Vintage Film Festival
The Foundation produces the Vintage Film Festival every year on a weekend in September. Full details here. The Foundation also produces RearView Doc Fest on a weekend in April. More here.
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Contact Us
To contact the Marie Dressler Foundation by mail, see our About Us page. By email, click here.
Marie Dressler House
The Marie Dressler House no longer operates as Cobourg's Tourist Information office but still houses the Interactive Marie Dressler Museum. Dressler House is located at:
212 King street West (Hwy 2),
Cobourg, Ontario, Canada.
Hours
Summer 2019
From May 28 to August 31
Tuesday to Sunday
from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Fall-Winter 2019
T.B.D.
Last 17 Bursaries
Tell Us More
If you have some information about Marie or simply want to comment on her or the content of this site, please use our "Tell Us More" form available here.
The Marie Dressler Story
Born in Cobourg, Canada - one of Hollywood's greatest stars
The Dressler Story: to Dream, to Dare, to Persist, to Win
Cobourg is the birthplace of Marie Dressler - one of the greatest comediennes of her generation and one of Hollywood's best loved stars.
This is the official site of the Marie Dressler Foundation whose mission is to make sure that Marie Dressler is remembered.
The Foundation, a registered charity, was created to raise money to restore her house when it was burnt down in 1989 (More here). Our largest activity has been the Vintage Film Festival which is held on the last weekend in October every year. But in 2018 we had additional major events to celebrate Marie's 150th birthday.
Bursaries
Another major activity of the Foundation is to award scholarships/bursaries to students planning to pursue an education in the arts field. There is a list of previous scholarship winners here. The 2019 winners were presented with their awards at Dressler House on July 6 - see the story with photos here. For more information on how to apply, go here.
Also available on this site
Marie Dressler 150th Birthday Celebration
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On November 9, Marie Dressler's 150th birthday was celebrated. She was born on November 9, 1868 and 73 came to her birthday party in the Art Gallery of Northumberland. In addition 18 members of La Jeunesse Choir entertained us. They performed "Singing in the Rain" in honour of Marie who sang this song in the 1929 Hollywood Revue as well as the requisite "Happy Birthday". Actress Carlotta Rutledge portrayed Marie and when the kids made birthday cards for Marie she presented them with presents.
In attendance were MPP David Piccini, Mayor Gil Brocanier and several Councillors. The party was kicked off by the Town crier Mandy Robinson.
The Photos in the slide show below give an idea of the event.
Opening of Exhibition “Cobourg’s Sweetheart”
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On September 8, there was an opening reception to the Exhibit at the Art Gallery of Northumberland (AGN) that explores the Cobourg community’s relationship with Marie Dressler over the past 90 years. Part of the celebration of Marie’s 150th birthday, it was produced by the Marie Dressler Foundation and curated by Kristina Karakolis. Featuring historical images and documents, it tells the story of Marie with emphasis on her connection to Cobourg. Because of Marie’s film connection, two exhibits use TV monitors to show a video and trailers. The reception featured special 150th birthday cookies and welcomed a number of tourists who were in town at the time. In attendance were Mayor Gil Brocanier, Councillors Suzanne Seguin, Aaron Burchat and Debra McCarthy as well as previous Mayor Peter Delanty and of course the AGN's Executive Director Olinda Casimiro.
See the photos below for more - click any image to enlarge and access captions. Then scroll through them all.
Marie Dressler Events
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Watch the video below to learn more about the Special Events happening in Cobourg in 2018 to celebrate Marie's 150th Birthday.
There is more detail on each event below. Go here for Women and Hollywood tickets. Go to Best Western for tickets for Marie Dressler's Dinner at Eight Birthday Celebration.