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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 Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...
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. Durbin was a child actress who made her first film appearance with
Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in ''The ...
in ''
Every Sunday ''Every Sunday'' (sometimes incorrectly listed as ''Every Sunday Afternoon'' or ''Opera vs. Jazz'') is a 1936 American musical short film about two adolescent girls and their efforts to save a public concert series, which was being threatened by ...
'' (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 Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...
'' 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.


Early life

Edna Mae Durbin was born on December 4, 1921, at Grace Hospital in
Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...
, the younger daughter of James Allen Durbin and his wife Ada (née Read) Durbin, who were originally from
Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
, England. She had one older sister, Edith (later Mrs. Heckman, born in England, died in California). When she was an infant, her family moved from Winnipeg to Southern California, and the family became United States citizens in 1923. At the age of one, Edna Mae was singing children's songs. By the time she was 10, her parents recognized that she had definite talent and enrolled her in voice lessons at the Ralph Thomas Academy. Durbin soon became Thomas's prize pupil, and he showcased her talent at various local clubs and churches.


Career and life


1935–1941: Early career

In early 1935,
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...
was planning a biographical film on the life of opera star Ernestine Schumann-Heink and was having difficulty finding an actress to play the young opera singer. MGM casting director Rufus LeMaire heard about a talented young soloist performing with the Ralph Thomas Academy and called her in for an audition. Durbin sang "Il Bacio" for the studio's vocal coach, who was stunned by her "mature soprano" voice. She sang the number again for Louis B. Mayer, who signed her to a six-month contract. She made her first film appearance in the short ''
Every Sunday ''Every Sunday'' (sometimes incorrectly listed as ''Every Sunday Afternoon'' or ''Opera vs. Jazz'') is a 1936 American musical short film about two adolescent girls and their efforts to save a public concert series, which was being threatened by ...
'' (1936) with
Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in ''The ...
, another teenage singer-actress whose career would rival Durbin's. The film was intended as a demonstration of their talent as performers as studio executives had questioned the wisdom of casting two female singers together. Louis B. Mayer decided to sign both, but by then, Durbin's contract option had lapsed.
Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
producer Joe Pasternak wished to borrow Garland from MGM, but she was unavailable. When Pasternak learned that Durbin was no longer with MGM, he instead cast her in the film. At 14 years old, Durbin signed with Universal, giving her the professional name Deanna. Her first feature-length film, '' Three Smart Girls'' (1936), was a success and established Durbin as a young star. With Pasternak producing for Universal, Durbin starred in a succession of successful musical films, including '' One Hundred Men and a Girl'' (1937), '' Mad About Music'' (1938), '' That Certain Age'' (1938), '' Three Smart Girls Grow Up'' (1939), and '' First Love'' (1939)—most of which were directed by Henry Koster. Durbin also continued to pursue singing projects. In 1936, she auditioned to provide the vocals for Snow White in Disney's animated film '' Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'', but was rejected by
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
, who said the 15-year-old Durbin's voice was "too old" for the part. That same year, Cesar Sturani, the general music secretary of the Metropolitan Opera, offered Durbin an audition. She turned down his offer because she felt she needed more singing lessons. Andrés de Segurola, who was the vocal coach working with Universal Studios—himself a former Metropolitan Opera singer—believed that Durbin was a potential opera star. De Segurola was commissioned to advise the Metropolitan Opera on her progress. Also in 1936, Durbin began a radio collaboration with Eddie Cantor which lasted until 1938, when her heavy workload for Universal forced her to quit her weekly appearances. The success of Durbin's films was reported to have saved Universal from bankruptcy. In 1938, she received an Academy Juvenile Award with Mickey Rooney. Producer Joe Pasternak said: Durbin continued her success with '' It's a Date'' (1940), '' Spring Parade'' (1940), and '' Nice Girl?'' (1941).


