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Doris Day

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Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey" and "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time" with Les Brown and His Band of Renown. She left Brown to embark on a solo career and recorded more than 650 songs from 1947 to 1967.

Day was one of the leading Hollywood film stars of the 1950s and 1960s. Her film career began with Romance on the High Seas (1948). She starred in films of many genres, including musicals, comedies, dramas and thrillers. She played the title role in Calamity Jane (1953) and starred in Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) with James Stewart. She co-starred with Rock Hudson in three successful comedies, Pillow Talk (1959), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, Lover Come Back (1961) and Send Me No Flowers (1964). She also worked with James Garner on both Move Over, Darling (1963) and The Thrill of It All (1963) and starred alongside Clark Gable, Cary Grant, James Cagney, David Niven, Ginger Rogers, Jack Lemmon, Frank Sinatra, Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall, and Rod Taylor in various films. After ending her film career in 1968, she starred in her own television sitcom The Doris Day Show (1968–1973).

In 1989, Day was awarded the Golden Globe and the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement in Motion Pictures. In 2004, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2008, she received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award as well as a Legend Award from the Society of Singers. In 2011, she was awarded the Los Angeles Film Critics Association's Career Achievement Award. In 2011, Day released her 29th studio album, My Heart, which contained new material and became a UK Top 10 album. Template:As of, she was one of eight recording artists to have been the top box-office earner in the United States four times.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="AEHotchner1976">Template:Cite book</ref>

Early life

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File:Doris Day Childhood Home, Greenlawn Avenue, Evanston, Cincinnati, OH.jpg
Childhood home in Cincinnati

Day was born Doris Mary Kappelhoff<ref name="nytimes" /> on April 3, 1922, in Cincinnati, Ohio,<ref name="shes95">Template:Cite web</ref> the daughter of German-American<ref>Actress Doris Day dies at 97 Philly.com May 13, 2019.</ref><ref name="wn">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Reitwiesner">Template:Cite web</ref> parents Alma Sophia (née Welz; 1895–1976) and William Joseph Kappelhoff (1892–1967). She was named after actress Doris Kenyon.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Her mother was a homemaker, and her father was a music teacher and choirmaster.Template:Sfn<ref name="census">Template:Cite web. (registration required; initial 14-day free pass)</ref> Her paternal grandfather Franz Joseph Wilhelm Kappelhoff immigrated to the United States in 1875 and settled within the large German community in Cincinnati.<ref name="wn"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For most of her life, Day stated that she was born in 1924, but on the occasion of her 95th birthday, the Associated Press found her birth certificate that showed a 1922 year of birth.<ref name=shes95 />

Day had two older brothers: Richard (1917–1919), who died before her birth, and Paul (1919–1957).Template:Sfn Her father's infidelity caused her parents to separate in 1932 when she was 10.<ref name="AEHotchner1976" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She developed an early interest in dance, and in the mid-1930s formed a dance duo with Jerry Doherty that performed in nationwide competitions.<ref name="ParishPitts2003">Template:Cite book</ref> She had signed a contract with a casting company to be a dancer and she was preparing to move to Los Angeles to pursue this opportunity. Family friends that lived just north of Cincinnati, in Hamilton, Ohio planned a going away party for her but tragedy struck on her way to the party.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On October 13, 1937, while Day was riding with friends, their car collided with a freight train, and she broke her right leg, curtailing her prospects as a professional dancer.<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref><ref name="BrowneBrowne2001">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Career

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Early career (1938–1947)

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File:Doris Day and Bob Crosby (1940).png
Day and Bob Crosby (1940)

While recovering from her car accident, Day sang along with the radio and discovered her singing talent. She later said: "During this long, boring period, I used to while away a lot of time listening to the radio, sometimes singing along with the likes of Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Tommy Dorsey, and Glenn Miller. But the one radio voice I listened to above others belonged to Ella Fitzgerald. There was a quality to her voice that fascinated me, and I'd sing along with her, trying to catch the subtle ways she shaded her voice, the casual yet clean way she sang the words."

