Deanna Durbin

Deanna Durbin

Edna Mae Durbin (December 4, 1921 – April 17, 2013), known professionally as Deanna Durbin, was a Canadian-born actress and singer, who moved to the USA with her family in infancy. She appeared in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s. With the technical skill and vocal range of a legitimate lyric soprano, she performed many styles from popular standards to operatic arias. In 1946, Durbin was the second-highest-paid woman in the United States, just behind Bette Davis; her fan club ranked as the world's largest during her active years. Durbin was a child actress who made her first film appearance with Judy Garland in Every Sunday (1936), and subsequently signed a contract with Universal Studios. She achieved success as the ideal teenaged daughter in films such as Three Smart Girls (1936), One Hundred Men and a Girl (1937), and It Started with Eve (1941). Her work was credited with saving the studio from bankruptcy, and led to Durbin being awarded the Academy Juvenile Award in 1938. As she matured, Durbin grew dissatisfied with the girl-next-door roles assigned to her and attempted to move into sophisticated non-musical roles with film noir Christmas Holiday (1944) and the whodunit Lady on a Train (1945). These films, produced by frequent collaborator and second husband Felix Jackson, were not as successful; she continued in musical roles until her retirement. Upon her retirement and divorce from Jackson in 1949, Durbin married producer-director Charles Henri David and moved to a farmhouse near Paris. She withdrew from public life, granting only one interview on her career in 1983.
    Known for
    Acting
    Place of birth
    Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
    Birthday
    December 1921
Lady on a Train
Lady on a Train
6.552
It Started with Eve
It Started with Eve
7.143
Christmas Holiday
Christmas Holiday
6.3
Nice Girl?
Nice Girl?
5.3
First Love
First Love
7.769
Mad About Music
Mad About Music
6.889
One Hundred Men and a Girl
One Hundred Men and a Girl
6.38
Something in the Wind
Something in the Wind
6.3
That Certain Age
That Certain Age
5.143
The Amazing Mrs. Holliday
The Amazing Mrs. Holliday
6.375
Because of Him
Because of Him
6.2
Three Smart Girls
Three Smart Girls
6.35
Three Smart Girls Grow Up
Three Smart Girls Grow Up
7.143
His Butler's Sister
His Butler's Sister
7.125
Every Sunday
Every Sunday
3.8
Can't Help Singing
Can't Help Singing
5.1
Los Angeles Plays Itself
Los Angeles Plays Itself
7.611
For the Love of Mary
For the Love of Mary
5.8
I'll Be Yours
I'll Be Yours
6
It's a Date
It's a Date
6.4
Hers to Hold
Hers to Hold
6.857
Spring Parade
Spring Parade
6.727
Up in Central Park
Up in Central Park
7
The Shining Future
The Shining Future
4
That's Entertainment!
That's Entertainment!
7.3
Added Attractions: The Hollywood Shorts Story
Added Attractions: The Hollywood Shorts Story
0
Show-Business at War
Show-Business at War
7
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
6.5
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
6.4
Hollywood’s Children
Hollywood’s Children
0
A Friend Indeed
0
Angels of Mercy
Angels of Mercy
0
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
0
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1940s: Stars, Stripes and Singing
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1940s: Stars, Stripes and Singing
6