1941–1945: Attempts to expand

In 1941, Durbin starred in '' It Started with Eve'' (1941), her last film with Pasternak and director Henry Koster. Pasternak moved from Universal to MGM. Universal announced Durbin was to star in ''They Lived Alone'', scheduled to be directed by Koster. However, Durbin was unhappy by the role, and that Universal had not given support to the career of her first husband assistant director Vaughn Paul, whom she had married in April 1941. Durbin turned down the role, and was suspended by the studio from October 16, 1941, to early February 1942. In late January 1942, Durbin and Universal settled their differences, with the studio conceding to Durbin the approval of her directors, stories, and songs. Wishing to move into more sophisticated material, ''They Lived Alone'' was retooled into ''
The Amazing Mrs. Holliday ''The Amazing Mrs. Holliday'' is a 1943 American comedy drama film produced and directed by Bruce Manning and starring Deanna Durbin, Edmond O'Brien, and Barry Fitzgerald. Based on a story by Sonya Levien, the film is about a young idealistic mis ...
'' (1943), the World War II story of refugee children from China. The film was initially conceived without musical numbers, but Durbin finally relented to Universal's demand to include some. Durbin was also able to retool her second sequel to ''Three Smart Girls'' from ''Three Smart Girls Join Up'' to '' Hers to Hold'' (1943), revolving solely around her character. Her co-star Joseph Cotten would later speak highly of her integrity and character. Durbin also dabbled in other genres, such as the romantic comedy '' His Butler's Sister'' (1943) and the musical Western '' Can't Help Singing'' (1944), her only Technicolor film, which was produced on location in southern Utah and co-starred Robert Paige. The film featured some of the last melodies written by Jerome Kern. Durbin continued her push to establish herself as a more dramatic actress with the film noir '' Christmas Holiday'' (1944), directed by
Robert Siodmak Robert Siodmak (; 8 August 1900 – 10 March 1973) was a German film director who also worked in the United States. He is best remembered as a thriller specialist and for a series of films noirs he made in the 1940s, such as '' The Killers'' (19 ...
and co-starring Gene Kelly. Siodmark praised Durbin's acting skills, but later recalled she was difficult as "she wanted to play a new part but flinched from looking like a tramp: she always wanted to look like nice wholesome Deanna Durbin pretending to be a tramp."Encounter with Siodmak Taylor, Russell. Sight and Sound; London Vol. 28, Iss. 3, (Summer 1959): 180. Although the film received mixed reviews, Durbin later called it her "only really good film". The whodunit '' Lady on a Train'' (1945) also received mixed critical reviews. Most of these films had been produced by Felix Jackson, whom she married in August 1945; they welcomed their daughter, Jessica Louise, in February 1946.


1946–1949: Decline and retirement

In 1946, Durbin was the second-highest-paid woman in the United States, just behind
Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...
,; her fan club ranked as the world's largest during her active years. However, while her adult dramatic roles may have been more satisfying for Durbin, it was clear her fans preferred her in light musical confections. In 1946, Universal merged with two other companies to create Universal-International. The new regime discontinued much of Universal's familiar product and scheduled only a few musicals. Jackson left Universal in November 1946; he also left Durbin in January 1947, although their separation was not announced until the following year.Singer Deanna Durbin Files Divorce Action: Film Actress Asks Daughter's Custody; Charges Mental Cruelty and Desertion Hopper, Hedda. Los Angeles Times 27 Sep 1949: A1.DIVORCE GRANTED TO DEANNA DURBIN: Singing Actress Says Director Husband, Felix Jackson, Left Her and Hollywood Los Angeles Times 28 Oct 1949: 2. Durbin's final four pictures — '' I'll Be Yours'' (1947), '' Something in the Wind'' (1947), '' Up in Central Park'' (1948), and '' For the Love of Mary'' (1948) — all reverted to her previous musical-comedy structure. On August 22, 1948, Universal-International announced a lawsuit which sought to collect wages the studio had paid Durbin in advance. Durbin settled the complaint by agreeing to star in three more pictures, including one in Paris; this did not materialize before Durbin's contract expired. She received a $200,000 ($ in ) severance payment,


1949–2013: Retirement

Unsatisfied by her career options, Durbin chose to retire and move to Paris. When her former producer Joe Pasternak tried to dissuade her, she told him, "I can't run around being a Little Miss Fix-It who bursts into song—the highest-paid star with the poorest material." In September 1949, Durbin filed for divorce from Jackson, which was finalized in November. On December 21, 1950, Durbin married French director-producer Charles Henri David, who had previously directed her in ''Lady on a Train''. Durbin and David raised a son, Peter David (born in June 1951), as well as Durbin's daughter Jessica, on a farm outside of Paris. Durbin turned down several offers for a comeback, including a Broadway role as Eliza Doolittle in ''
My Fair Lady ''My Fair Lady'' is a musical theatre, musical based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion'', with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flowe ...
''; she later said, "I had my ticket for Paris in my pocket." In 1951, she was invited to play in London's West End production of '' Kiss Me, Kate'', and in the
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...
film version of the same in 1953, and Sigmund Romberg's operetta '' The Student Prince'' in 1954. In 1983, film historian David Shipman was granted a rare interview by Durbin. Durbin acknowledged her dislike of the Hollywood studio system, emphasizing that she never identified herself with the public image that the media created around her. She spoke of the Deanna "persona" in the third person, and considered the film character "Deanna Durbin" to be a byproduct of her youth and not her true identity. In private life, Durbin had continued to use her given name, Edna; salary figures printed annually by the Hollywood trade publications listed the actress as "Edna Mae Durbin, player". Also in the interview, she steadfastly asserted her right to privacy, something she maintained until the end of her life, declining to be profiled on websites. Durbin's husband of almost 50 years, Charles David, died in Paris on March 1, 1999. On April 30, 2013, a newsletter published by the Deanna Durbin Society reported that Durbin had died "in the past few days", quoting her son, Peter H. David, who thanked her admirers for respecting her privacy. No other details were given. According to the Social Security Death Index (under the name Edna M. David), she died on April 17, 2013Date of death of Edna David per Social Security Death Index
search.ancestrylibrary.com; accessed April 11, 2018.
in the 19th arrondissement of Paris.