Day's mother Alma arranged for Doris to receive singing lessons from Grace Raine.Template:Sfn After three lessons, Raine told Alma that Day had "tremendous potential" and gave her three lessons per week for the price of one. Years later, Day said that Raine had a greater effect on her singing style and career than had anyone else.Template:Sfn

File:Doris Day, Aquarium, gottlieb.01841.jpg
Day at the Aquarium Jazz Club, New York (1946)

During the eight months when she was receiving singing lessons, Day secured her first professional jobs as a vocalist on the WLW radio program Carlin's Carnival and in a local restaurant, Charlie Yee's Shanghai Inn.Template:Sfn During her radio performances, she first caught the attention of Barney Rapp, who was seeking a female vocalist and asked her to audition for the job. According to Rapp, he had auditioned about 200 other singers.Template:Sfn

In 1939, Rapp suggested the stage name Doris Day<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> because the Kappelhoff surname was too long for marquees and he admired her rendition of the song "Day After Day".Template:Sfn After working with Rapp, Day worked with bandleaders Jimmy James,<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref> Bob Crosby<ref name="Sutro2011">Template:Cite book</ref> and Les Brown.<ref name="Family2009">Template:Cite book</ref> In 1941, Day appeared as a singer in three Soundies with the Les Brown band.<ref name="TerenzioMacGillivray1991">Template:Cite book</ref>

While working with Brown, Day recorded her first hit recording, "Sentimental Journey", released in early 1945 and which went to #1 on the Billboard. It soon became an anthem for World War II servicemen.<ref name=pc1b>Template:Pop Chronicles 40s</ref><ref name="Santopietro2008">Template:Cite book</ref> The song continues to be associated with Day, and she rerecorded it on several occasions, including a version for her 1971 television special.Template:Sfn During 1945–46, Day (as vocalist with the Les Brown Band) had six other top ten hits on the Billboard chart: "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time", Template:"'Tain't Me", "Till the End of Time", "You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)", "The Whole World Is Singing My Song" and [[I Got the Sun in the Mornin'|"I Got the Sun in the MorninTemplate:'"]].<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Les Brown said, "As a singer Doris belongs in the company of Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra."<ref name="nytimes" >Template:Cite web</ref>

Early film career (1948–1954)

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File:Starlift DorisDay and GordonMacRae.jpg
Gordon MacRae and Day in Starlift (1951)

While singing with the Les Brown band and for nearly two years on Bob Hope's weekly radio program,<ref name="BrowneBrowne2001" /> Day toured extensively across the United States as the era of big bands had given way to solo pop singers.

Her performance of the song "Embraceable You" impressed songwriter Jule Styne and his partner Sammy Cahn, and they recommended her for a role in Romance on the High Seas (1948). Day was cast for the role after auditioning for director Michael Curtiz.Template:Sfn<ref name="Gentry2008">Template:Cite book</ref> She was shocked to receive the offer and admitted to Curtiz that she was a singer without acting experience but he appreciated her honesty and felt that "her freckles made her look like the All-American Girl."<ref name=Tennessee>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref>

The film provided her with a No. 2 hit recording as a soloist, "It's Magic", which occurred two months after her hit "Love Somebody", a duet with Buddy Clark and they would have another hit shortly after that with a cover of Patti Page's "Confess."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Her first solo hit was "Sentimental Journey" in 1945. Day recorded "Someone Like You" before the film My Dream Is Yours (1949), which featured the song.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1950, she collaborated as a singer with the polka musician Frankie Yankovic,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and the U.S. servicemen in Korea voted her their favorite star.

Her heyday as a hitmaker was from 1948 to 1951 when she placed 15 songs on the Billboard Hot 30 list and was one of the top female pop vocalists, competing with rivals such as Dinah Shore, Jo Stafford, and Patti Page.

