Article

Allan Roy Dafoe

Published Online January 20, 2008

Last Edited February 12, 2015

Allan Roy Dafoe, physician (b at Madoc, Ont 29 May 1883; d at North Bay, Ont 2 June 1943). A shy recluse with an indifferent academic record, he achieved worldwide fame for his successful delivery on 28 May 1934 of the Dionne Quintuplets.

Allan Roy Dafoe

Allan Roy Dafoe, physician (b at Madoc, Ont 29 Mar 1883; d at North Bay, Ont 2 June 1943). A shy recluse with an indifferent academic record, he achieved worldwide fame for his successful delivery on 28 May 1934 of the Dionne Quintuplets. Dafoe's commonsense approach, together with the advice of his brother William, a Toronto gynecologist, kept the babies alive.

Placed in charge of their welfare (over the protests of their father, Oliva Dionne), Dafoe became a public figure, portrayed on films and radio by Hollywood actor Jean Hersholt. Created OBE in 1935, he was author of Dr. Dafoe's Guidebook for Mothers (1936) and How To Raise Your Baby (1941).