciated developing a close bond with her blood-relative brother. The actress was born Edna Mae Durbin in Winnipeg, Canada, but moved to California with her British-born parents when she was young. Murphy was a song-and-dance leading man in many big-budget Hollywood musicals from 1930 to 1952. Seems like youve made some very wise observations and in particular, gotten a sense of what Deannas mood was during the making of her films. Or who exactly was he angry with and why? By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. Her son Peter H. David . Golden Age Of Hollywood. In a newsletter, the Deanna Durbin Society said Ms. Durbin died "a few days ago," quoting her son, Peter H. David, who thanked her admirers for respecting her privacy. On December 21, 1950, Durbin married French director-producer Charles Henri David, who had previously directed her in Lady on a Train. Villagers in Neauphle reported seeing Durbin from time to time at the post office or dry cleaner but, at her request, maintained a strict code of silence about their famous resident. Deanna and Felix separated soon after and divorced in 1949. It is a sense that that your communication has come full-circle and it is a precious, humble feeling, good for the soul. Her second marriage, to Felix Jackson, the 43-year-old producer of several of her films, also ended in divorce, after the birth of a daughter. He called the arm withered. I later read press reports stating that she broke her arm at a young age and it healed incorrectly. Everyone in her life had betrayed her even her sisters husband who mismanaged her money. Were they friends with benefits after working together? Now, this brings me to another interview I did in the 1980s with one of our club members, a retired Navy nurse, Pat Hudson. Fine. So if the above indeed was her thinking, such casting and plot revision would have been unworkable for her. Pat was my source for some information about Gene Raymond including his 1949 arrest. View their obituary at Legacy.com. Deanna Durbin (Edna Mae Durbin) was born on 4 December, 1921 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is a Soundtrack, Actress. When my first marriage failed, everyone said that I could never divorce. In 1938, Durbin and another young star, Mickey Rooney, were recognized at the Academy Awards for bringing to the screen the spirit and personification of youth.. (Getty Images). We spoke a few times on the phone after that. Deanna Durbin, who attained worldwide popularity as a child star in the 1930s while starring in a series of musicals, has died. (Getty Images), The actress was born Edna Mae Durbin in Winnipeg, Canada, but moved to California with her British-born parents when she was young. Cause of death was not disclosed. Don't miss a beat. Ms. Durbin was quickly handed to Joe Pasternak, who produced her first 10 movies, and to Henry Koster, who directed six of them: Three Smart Girls, One Hundred Men and a Girl, Three Smart Girls Grow Up, First Love, Spring Parade and It Started With Eve.. Soassuming that the above claims might be true, did they date on and off from 1943-45? Deanna Durbin, who as a plucky child movie star with a sweet soprano voice charmed American audiences during the Depression and saved Universal Pictures from bankruptcy before she vanished from. No specific details were given. Im sure Im not alone in wishing that somewhere down the road we will be allowed to read or learn more about her years in seclusion. Here is part of his letter to her: catebar44 Deanna Durbin, a singing child movie star of the 1930s, who became one of the world's highest-paid actresses before turning her back on stardom, has died at the age of 91. Remembering sisters Jeanette MacDonald and Blossom Rock today. Bernard Brown told me that her natural hyper energy and ready smile was really who she wasat least as a young girl. Cotton also mentioned in his book how much he admired Deanna for her character and integrity. And as an instant Hollywood star with her very first movie, Three Smart Girls, she almost single-handedly fixed the problems of her fretting bosses at Universal, bringing them box-office gold. It's already old news now, as dated as its subject the obituary notices announcing the death at 91 of Deanna Durbin, the "plucky child movie star" who saved Universal Studios from financial ruin; "the best-loved and most fondly remembered singing star of Hollywood's golden age" who cut short her career at 28; "the perfect girl next door" who left the . On April 30, 2013, a newsletter published by the Deanna Durbin Society reported that Durbin died "a few days ago", quoting her son, Peter H. David, who thanked her admirers for respecting her privacy. Throughout her career, she would perform everything from operatic arias to popular songs. Canadian singer and actress Deanna Durbin, who enjoyed a short but successful career as a Universal contract star from 1936 to 1948, has died. In 