Day continued to appear in light musicals such as On Moonlight Bay (1951), By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953) and Tea For Two (1950) for Warner Bros.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

File:Calamity Jane trailer.jpg
Day with Howard Keel in Calamity Jane (1953)

Her most commercially successful film for Warner Bros. was I'll See You in My Dreams (1951), a musical biography of lyricist Gus Kahn that broke box-office records of 20 years. It was Day's fourth film directed by Curtiz.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She appeared as the title character in the comedic western-themed musical Calamity Jane (1953).<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref> A song from the film, "Secret Love", won the Academy Award for Best Original Song and became Day's fourth No. 1 hit single in the United States.<ref name="Tyler2008">Template:Cite book</ref>

Between 1950 and 1953, the albums from six of her film musicals charted in the Top 10, including three that reached No. 1. After filming Lucky Me (1954) with Bob Cummings and Young at Heart (1955) with Frank Sinatra, Day elected to not renew her contract with Warner Brothers.<ref name="Palmer2010">Template:Cite book</ref>

During this period, Day also had her own radio program, The Doris Day Show. It was broadcast on CBS in 1952–1953.<ref name="dunningota">Template:Cite book</ref>

Breakthrough (1955–1958)

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File:Cameron Mitchell, Doris Day, and James Cagney.jpg
Cameron Mitchell, Day and James Cagney in a publicity still for Love Me or Leave Me (1955)

Primarily recognized as a musical-comedy actress, Day began to accept more dramatic roles in order to broaden her range. Her dramatic star turn as singer Ruth Etting in Love Me or Leave Me (1955), with top billing above James Cagney, received critical and commercial success, becoming Day's greatest film success to that point.<ref name="LisantiPaul2002">Template:Cite book</ref> Cagney said that she had "the ability to project the simple, direct statement of a simple, direct idea without cluttering it," comparing her performance to that of Laurette Taylor in the Broadway production The Glass Menagerie (1945).<ref>Aljean Harmetz (2019). "Doris Day, Charming Star With a Golden Voice, Dies at 97". The New York Times. p. 7</ref> Day felt that it was her best film performance. The film's producer Joe Pasternak said, "I was stunned that Doris did not get an Oscar nomination."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The film's soundtrack album became a No. 1 hit.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Love Me Or Leave Me – Trailer, Warner Movies</ref>

Day starred in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense film The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 film) opposite James Stewart. She sang two songs in the film, "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)", which won an Academy Award for Best Original Song,<ref name="Tyler2008 2">Template:Cite book</ref> and "We'll Love Again". The film was Day's 10th to reach the top 10 at the box office. She played the title role in the film noir thriller Julie (1956) with Louis Jourdan.<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref>

After three successive dramatic films, Day returned to her musical/comedic roots in The Pajama Game (1957) with John Raitt, based on the Broadway play of the same name.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She appeared in the Paramount comedy Teacher's Pet (1958) alongside Clark Gable and Gig Young.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She costarred with Richard Widmark and Gig Young in the romantic comedy film The Tunnel of Love (1958)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and with Jack Lemmon in It Happened to Jane (1959).

BillboardTemplate:'s annual nationwide poll of disc jockeys had ranked Day as the No. 1 female vocalist nine times in ten years (1949 through 1958), but her success and popularity as a singer was now being overshadowed by her box-office appeal. However, Day still had several more major hits over the '50s, including "Secret Love", "I'll Never Stop Loving You", and "Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be Will Be)" despite rock-and-roll reducing interest in older singers. The last charting single she had was "Lover Come Back" in 1962.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Box-office success (1959–1968)

