David Daniel Kaminski was born 100 years ago...

actually, Danny Kaye would have been 102 on January 18, 2013, but he decided to list his birth year as 1913, instead of 1911, which is the year he was born. He has always been one of my favorite people. He made less than 30 movies, but he was a great storyteller and had a TV show in the 1960s. I don't remember watching his TV show, but I remember listening to a record or tape of him telling Hans Christian Andersen stories and Grimm's Fairy Tales. My favorites were "Clever Gretel" and "The Steadfast Tin Soldier".

Today, Turner Classic Movies is devoting 24 hours to Danny Kaye, which includes "The Court Jester", airing at 9:00 p.m. CST, tonight. It is probably the best representation of Danny Kaye on film. I'm almost ashamed to admit that I have only seen three of his movies. Besides "The Court Jester", I've seen "White Christmas" and "Merry Andrew". I love all of them, and I will watch many more, as part of today's celebration on TCM.

I have trouble putting words together to describe Danny Kaye. The best I can say is that watching his movies will take you to a lovely place, where you will laugh and be filled with love for everyone around you.You will forget about all the horrible things going on in the world ... for a little while.

So, if you like "White Christmas", make the effort to watch "The Court Jester". I guarantee you will fall in love!