1938 there was a nationwide search to choose the young man who would give Ms. Durbin her first screen kiss in the movie First Love. (Robert Stack was the actor chosen.) I am also a devoted fan of Jeanette and Nelson. She was 91. Vale Deanna Durbin December 4, 1921 - April 20, 2013. Durbin and the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, who made their first Universal picture in 1940, saved the studio from going down the tubes, according to Rode, the film historian. Music is universal, uplifting and transcends language and cultural barriers. Capitalising on her fame, Universal cast Durbin in a series of musical movies including "That Certain Age" and "Mad About Music" which made the actress with the sweet soprano voice into one of Hollywood's most popular stars. Bernard Brown had similar praise for and enjoyed recording Deanna Durbin during her movie career and he also received Oscar nominations for four of her films: That Certain Age, Spring Parade, His Butlers Sister and Lady on a Train. Strangely enough, in his autobiography immediately after relating the story about Deanna and Hedda Hopper, Joseph Cotten launches right into an admission of his subsequent marital infidelity! She was responsible for saving Universal Studios even as fellow child star Shirley Temple saved Fox Studios. No other details were given. No date. I could never believe that my contemporaries were my fans. (Getty Images) The Kick was not a boot that would have carried a football over the crossbar, but neither was it a token tap. Several years ago I wrote to her in France. Deanna shunned all attempts to return to the public forum in any manner, though she did provide this 1981 photo of herself via her husband to film historian William K. Everson: Only a few photos were taken of Deanna in recent years by tabloid photographers who caught a rare glimpse of her. This made me immediately think that there definitely was something between them. Below, a rare photo signed with her real name: Edna May Durbin. Like Greta Garbo, she wanted to be left alone. Many of the films were Depression fairy tales in which Ms. Durbin won over or defeated silly rich people with the help of butlers, cooks and chauffeurs, who often risked their jobs to aid her. I dont understand how Gable was happy staying out of Judys life. I met Brownie at a Deanna Durbin film festival in the early 1970s in Hollywood. She was 91. He was also found guilty of fathering a child out of wedlock when blood tests proved he was not the father. Times staff writer Valerie J. Nelson contributed to this report. The French born David married Deanna in 1950 and Deanna chose to leave America and settle in France. maceddy I dont think that Durbin lived in seclusion after she moved to France she lived privately, and theres a big difference. As a final note on daughter Jessica, I was sad to read that she apparently was estranged from her mother in adulthood. Similarly, in 2006 Shirley Temple had such a moment when she received the SAG Life Achievement Award. And since her home was her castle, she entertained a lot, mostly musicians and card players. Singer -actress Deanna Durbin, who was the highest-paid female star in Hollywood in 1947 but quit the biz the following year at the age of 26, has died, her fan club announced Tuesday. Musical Film. And when their acknowledgement comes as a response back to you (hopefully positive) you feel a personal satisfaction, encouragement and appreciation. She was 91. Deanna Durbin, a Winnipeg-born screen star of the 1930s and 1940s, has died, according to her son Peter H. David. In 1943, Deanna was offered the ingenue role of Christine in the Technicolor remake of Phantom of the Opera. 1 of 4. In 1945, Durbin made "Lady on a Train" directed by Charles David, whom she married five years later. Her sweet soprano voice made a success of many of the films, and she was credited with saving Universal from bankruptcy in the 1930s. Her son Peter H. David was quoted as telling The Deanna Durbin Society newsletter that the actress died "a few days ago", thanking her admirers for respecting her privacy. I loved my wife. 3:15 pm. She married film director Charles David, and they shunned the spotlight, living in France. In fact, Brownie received an Oscar nomination for Best Sound Recording for Phantom (but only won for a 1939 film, When Tomorrow Comes). On April 30, 2013, a newsletter published by the Deanna Durbin Society reported that Durbin died "in the past few days", quoting her son, Peter H. David, who thanked her admirers for respecting her privacy. Deanna Durbin (born Edna Mae Durbin, December 4, 1921 - April 2013) was a Canadian singer and actress, who appeared in a number of musical films in the 1930s and 1940s singing standards as well as operatic arias. No other details were given. Her much older sister, Edith, insisted that her little sisters operatic abilities be nurtured after hearing her