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In 1959, Day entered her most successful phase as a film actress with a series of romantic comedies<ref name="Gourley2008">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Monteith2008">Template:Cite book</ref> beginning with Pillow Talk (1959), costarring Rock Hudson, who became a lifelong friend, and Tony Randall. Day received a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actress,<ref name="Finler2003">Template:Cite book</ref> her only career Oscar nomination.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> Day, Hudson and Randall appeared in two more films together, Lover Come Back (1961) and Send Me No Flowers (1964).<ref name="Glitre2006">Template:Cite book</ref>

Along with David Niven and Janis Paige, Day starred in Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960) and with Cary Grant in the comedy That Touch of Mink (1962).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During 1960 and the 1962-1964 period, she ranked No. 1 at the box office, the second woman to be No. 1 four times, an accomplishment equaled by no other actress except Shirley Temple.<ref name="AljeanHarmetz">Template:Cite web</ref> She set a record that has yet to be matched by receiving seven consecutive Laurel Awards as the top female box-office star.<ref name="Morris1976">Template:Cite book</ref>

Day teamed with James Garner starting with The Thrill of It All, followed by Move Over, Darling (both 1963).<ref name="Harding2012">Template:Cite book</ref> The film's theme song "Move Over Darling", cowritten by her son, reached No. 8 in the UK.<ref name="Pilchak2005">Template:Cite book</ref> Between these comedic film appearances, Day costarred with Rex Harrison in the thriller Midnight Lace (1960), an update of the stage thriller Gaslight.<ref name="Waller1987">Template:Cite book</ref>

Day's next film Do Not Disturb (1965) was popular with audiences, but her popularity soon waned. By the late 1960s, in the period of the emerging Sexual Revolution, some critics and comics dubbed Day "The World's Oldest Virgin,"<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> and she slipped from the list of top box-office stars, last appearing in the top ten with the hit film The Glass Bottom Boat (1966). Among the roles that she declined was that of Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate, a role that eventually went to Anne Bancroft.<ref name="Grindon2011">Template:Cite book</ref> In her memoirs, Day said that she had rejected the part on moral grounds, finding the script "vulgar and offensive."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

As another sign of the times, Day was dropped from Columbia Records in 1965 when the label fired long-running pop division head Mitch Miller and began hiring new, young, and rock-focused management. With two exceptions, this termination effectively ended her recording career.

Day starred in the Western film The Ballad of Josie in 1967. That same year, Day recorded The Love Album, although it was not released until 1994.<ref name="Day">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1968, she starred in the comedy film Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? about the Northeast blackout of November 9, 1965. Her final feature, the comedy With Six You Get Eggroll, was released in 1968.<ref name=TCM2013>Template:Cite web</ref>

From 1959 to 1970, Day received nine Laurel Award nominations (and won four times) for best female performance in eight comedies and one drama. From 1959 through 1969, she received six Golden Globe nominations for best female performance in three comedies, one drama (Midnight Lace), one musical (Jumbo) and her television series.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Bankruptcy and television career

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File:Doris Day on television show set.JPG
On the set of The Doris Day Show

After her third husband Martin Melcher died on April 20, 1968, Day was shocked to discover that Melcher and his business partner and advisor Jerome Bernard Rosenthal had squandered her earnings, leaving her deeply in debt.<ref name="Sonneborn2002">Template:Cite book</ref> Rosenthal had been her attorney since 1949 when he had represented her in her uncontested divorce action against her second husband, saxophonist George W. Weidler. Day filed suit against Rosenthal in February 1969 and won a successful decision in 1974, but she did not receive compensation until a settlement was reached in 1979.<ref name=metnews>Template:Cite news</ref>

Day also learned to her displeasure that Melcher had committed her to a television series that became The Doris Day Show.

