Deanna Durbin, 91 - Farewell to America's Songbird!

Just got the news that Deanna Durbin passed away a couple of days ago. She was 91 years old. Her son, Peter David, released the news in a newsletter yesterday. She has lived privately for the past 60 years in a small town in France. She soared to fame in 1936 with the release of her first film, Three Smart Girls, and by the time of her retirement in 1948, she had made 21 feature films and was the highest paid actress in the world. 

Deanna herself despised the Hollywood glamour and publicity that was built around her. The whole Deanna Durbin fad struck her as somewhat false and she considered herself its first victim. "It's not that I don't like acting. I did, although the kind of picture I made didn't place much demand on acting. What I didn't like was the publicity, the invasion of my private life. A person needs to have an identity of their own. When you're a star, it's virtually impossible. That's something I could never get used to."

An article is being run in the 1 May 2013 edition of the New York Times.

Deanna Durbin Not Interested In More Films (1952)

San Mateo Times (California); 18 Dec 1952

Deanna Durbin Not Interested In More Films
By BOB THOMAS

HOLLYWOOD (AP) - The film town can't believe it. Deanna Durbin is back in Hollywood, but she says she's not interested in doing movies.
I didn't believe it either until I paid her a visit at her Hollywood hilltop home, which affords a view of Catalina on a clear day. She told me she was interested in no other career except her family. It consists of her husband, writer-director Charles David, their son, Peter, 1 1/2, and her daughter by a previous marriage, Jessica, 7.
"I can't seem to make people believe that I don't care about doing any more pictures," she smiled. "Mr. Pasternak is a fellow who won't take no for an answer."
Successful Films
She referred to Joe Pasternak, who produced her fabulously successful films at Universal and is now a big man in MGM. He has long been after her for a return to films. It would possibly be for a costarring opus with Mario Lanza, who has expressed an eagerness to appear with Miss Durbin.
"I'm not a ham," she commented. "I never have been, although I could never get people to believe it. Some people love to perform; it's their life. My daughter Jessica seems to be like that. She could probably start now and be happy to continue acting until she's 90."
"But not me. I started when I was 12 [sic], doing a short at MGM with Judy Garland. I did 'Three Smart Girls' when I was 13 [sic]. I was caught in the whirl until I quit three years ago at 27. That's a big chunk out of my life. Sure, I had a lot of fun and I enjoyed things I otherwise wouldn't have had. But I also missed out on a lot of the joys of girls who lead normal lives."
Deanna indicated that her young son has a great deal to do with her decision.
Means Much to Son
"I can see how much it means to Peter to have a mother who is always there when he needs her." she observed. "And I can see how much Jessica missed by not having the same care. When she was a baby, I was at the studio from 6 in the morning until 8 at night. During that time, she was in the care of a nurse, and heaven knows what would happen to her while I was at the studio."
Her future plans? They are concerned only with travel.
"We own a home here and another in France," she said. "They will be our bases. We'll spend as much time as possible seeing new places. I find that very exciting. Before I quit pictures, I couldn't even go to Toledo without a corps of escorts from the studio."
She mentioned that she still keeps her singing voice in training, but strictly for her own amusement.
"I sing because I like to," she said. "Because of that, I'm finding out how many songs there are. I don't have to sing 'The Blue Danube' every other song any more."

Weds Tonight (1941)

Mansfield News Journal (Mansfield, Oh); 18 Apr 1941

WEDS TONIGHT
------------------

Deanna Durbin Takes Vows In Hollywood Church
HOLLYWOOD - (INS) - In the presence of 900 guests, Deanna Durbin, the 19-year-old singing film star, will be married tonight in Hollywood to Vaughn Paul, young film executive.
There will be several thousand uninvited guests outside the Willshire Boulevard Methodist Episcopal church, however, all eager to get a glimpse of the pretty young actress and the scores of film celebrities expected to attend the wedding.
Paul and the young star first met when he was assistant director on her first film, "Three Smart Girls," in 1936.

All's Well That Ends Well (1941)

Mansfield News Journal (Mansfield, Oh); 8 Mar 1941

All's Well That Ends Well

Deanna Durbin, youthful screen actress, is pictured in Hollywood as she presented Private Everett Scott with a six-week-old airedale puppy to replace - in a measure - his faithful old dog Laddi who died of a broken heart after Scott joined the Army. Scott became the nation's most famous private during the life-and-death drama of Laddi who was flown to his mater's barracks in an effort to save his life.

Deanna Durbin to Wed (1950)

Mansfield News Journal (Mansfield, Ohio); 6 Dec 1950

DEANNA DURBIN TO WED

PARIS --, (AP) -- Film actress Deanna Durbin and director Charles David posted notice today that they plan to marry Dec. 16.

Deanna Engaged (1940)

Mansfield News Journal (Mansfield, Ohio); Friday, 6 Dec 1940

Deanna Engaged

On her 19th birthday Wednesday, Deanna Durbin, singing star of the movies, received a ring from the youthful director Vaughn Paul - an engagement ring. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. James Durbin, announced the wedding would occur next Summer.

Deanna Durbin Highest Paid Woman (1947)

The Independent (Long Beach, CA); 8 Jan 1947

Deanna Durbin Highest Paid Woman
WASHINGTON. Jan 7. (INS) The treasury disclosed today that screen star Deanna Durbin has moved into first place as the highest paid United States woman in 1945 with a salary of $310,728.93.
With her husband, Felix Jackson, who received $114,875, the Hollywood pair earned nearly a half million dollars, according to a supplemental list of 122 United States salaries above $75,000 in the 1945 fiscal year.
Movie director Leo McCarey, with $1,113,035, however, retained No. 1 spot among all United States salaries on the basis of the first treasury list issued last June. But Miss Durbin nosed out Carmen Miranda, Brazilian actress-singer, who was in front with $201,458.
Treasury officials said another supplementary list may be released later. They noted that the salary of Louis B. Mayer, president of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, who topped the 1944 list with $908, 069, has not been announced for 1945.
Officials also pointed out that present taxes take a sizeable chunk out of upper bracket salaries.