sing Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes. From her earnings as a teacher, Edith paid for Edna Maes singing lessons. judoo The Deanna Durbin Society, based in England, did not report a date or cause of death. So I really am grateful for your work in studying Deannas films and plan to re-watch her films with new interest. She made her name playing the ideal teenage daughter in "Three Smart Girls" in 1936 and in its profitable follow-up the next year, "One Hundred Men and a Girl", which was credited with saving Universal studios from bankruptcy. More information Deanna Durbin with her son Peter David More like this Vintage Hollywood Stars Hollywood Glam Golden Age Of Hollywood Classic Hollywood Her second marriage, to Felix Jackson, the 43-year-old producer of several of her films, also ended in divorce, after the birth of a daughter. I spent an afternoon with Judy Lewis when we did a joint book signing in Beverly Hills. In Deannas films, she was the main draw and the leading men were secondary. Durbin passed away "a few days ago", her son Peter H. David told the NYT. As soon as she could, she gave it up.. In 1946, Ms. Durbins salary of $323,477 from Universal made her the second-highest-paid woman in America, just $5,000 behind Bette Davis. May 4, 2013 @ 9:04 pm. He was there for her many times when she needed him but there are some actions by Gene that I can never forgive, namely his physical abuse of her (at least early on that we know about) and the verbal abuse and neglect in Jeanettes final days. Ms. Durbin had remained determinedly out of public view since 1949, when she retired to a village in France with her third husband. She turned down numerous offers to perform again, including lead roles on Broadway and the London stage as well as aconcert appearances in Las Vegas. But many adult movie stars who spend years in Hollywood floundered once they left it. Shortly afterward she moved to Universal, shepherded there by Rufus Le Maire, a former MGM executive who had switched his allegiance to the rival studio. She broke into the movies in 1936, aged 14, when she appeared in "Every Sunday" with Judy Garland, according to her biography on the IMDb film website. Yes, you should treasure her letters. Could this also be a little inner guilt because she was still seeing Cotton, a married man? Ms. Durbin had remained determinedly out of public view since 1949, when she retired to a village in France with her third husband. Then during His Butlers Sister, she seemed so happy and relaxed in her performance. As a young teenager, Durbin was mentored by producer Joe Pasternak, who helped her develop the screen persona that worked so well for her and for Universal, where she made all of her feature films. And, if this Deanna Durbin Joseph Cotten affair didnt take off in 1943, what about later on? But not only was there such a stigma attached to anyone with a child out of wedlock, on top of that the stars (and studios) went to great lengths to protect their reputations. She was a genuine, sweet person and I felt the only reason John Jr would have refused to do a DNA test was that he might have had to share his dads royalties, etc. In addition to Peter, her son from her marriage to Mr. David, Ms. Durbin had a daughter, Jessica, from her second marriage. Even Greta Garbo didnt go that far! After moving to France in 1949 and settling outside Paris in the village of Neauphle-le-Chteau, Ms. Durbin devoted most of her time to keeping her home, cooking and raising her children. Sign In Follow Go to TOI Home Photos Movies Celebs Web Stories Fashion Beauty Pageants Awards Events TV Sports News moreli moreli moreli Bollywood She brought them joy in their youth and now they could flow back a huge thank you. Durbin had lived just outside the village of Neauphle-le-Chateau, near Paris, since moving there in 1950 with her third husband, director Charles David. No other details were given. I could never believe that my contemporaries were my fans. (Getty Images), /celebs/international/reclusive-hollywood-actress-deanna-durbin-dies-at-91/eventshow/19820946.cms, She made her name playing the ideal teenage daughter in "Three Smart Girls" in 1936 and in its profitable follow-up the next year, "One Hundred Men and a Girl", which was credited with saving Universal studios from bankruptcy. In 1945, Durbin made "Lady on a Train" -- directed by Charles David, whom she married five years later. She was 91. She could not have been allowed by Universal to have a child out of wedlock as the scandal would destroy her film career. In the afternoon there was always a break for tea and sandwiches. Read press reports stating that she broke her arm at a Deanna Durbin, who attained worldwide popularity as young. Natural hyper energy and ready smile was really who she wasat least as a young Girl and over... Such a moment when she was young told the NYT her marriage to and! 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