Template:Blockquote

Day hated the idea of performing on television but felt obligated to forge ahead with the series.<ref name="TCM2013"/> The first episode of The Doris Day Show aired on September 24, 1968,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and featured a rerecorded version of "Que Sera, Sera" as its theme song. Day persevered with the show, needing to work to repay her debts, but only after CBS ceded creative control to her and her son. The show enjoyed a successful five-year run,<ref name="ABCSnares">Template:Cite news</ref> although it may be best remembered for its abrupt season-to-season changes in casting and premise.Template:Sfn

File:Doris Day John Denver 1975.JPG
Day with John Denver on the TV special Doris Day Today
(CBS, February 19, 1975)<ref name=IMDbToday />

After the end of the television show's run in 1973, Day largely retired from acting but completed two television specials, The Doris Mary Anne Kappelhoff Special (1971)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Doris Day Today (1975),<ref name=IMDbToday>Template:Cite web</ref> and she was a guest on various shows in the 1970s. In 1985 she also recorded new musical material; these recordings were eventually released in 2011 as The Love Album.

In the 1985–86 season, Day hosted her own television talk show, Doris Day's Best Friends, on the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN).<ref name="ABCSnares"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The network canceled the show after 26 episodes despite the worldwide publicity that it had received. One episode featured Rock Hudson, who was showing the first public symptoms of AIDS, including severe weight loss and fatigue. He died from the disease later that year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Day later said, "He was very sick. But I just brushed that off and I came out and put my arms around him and said, 'Am I glad to see you'."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

1980s and 1990s

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In October 1985, the Supreme Court of California rejected Rosenthal's appeal of the multimillion-dollar judgment awarded to Day in her suit against him for legal malpractice and upheld the conclusions of a trial court and an appeals court<ref> Day v. Rosenthal, 170 Cal.App.3d 1132 (1985)</ref> that Rosenthal had acted improperly.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In April 1986, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review the lower court's judgment. In June 1987, Rosenthal filed a $30 million lawsuit against lawyers who he claimed had cheated him out of millions of dollars in real-estate investments. He named Day as a codefendant, describing her as an "unwilling, involuntary plaintiff whose consent cannot be obtained." Rosenthal claimed that much of the money that Day had lost was the result of the unwise advice of other attorneys who had suggested that she sell three hotels at a loss, as well as some oil leases in Kentucky and Ohio.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He claimed that he had made the investments under a long-term plan and did not intend to sell them until they appreciated in value. Two of the hotels sold in 1970 for about $7 million, and their estimated worth in 1986 was $50 million.<ref name="Disbarred1987">Template:Cite news</ref>

Terry Melcher stated that his father's premature death saved Day from financial ruin. It was not known whether Martin Melcher had himself been duped by Rosenthal,<ref name="Champlin1988">Template:Cite news</ref> and Day stated publicly that she believed him to be innocent of any deliberate wrongdoing, stating that he "simply trusted the wrong person."<ref>Template:Citation</ref> According to author David Kaufman, Day's former costar Louis Jourdan maintained that Day disliked her husband,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> but Day's public statements regarding Melcher appear to contradict that assertion.Template:Sfn

Day was scheduled to present, along with Patrick Swayze and Marvin Hamlisch, the award for Best Original Score Oscar at the 61st Academy Awards in March 1989, but she suffered a deep leg cut from a sprinkler and was unable to attend.<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Free access</ref>

Day was inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in 1981 and received the Cecil B. DeMille Award for career achievement in 1989.<ref>video: "Doris Day Receives the Cecil B. Demille Award – Golden Globes 1989", Dick Clark Productions</ref> In 1994, Day's Greatest Hits album entered the British charts.<ref name="Day" /> Her cover of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" was included in the soundtrack of the Australian film Strictly Ballroom.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

2000s

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Day participated in celebrations of her birthday with an annual Doris Day music marathon.<ref>"A preview of the Doris Day Movie Marathon happening April 3", WVXU, March 28, 2014</ref>

She declined tribute offers from the American Film Institute and the Kennedy Center Honors because they both require that recipients attend in person. In 2004, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush for her achievements in the entertainment industry and for her work on behalf of animals.<ref name=Medal>Template:Cite news</ref> President Bush stated:Template:Blockquote