Legacy

Deanna Durbin has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...
at 1722 Vine Street. She left her hand and footprints in front of the Grauman's Chinese Theatre on February 7, 1938. Durbin was well known in Winnipeg, Manitoba (her place of birth), as "Winnipeg's Golden Girl" (a reference to one of the city's most famous landmarks, the statue '' Golden Boy'' atop the Manitoba Legislative Building). Frank Tashlin's Warner Bros. cartoon '' The Woods Are Full of Cuckoos'' (1937) contains a turtle caricature of Deanna Durbin called "Deanna Terrapin". An unnamed caricature of Durbin also appeared in the Warner Brother's cartoon "Malibu Beach Party" (1940). Durbin figures prominently in the 1963
Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery fictio ...
short story "The Anthem Sprinters" (collected in '' The Machineries of Joy''). Durbin's singing is featured in Alistair MacLean's 1955 novel '' HMS Ulysses'', being broadcast over the wartime ship's internal communication system. She was also referenced in Richard Brautigan's novel '' Trout Fishing in America'' (1967), when the narrator claims to have seen one of her movies seven times, but cannot recall which one. In song, Durbin's name found its way into the introduction to a song written by satirical writer Tom Lehrer in 1965. Prior to singing "Whatever Became of Hubert?", Lehrer said that Vice President
Hubert Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American pharmacist and politician who served as the 38th vice president of the United States from 1965 to 1969. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing M ...
had been relegated to "those where-are-they-now columns: Whatever became of Deanna Durbin, and Hubert Humphrey, and so on." She is also referenced in the Glenn Miller WWII novelty song "Peggy the Pin-up Girl". Interestingly, the lyrics pair her name with her first co-star Judy Garland: "Even a voice that's so disturbin' / Like Judy Garland or Miss Durbin / Can't compare to my pin-up queen". In Philippe Mora's film ''
The Return of Captain Invincible ''The Return of Captain Invincible'' is a 1983 Australian superhero musical comedy film directed by Philippe Mora, and starring Alan Arkin and Christopher Lee. It was a box office disappointment on release but has become a cult film since then. ...
'' (1983), Christopher Lee sings a song called "Name Your Poison", written by Richard O'Brien and Richard Hartley, which has the line, "Think of young Deanna Durbin / And how she sang on rum and bourbon."
Anne Frank Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank (, ; 12 June 1929 – )Research by The Anne Frank House in 2015 revealed that Frank may have died in February 1945 rather than in March, as Dutch authorities had long assumed"New research sheds new light on Anne Fra ...
was a fan of Durbin, and pasted two photos of her on the wall in the family's hideout; the photos are still on the wall today. Winston Churchill was also a fan of Durbin, screening her films "on celebratory wartime occasions". Russian cellist/conductor Mstislav Rostropovich cites Durbin in the mid-1980s as one of his most important musical influences, stating: "She helped me in my discovery of myself. You have no idea of the smelly old movie houses I patronized to see Deanna Durbin. I tried to create the very best in my music, to try to recreate, to approach her purity." Indian-Bengali film director Satyajit Ray, in his acceptance speech for an Oscar (Honorary – Lifetime Achievement) in 1992, mentioned Deanna Durbin as the only one of the three cinema personalities he recalled writing to when young who had acknowledged his fan letter with a reply. (The other two were Ginger Rogers and
Billy Wilder Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an Austrian-American filmmaker. His career in Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Classic Holl ...
.)


