Kirk Douglas introduces new movie filmed in Reno

On Sunday, the 83-year-old actor got a standing ovation from 650 people as he introduced his film "Diamonds" - filmed in part in Reno, Nev. - during the Palm Springs International Film Festival.

"You know, when you have a stroke, you must speak slowly to be understood," Douglas told the crowd. "And when you speak slowly, people listen."

He described the discouragement of having a speech handicap and the process of overcoming it, which included learning language skills simultaneously with a granddaughter.

Douglas also thanked local celebrities from his generation on hand - George Montgomery, Loretta Young and Jane Wyman.

"Its good for me to see the colleagues that I have known throughout 50 years of filmmaking," he said.

Douglas called his movie, the first since his 1996 stroke, "my most important movie" because it was a triumph over his stroke.

"I thought I would never make another movie unless silent movies came back," he said, drawing a laugh.

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