Columnist Liz Smith and film critic Rex Reed mounted vigorous campaigns to gather support for an Academy Honorary Award for Day.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> According to The Hollywood Reporter, the academy had offered her the honorary Oscar multiple times, but she declined as she saw the film industry as a part of her past life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Day received a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement in Music in 2008, albeit again in absentia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Day received Grammy Hall of Fame Awards in 1998, 1999 and 2012 for her recordings of "Sentimental Journey", "Secret Love" and "Que Sera, Sera", respectively.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame in 2007,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and in 2010 received the first Legend Award presented by the Society of Singers.<ref name="Day"/>

2010s

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At the age of 89, Day released My Heart in the United Kingdom on September 5, 2011, her first new album since the 1994 release of The Love Album, which had been recorded in 1967.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> The album is a compilation of previously unreleased recordings produced by Day's son Terry Melcher. Tracks include the 1970s Joe Cocker hit "You Are So Beautiful", the Beach Boys' "Disney Girls" and jazz standards such as "My Buddy", which Day originally sang in the film I'll See You in My Dreams (1951).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In the U.S., the album reached No. 12 on Amazon's bestseller list and helped raise funds for the Doris Day Animal League.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Day became the oldest artist to score a UK Top 10 with an album featuring new material.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In January 2012, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association presented Day with a Lifetime Achievement Award.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In April 2014, Day made an unexpected public appearance to attend the annual Doris Day Animal Foundation benefit.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Clint Eastwood offered Day a role in a film that he was planning to direct in 2015,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but she eventually declined.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Day granted ABC a telephone interview on her birthday in 2016 that was accompanied by photos of her life and career.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Activism

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During the filming of The Man Who Knew Too Much, Day observed the mistreatment of animals in a marketplace scene and was inspired to act against animal abuse. She was so appalled at the conditions with which the animals used in filming were kept that she refused to work unless they received sufficient food and proper care. The production company erected feeding stations for the animals and fed them every day before Day would agree to return to work.

In 1971, she cofounded Actors and Others for Animals and appeared in a series of newspaper advertisements denouncing the wearing of fur along with Mary Tyler Moore, Angie Dickinson and Jayne Meadows.Template:Sfn

In 1978, Day founded the Doris Day Pet Foundation, now the Doris Day Animal Foundation (DDAF).<ref name="Grudens2001">Template:Cite book</ref> An independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) grant-giving public charity, DDAF funds other nonprofit causes that promote animal welfare.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

To complement the Doris Day Animal Foundation, Day formed the Doris Day Animal League (DDAL) in 1987, a national nonprofit citizens' lobbying organization on behalf of animals.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Day actively lobbied the United States Congress in support of legislation designed to safeguard animal welfare on a number of occasions, and in 1995 she originated the annual World Spay Day.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The DDAL merged into the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) in 2006.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Doris Day Horse Rescue and Adoption Center, which helps abused and neglected horses, opened in 2011 in Murchison, Texas on the grounds of an animal sanctuary started by Day's late friend, author Cleveland Amory.<ref name="Patrick-Goudreau2011">Template:Cite book</ref> Day contributed $250,000 toward the founding of the center.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

A posthumous auction of 1,100 of Day's possessions in April 2020 generated $3 million for the Doris Day Animal Foundation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Day actively engaged in HIV/AIDS awareness for many years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her commitment was primarily focused on raising awareness and fundraising for HIV/AIDS research. She co-organized several fundraising events for HIV/AIDS-related charities and provided financial contributions to research and support programs for individuals affected by the disease. In 2011, the Canadian magazine Gay Globe paid tribute to Day by featuring her on the cover of their #79 edition.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life

