Toronto Film Society
35 Brucewood Crescent M6A 2G7 Toronto, ON, Canada

Happy Valentine's Day from Deanna Durbin and all of us at the Toronto Film Society!

Wishing a happy 88th birthday to Kim Novak, born February 13, 1933. She was a top box office draw for about a decade, starring in Pal Joey, Vertigo and The Man With The Golden Arm. She hasn't acted since 1991 and currently raises horses and llamas in Oregon.

If you're looking for something special to do on Valentine's Day, check out Valentine's Dinner and a Movie, Italian Style!

Remembering Ottawa native Lorne Green on the anniversary of his birthday (February 12, 1915). Remembered for his role on Bonanza (430 episodes!), Battlestar Galactica and 7 appearances on Sesame Street! Greene was awarded the Order of Canada in 1969.

Remembering Canadian Leslie Nielsen on his birthday (February 11, 1926, in Regina, Sask!). He was mostly known for his dramatic performances until 1980s Airplane. He has over 250 credits, including Forbidden Planet, the TV series Peyton Place and Due South.

Wishing a very happy 91st birthday to the dashing Robert Wagner (b. Feb 10, 1930). Though he's mostly known for being the dashing Robert Wagner, he starred in Hart to Hart, Switch and the TV show It Takes a Thief.

Dashing Ricardo Montalban (b. Nov. 25, 1920) is remembered for many things, including a 63 year marriage, playing Mr. Roarke on Fantasy Island and uttering the phrase "rich Corinthian leather". He also played Khan in an episode of Star Trek and in the film The Wrath of Khan.

Oscar nominee Gene Tierney as born on November 19, 1920. The star of Laura, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir and Leave Her to Heaven suffered from depression and made few appearances onscreen after 1955. Her last role was in the mini-series Scruples in 1980. She passed away in 1991.

November 18, 1928: Mickey Mouse(and Minnie Mouse) make their first appearances in the short film Steamboat Willie. Notable for being the first Disney short with synchronized sound. Fun fact: Toronto born actor Chris Diamantopoulos voices Mickey in the Mickey Mouse tv series.

Handsome Jeffrey Hunter was born on November 25, 1926. His first film role was as "Third Plebian" in 1951's Julius Caesar, but he's better known for The Searchers and The Longest Day. He died at age 42 from complications following a stroke, a fall and emergency surgery.

Rock Hudson (b. Nov 17, 1925) was a solid, if underrated, leading man in the '50s and '60s, including roles in Giant, Written on the Wind and a series of romantic comedies with Doris Day. One of his best performances is in Seconds, (1966). What's your favourite Hudson film?

Two-time Oscar nominee Burgess Meredith was born on November 16, 1907. He started out in film in 1935, appearing in Of Mice and Men and Idiot's Delight, moved on to television, notably playing the Penguin on Batman and played Mickey in the Rocky series.

November 24, 1966: The cult film One Million Years B.C., starring Raquel Welch, John Richardson and a fur bikini is released (in West Germany). Fun fact: Raquel Welch's grunting was voice-dubbed by Nikki Van der Zyl.

Wishing a happy 91st birthday to Ed Asner (b. Nov 15, 1929) 17 Emmy nominations (7 wins!) According to IMDB, he's has 8 credits so far for 2020 with another 15 announced. He's the only actor to win Emmys for playing the same character (Lou Grant) in both a comedy and a drama.

Merle Oberon passed away on November 23, 1979. The star of Wuthering Heights and The Scarlet Pimpernel. Part-Indian and Maori, she was the first Asian nominated for any Academy Award and to date, the only Asia-born actress to receive a Best Actress (not supporting) nomination. (If you know otherwise, please let us know!) Without looking it up, which film did she receive an Oscar nomination for?

Dick Powell (b. November 14, 1904) transitioned from crooner to crime fighter, appearing in films like Gold Diggers of 1933 to noirs such as Murder, My Sweet. He was married to June Allyson for 17 years, which only ended with his premature death at age 58 from lung cancer.

November 22, 1961: Producers Albert Broccoli and Harry Saltzman announce a publicity campaign to showcase Sean Connery who was about to start filming his first film as James Bond. Connery, who passed away earlier this year at age 90, would play Bond 7 times between 1962 and 1983.

Eleanor Powerll, aka The Queen of Tap Dancing, was born on November 21, 1912. Powell was a force in the mid '30s, starring in three Broadway Melody films, Born to Dance among others. She married Glenn Ford in 1943 and sadly, did not work much after that. They divorced in 1959.