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Lunt and Fontanne (and Coward) in Design for Living and Taming of the Shrew; and Cole Porter
Then another battle started, the one to win the Would she reconsider it? He even visited her
play´s rights to transform it into a movie. The in France, hoping to convince her. But Deanna
contract had a specific clause forbidding any declined this offer, as she had done with all
studio to start shooting until the stage produc- others, and would do later with My Fair Lady
tion had ended. So, any picture to be made which really appealed to her. “No” meant no.
would have to wait until the stage run would
finish. She had achieved the anonymous and tranquil
life in France as a mother of two children and
On Broadway Kiss me Kate ran from Decem- with husband Charles David that she had never
ber 1948 until July 1951 (1077 performanc- had in America. She was through with
es!). As for the West End British production, it Hollywood and movie business. And show
opened in March 1951 and closed in February business, for that matter. Only one year before,
1952 (400 performances, at the Coliseum). in 1951, she had already been approached to
Then in June MGM was the studio who finally play Lilli for the Kiss me Kate London
won the rights. production, her refusal being the cause that
Miss Morison was transferred as leading lady
Now let´s travel to Hollywood, and see what to Britain. So Deanna stayed silent, and the
producer Jack Cummings, Louis B. Mayer´s role remained vacant.
nephew, can do with this long sought-for
project which has landed on his table. As
responsible for choosing a cast, his original
idea was to hire the best stage actor available
to play Fred -after all this had Shakespeare in
it-, and the best singer to play Lilli. So he
asked none other than Laurence Olivier. but he
declined. Nor was he interested either in being
dubbed for the songs. Cummings was also
willing to have a glamorous lady singer, and
he asked none other than… Deanna Durbin !
Would she consider a comeback in high style?
After all it was only a couple of years since she
had chosen retirement, in 1948, at only 27.
Right: Kathryn Grayson
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