Edna Mae (Deanna) Durbin (Winnipeg, 1921 – december 4, Neauphle-le-Château, 17 april 2013) was a Canadian actress and singer.
Career[Edit][]
Durbin got in 1935 a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and made her debut in the short film Every Sunday, opposite the then novice actress Judy Garland was on display.
However, she was soon dismissed by Louis b. Mayer, as he found no need to adopt two young singers. Colleagues advised him to "the chubby" (Durbin) to drop and for that reason was Durbin fired. There is also well known that Mayer actually Garland wanted to lay off.
Durbin soon got a contract with Universal Studios and made her first film for that studio in 1936, when she appeared in Three Smart Girls. Durbin grew to be the most popular teen actress of the studio and got in 1938 a Academy Juvenile Award. Anne Frank hung a picture of this popular actress in the secret annex. This still hovers.
Actress Hedda Hopper suspected to have a relationship with Durbin Joseph Cotten. Cotten wrote in his autobiography that this was not the case absouut.
In the 1940s , she married Paul Vaughn (1941-1943) and Felix Jackson (1944-1948, 1 daughter) and tried under her kindsterimago to come out and appeared in thefilms noirs Christmas Holiday (1944) and Lady on a Train (1945). In 1946 was her annual salary more than 320,000 dollars. She was the second highest paid woman of America, behind Bette Davis. Durbin had many famous fans. The British Prime Minister Churchill reviewed her movies always even before it came out in Britain. In 1950she married for the third time, this time with Director Charles David and went for that reason retired. The couple moved to Neauphle-le-Château after Durbin the oath never to return to Hollywood. They fed in France David's second son Peter and her own daughter Jessica on and she was almost 50 years until his death in 1999 married.
Until the last several guest appearances and interviews has denied, Durbin including one with Mario Lanza. They came not in the publicity. Only in 1981 came a picture ' above water ' made by her husband sent to Will Everson of the NYU Cinema Studies[1] and in 1983 she gave an interview to Robert Shipman of Films and Filming Magazine.
Filmography[Edit][]
- Every Sunday (1936)-Edna
- Three Smart Girls (1936)-Penny Craig
- One Hundred Men and a Girl (1937)-Patricia Cardwell
- Mad About Music (1938)-Gloria Harkinson
- That Certain Age (1938)-Alice Fullerton
- Three Smart Girls Grow Up (1939)-Penny Craig
- First Love (1939)-Constance (Connie) Harding
- It's a Date (1940)-Pamela Drake
- Spring Parade (1940)-Ilonka Tolnay
- Nice Girl? (1941)-Jane ' Pinky ' Dana
- It Started with Eve (1941)-Anne Terry
- The Amazing Mrs. Holliday (1943)-Ruth Kirke Holliday
- Hers to Hold (1943)-Penny Craig
- His Butler's Sister (1943)-Ann Carter
- Christmas Holiday (1944)-Jackie Lamont/Abigail Martin
- Can't Help Singing (1944)-Caroline Frost
- Lady on a Train (1945) – Nikki Collins/Margo Martin
- Because of Him (1946)-Kim Walker
- I'll Be Yours (1947)-Louise Ginglebusher
- Something in the Wind (1947)-Mary Collins
- Up in Central Park (1948)-Rosie Moore
- For the Love of Mary (1948)-Mary Peppertree