Biography[]
Character: David Kornman
Birthday: July 27, 1920
Place of Birth: Cleveland, Ohio
Date of Death: July 25, 1998
Place of Death: Bridgeview, Illinois
First Short: The Big Town
Last Short: Uncle Tom's Uncle
Number of Shorts: 5
History: David Durand was an American child actor best known for the films "Pleased to Mitt You" (1940), "Viva Villa!" (1934) and "Glove Affair" (1941).
Born David Parker Grey on July 27, 1920 in Cleveland, Ohio, he started his career at the tender age of five in the Our Gang, mostly playing the young brother of Mary Kornman's character. He went on to star in such films as the George Bancroft comedy-drama "Ladies Love Brutes" (1930), "The Bad Sister" (1931), "Probation" (1932), "Son of the Border" (1933), "The Great Jasper" (1933) and the crime drama "The Life of Jimmy Dolan" (1933) with Douglas Fairbanks Jr..
Durand went on to star in through several movies in the Thirties, including "As the Earth Turns" (1934) with Jean Muir, "Little Men" (1934) and "Viva Villa" (1934) with Wallace Beery. He also appeared in "Wednesday's Child" (1934), "Boys' Reformatory" (1939) and "Streets of New York" (1939) with Jackie Cooper. He also played a bellhop in the 1940s Bob Hope film, "The Ghost Breakers."
While under contract at Columbia Pictures, Durand starred in the "Terry Kelly" shorts from 1940 to 1942, making eight shorts in the series. He continued to make film appearances afterward, such as "Pleased To Mitt You" and "Keep 'Em Slugging," both with Shemp Howard of the "Three Stooges" and "Golden Gloves" (1940) with Richard Denning. His last known film role was as Danny in the "Gas House Kids" movies, ending with "Follow The Leader" (1944).
According to his obituary, Durand left acting to join the United States Army. It seems he might have turned to art to make a living after the war because he turns up working behind the scenes as an artist or illustrator for several films between 1984 and 1990, including "Runaway," with Tom Selleck, the cult horror film "Night of the Demons," "Elvira: Mistress of the Dark," "The Fly II" with Eric Stoltz, "Short Time" with Dabney Coleman and "A Gnome Named Gnorm."
Durand passed away on July 25, 1998 in Bridgeview, Illinois. He was survived by his daughter, Judi M. Durand, a voice over actress known for her work on "The Lion King" (1994), "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (1993) and "Lilo & Stitch" (2002).
List of Shorts[]
Other Projects[]
- Get Your Man (1927)
- Tropic Madness (1928)
- Innocents Of Paris (1928) - with Maurice Chevalier
- Song of Love (1929)
- Ladies Love Brutes (1930)
- Live and Learn (1930)
- The Jazz Cinderella (1930)
- The Bad Sister (1930)
- The Spy (1931)
- Rich Man's Folly (1931)
- Probation (1931)
- Forbidden Company (1931)
- Silver Dollar (1931)
- The Great Jasper (1931)
- Son of the Border (1931)
- The Life of Jimmy Dolan (1932) - with Douglas Fairbanks Jr
- Jennie Gerhardt (1933)
- As The Earth Turns (1934)
- Viva Villa! (1934)
- Hat, Coat, and Glove (1934)
- Wednesday's Child (1934)
- Little Men (1934)
- The Band Plays On 1937 (1934)
- Wells Fargo (1934)
- A Criminal Is Born (1938)
- Angels with Dirty Faces (1939)
- Scouts to the Rescue (1939)
- Off the Record (1939)
- Streets of New York (1939)
- He Married His Wife (1939)
- Boys' Reformatory (1939)
- The Ghost Breakers (1940) - with Bob Hope
- East Side Kids (1940)
- Golden Gloves (1940)
- The Tulsa Kid (1941)
- Pleased to Mitt You (1941)
- Her First Romance (1941)
- Fresh as a Freshman (1941)
- Double Date (1941)
- Glove Affair (1941)
- Naval Academy (1941)
- Harmon of Michigan (1941)
- Mitt Me Tonight (1941) - with Shemp Howard
- The Kink of the Campus (1941)
- Glove Birds (1941)
- A Study in Socks (1943)
- College Belles (1943)
- Kid Dynamite (1943)
- Keep 'em Slugging (1943)