- Patrice Munset, Melba, 1952. Australia’s 1939 biopic of the Aussie soprano diva, Dame Nellie Melba, was cancelled by WWII. A UK version with Deanna Durbin fizzled out in 1947. Finally, Hollywood offered its own pure, if not pulp fiction with Munset, an American coloratura sopranbo. The ’39 down-under choice, opera diva Lawrence, had her own Hollywood biopic, starring Eleanor Parker, in 1954.
Birth year: 1907Death year: 1979Other name: Casting Calls: 1