Filmography


Box office ranking

*1938 – 15th (US), 6th (UK) *1939 – 12th (US), 1st (UK) *1940 – 12th (US), 2nd (UK) *1941 – 24th (US), 2nd (UK) *1942 – 4th (UK) *1944 – 25th (US), 4th (UK)


Discography

Between December 15, 1936, and July 22, 1947, Deanna Durbin recorded 50 tunes for
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American Decca's president. ...
. While often re-creating her movie songs for commercial release, Durbin also covered independent standards, like "Kiss Me Again", "My Hero", "Annie Laurie", "Poor Butterfly", "Love's Old Sweet Song" and "God Bless America". * " Alice Blue Gown" * "
Alleluia Alleluia (derived from the Hebrew ''Hallelujah'', meaning "Praise Yahweh") is a Latin phrase in Christianity used to give praise to God. In Christian worship, Alleluia is used as a liturgical chant in which that word is combined with verses of s ...
" (from ''100 Men and a Girl'') * " Always" (from ''Christmas Holiday'') * " Adeste Fideles" * " Amapola" (from ''First Love'') * " Annie Laurie" * "Any Moment Now" (from ''Can't Help Singing'') * " Ave Maria" (from ''Mad About Music'') * " Ave Maria" (from '' It's a Date'') * "Be a Good Scout" (from ''That Certain Age'') * " Because" (from ''Three Smart Girls Grow Up'') * " Begin the Beguine" (from ''Hers to Hold'') * "Beneath the Lights of Home" (from ''Nice Girl'') * " The Blue Danube" (from ''Spring Parade'') * " Brahms' Lullaby" (from ''I'll Be Yours'') * "Brindisi" (" Libiamo ne' lieti calici)" (from ''100 Men and a Girl'') * "Californ-I-Ay" * "Can't Help Singing" (from ''Can't Help Singing'') * "Carmena Waltz" * "Chapel Bells" (from ''Mad About Music'') * " Cielito Lindo" ("Beautiful Heaven)" * " Ciribiribin" * "Clavelitos" (from ''It Started with Eve'') * " Danny Boy" (from ''Because of Him'') * "
Embraceable You "Embraceable You" is a jazz standard song with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. The song was written in 1928 for an unpublished operetta named ''East Is West''. It was published in 1930 and included in that year's Broadway mu ...
" * "Every Sunday" (with Judy Garland) * "Filles de Cadiz" ("The Maids of Cadiz") (from ''That Certain Age'') * "Gimme a Little Kiss, Will Ya, Huh?" (from ''Lady on a Train'') * "
God Bless America "God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin during World War I in 1918 and revised by him in the run up to World War II in 1938. The later version was notably recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature s ...
" * "Goin' Home" (from ''It Started With Eve'') * "Goodbye" (from ''Because of Him'') * "
Granada Granada (,, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the c ...
" (from ''I'll Be Yours'') * "A Heart That's Free" (from ''100 Men and a Girl'') * " Home! Sweet Home!" (from ''First Love'') * "Il Bacio" ("The Kiss") (from ''Three Smart Girls'') * "I'll Follow My Sweet Heart" * "I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen" (from ''For the Love of Mary'') * "I'll See You In My Dreams" * "I Love to Whistle" (from ''Mad About Music'') * "(I'm) Happy Go Lucky and Free" (from ''Something in the Wind'') * "(I'm) Happy Go Lucky and Free" (from ''Something in the Wind'') * "In the Spirit of the Moment" (from ''His Butler's Sister'') * "Italian Street Song" * " It's a Big Wide Wonderful World" (from ''For the Love of Mary'') * "It's Dreamtime" (from ''I'll Be Yours'') * "It's Foolish But It's Fun" (from ''Spring Parade'') * "It's Only Love" (from ''Something In The Wind'') * "It's Raining Sunbeams" (from ''100 Men and a Girl'') * "Invitation to the Dance" (from ''Three Smart Girls Grow Up'') * "Je Veux Vivre" ('' Roméo et Juliette'') (from ''That Certain Age'') * "Kiss Me Again" * "La Estrellita" ("Little Star)" * "Largo Al Factotum" ('' The Barber of Seville'') (from ''For the Love of Mary'') * "
The Last Rose of Summer "The Last Rose of Summer" is a poem by the Irish poet Thomas Moore. He wrote it in 1805, while staying at Jenkinstown Castle in County Kilkenny, Ireland, where he was said to have been inspired by a specimen of Rosa 'Old Blush'. The poem is ...
" (from ''Three Smart Girls Grow Up'') * " Loch Lomond" (from ''It's a Date'') * "Love at Last" (from ''Nice Girl'') * "Love is All" (from ''It's a Date'') * "Lover" (from ''Because of Him'') * " Love's Old Sweet Song" * " Make Believe" * " Mighty Like a Rose" (from ''The Amazing Mrs. Halliday''") * " Molly Malone" * "More and More" (from ''Can't Help Singing'') * "More and More/Can't Help Singing" (from ''Can't Help Singing'') * " Musetta's Waltz" (''
La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions '' quadri'', '' tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuse ...
'') (from ''It's a Date'') * "My Heart is Singing" (from ''Three Smart Girls Grow Up'') * "My Hero" * "My Own" (from ''That Certain Age'') * " Nessun dorma" ('' Turandot'') (from ''His Butler's Sister'') * " Never in a Million Years/ Make Believe" * " Night and Day" (from ''Lady on a Train'') * " O Come, All Ye Faithful" * " Old Folks at Home" (from ''Nice Girl'') * "The Old Refrain" (from ''The Amazing Mrs. Holiday'') * " On Moonlight Bay" (from ''For the Love of Mary'') * "One Fine Day" ('' Madama Butterfly'') (from ''First Love'') * "One Night of Love" * "Pace, Pace, Mio Dio" ('' La forza del destino'') (from ''Up In Central Park'') * "Pale Hands I Loved" ('' Kashmiri Song'') (from ''Hers to Hold'') * "Perhaps" (from ''Nice Girl'') * " Poor Butterfly" * "The Prince" * "Russian Medley" (from ''His Butler's Sister'') * "Sari Waltz (Love's Own Sweet Song)" (from ''I'll Be Yours'') * "Say a Pray'r for the Boys Over There" (from ''Hers to Hold'') * "Seal It With a Kiss" * " Seguidilla (''
Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the Opér ...
'') (from ''Hers to Hold'') * "Serenade to the Stars" (from ''Mad About Music'') * " Silent Night" (from ''Lady on a Train'') * "Someone to Care for Me" (from ''Three Smart Girls'') * "Something in the Wind" (from ''Something in the Wind'') * "Spring in My Heart" (from ''First Love'') * "Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year" (from ''Christmas Holiday'') * " Swanee – Old Folks at Home" (from ''Nice Girl'') * " Summertime" (''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy'', its ...
'') * "Sweetheart" * "Thank You America" (from ''Nice Girl'') * "There'll Always Be An England" (from ''Nice Girl'') * "The Turntable Song" (from ''Something in the Wind'') * "Two Guitars" (from ''His Butler's Sister'') * "Two Hearts" * " Un bel dì vedremo" ('' Madama Butterfly'') (from ''First Love'') * "Viennese Waltz" (from ''For The Love Of Mary'') * " Vissi d'arte (''
Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1887 French-language dr ...
'') (from ''The Amazing Mrs. Holiday'') * "Waltzing in the Clouds" (from ''Spring Parade'') * "When April Sings" (from ''Spring Parade'') * "When I Sing" (from ''It Started with Eve'') * "When the Roses Bloom Again" * "When You're Away" (from ''His Butler's Sister'') * "You Wanna Keep Your Baby Looking Nice, Don't You" (from ''Something in the Wind'') * "You're as Pretty as a Picture" (from ''That Certain Age'')