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Day's only child was music producer and songwriter Terry Melcher, who had a hit in the 1960s with "Hey Little Cobra" under the name the Rip Chords before becoming a successful producer whose acts included the Byrds, Paul Revere & the Raiders and the Beach Boys. In the late 1960s, Melcher became acquainted with Charles Manson and nearly signed him to a record deal. In August 1969, the Tate murders, orchestrated by Manson, were committed at the Benedict Canyon house that Melcher had formerly occupied. Melcher died of melanoma in November 2004.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

From the 1980s, Day owned a hotel in Carmel-by-the-Sea called the Cypress Inn,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> an early pet–friendly hotel that was featured in Architectural Digest in 1999.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Marriages

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Day was married four times.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> From April 1941 to February 1943, she was married to trombonist Al Jorden (1917–1967), whom she met in Barney Rapp's band.<ref name="CNNFastFacts">Template:Cite news</ref> Jorden was violent, had schizophrenia, and died by suicide years after their divorce. When Day became pregnant and refused to have an abortion, he beat her in an attempt to force a miscarriage. Their son was born Terrence Paul Jorden in 1942, and he adopted the surname of Melcher when he was adopted by Day's third husband.

Her second marriage was to George William Weidler (1926–1989), a saxophonist and brother of actress Virginia Weidler, from March 30, 1946, to May 31, 1949.<ref name="CNNFastFacts"/> Weidler and Day met again several years later during a brief reconciliation and he introduced her to Christian Science.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Day married American film producer Martin Melcher (1915–1968), who produced many of her films, on April 3, 1951, her 29th birthday, and the marriage lasted until he died in April 1968.<ref name="CNNFastFacts"/> Melcher adopted Day's son Terry.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As Day and Melcher were both Christian Scientists, she refused to visit a doctor for some time after experiencing symptoms that might have suggested cancer.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Following Melcher's death, Day separated from the Church of Christ, Scientist and grew close to charismatic Protestants such as Kathryn Kuhlman, although she never lost interest in Christian Science teaching and practice.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Day's fourth marriage was to Barry Comden (1935–2009) from April 14, 1976, until April 2, 1982.<ref name=ComdenDeath>Template:Cite news</ref> He was the maître d'hôtel at one of Day's favorite restaurants. He knew of her great love of dogs and endeared himself to her by giving her a bag of meat scraps and bones as she left the restaurant. He later complained that Day cared more for her "animal friends" than for him.<ref name="ComdenDeath"/>

Later life

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After her retirement from films, Day lived in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. She had many pets and adopted stray animals.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She was a lifelong Republican.Template:Sfn<ref>"Doris Day was a lifelong Republican who dated Ronald Reagan" Washington Examiner. May 13, 2019.</ref>

In a rare interview with The Hollywood Reporter on April 4, 2019, the day after her 97th birthday, Day talked about her work on the Doris Day Animal Foundation, founded in 1978. Asked to name the favorite of her films, she answered with Calamity Jane: "I was such a tomboy growing up, and she was such a fun character to play. Of course, the music was wonderful, too—'Secret Love,' especially, is such a beautiful song."<ref name="HR2019">Laurie Brookins, “Doris Day, in Rare Interview, Talks Turning 97, Her Animal Foundation and Rock Hudson: 'I Miss Him'”, The Hollywood Reporter. April 3, 2019. (Retrieved April 10, 2019.)</ref>

To commemorate her birthday, Day's fans gathered in late March each year for a three-day party in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. The event was also a fundraiser for her animal foundation. During the 2019 event, there was a special screening of her film Pillow Talk (1959) to celebrate its 60th anniversary. Speaking about the film, Day stated that she "had such fun working with my pal, Rock. We laughed our way through three films we made together and remained great friends. I miss him."<ref name="HR2019" />

Death

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Day died of pneumonia at her home in Carmel Valley, California, on May 13, 2019, at the age of 97. Her death was announced by the Doris Day Animal Foundation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As requested by Day, the foundation announced that there would be no funeral services, grave marker or other public memorials.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Filmography

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Notable films

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Discography

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Studio albums

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See also

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References

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Sources

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