Radio appearances


See also

* Academy Juvenile Award * List of oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees


References


External links

* * * *
Deanna Durbin
at the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music ...
– Includes audio of her singing many of her songs.
The Deanna Durbin Showcase
* * * – The opening scene of ''Something in the Wind'' – "The Turntable Song" * w. Frank Lebby Stanton m.
Ethelbert Nevin Ethelbert Woodbridge Nevin (November 25, 1862February 17, 1901) was an American pianist and composer. Early life Nevin was born on November 25, 1862, at Vineacre, on the banks of the Ohio River, in Edgeworth, Pennsylvania.Mulkearn, Lois, p. 62 ...
(see also "
Mighty Lak' a Rose "Mighty Lak' a Rose" is a 1901 song with lyrics by Frank Lebby Stanton and music by Ethelbert Nevin. The lyrics are written in an approximation of an African American accent as a "dialect song", and the title thus means "mighty like a rose". It i ...
")
Photographs of Deanna DurbinDeanna Durbin Devotees
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Durbin, Deanna 1921 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Canadian actresses Academy Juvenile Award winners Actresses from Winnipeg Canadian expatriates in France Canadian film actresses Canadian people of English descent Canadian sopranos Decca Records artists Illeists Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players Musicians from Winnipeg Opera crossover singers Canadian women pop singers Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States 20th-century Canadian women singers Universal Pictures contract players