We at the Watchers were saddened to hear of the passing of classic Hollywood screen legend Doris Day, who died on May 13th 2019, at the age of 97.
In a screen career spanning 25 years, she became associated with the wholesome all-American girl-next-door archetype, even name-checked in Grease as someone 'not brought up that way'. She will be remembered for her on-screen partnership with Rock Hudson, starring with him in three films, but there was so much more to her career than just being 'Miss Goody Two-shoes, America's Virgin'.
Born Doris Mary Ann (von) Kappelhoff in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1922 (not 1924, as she originally thought), she originally wanted to become a dancer but a nasty car accident which resulted in a broken leg meant that wasn't possible. Instead, she began a singing career at 15 and her first hit- 'Sentimental Journey' (recorded in 1945)- would become one of her most famous songs. Bandleader Barney Rapp, who signed her, suggested that she change her name, as Kappelhoff was too long- she took inspiration from the song 'Day By Day' by Helen Forrest... and the rest is history. Her singing career would encompass 29 studio albums (the last of which was released in 2011), three Grammy Hall of Fame Awards, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Her first film role was in Romance On The High Seas (1948), replacing a pregnant Betty Hutton. Other light musical comedies followed including My Dream Is Yours (1949), Tea For Two (1950), On Moonlight Bay (1951) and By The Light Of The Silvery Moon (1953). In amongst all this cotton-candy fluff stands an outlier- but a sign that she was a more capable actress than a lot were giving her credit for- when, in 1951, she played the wife of a KKK member in Storm Warning, opposite Ginger Rogers, Ronald Reagan, and Steve Cochran.
One of the films she will be best remembered for is Calamity Jane (1953). Day considered this the favourite of all of her films, and her exuberant performance crackles throughout. As the tomboyish scout who butts heads with Wild Bill Hickock (Howard Keel), she's superb- but one particular moment stands out. That is, of course, her performance of 'Secret Love' (the song that would win the film its only Oscar). The emotion in it would bring tears to a glass eye, and the song has often been read as a coded love letter to another woman (Katie Brown, played by Allyn McLerie) and is sometimes considered a 'torch song' by the LGBT+ community. Famously, Day recorded the film in less than fifteen minutes- a true one-take-wonder.
Another remarkable Day performance comes in Love Me Or Leave Me (1955), the biopic of real-life nightclub singer Ruth Etting. Discovered by Chicago gangster Marty Snyder (James Cagney), Etting's career soared- but their tempestuous marriage, and Snyder's violent and controlling behaviour, became too much and they parted. Snyder would then shoot Etting's new lover. It's a role that absolutely shows Day's acting chops to the full but it was Cagney who got the Oscar nomination for the film.
Her next film was The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), Alfred Hitchcock's remake of his own earlier 1934 film. Paired with James Stewart, Day's performance as the kidnapped child's mother drawn into an assassination plot is one of her finest. There's an authenticity to her performance which is beguiling; indeed, there's a story that she was concerned that Hitchcock was paying more attention to technical matters than her performance and, when she finally confronted him, was told that if she wasn't giving him what he wanted, he would have to direct her!. Then there's the little matter of a song that she sings: 'Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Será, Será)'. She initially dismissed it as 'a forgettable children's song'. Well, that forgettable children's song won the film an Oscar, and would become the biggest hit of her musical career. She would eventually use it as her signature song.
In 1959, she would make her first film with Rock Hudson: Pillow Talk. Day shines as Jan Morrow, an interior designer frustrated by her neighbour Brad's use of the telephone party line to flirt with his girlfriends meaning she cannot use it for business. When they unexpectedly meet- Brad knows who Jan is, but Jan doesn't know who Brad is- Brad passes himself off as a Texas rancher, and the two hit it off. Screwball shenanigans ensue. Hudson and Day have a wonderful rapport together, and superb supporting performances by Tony Randall and Thelma Ritter add to the fun. Day was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for Pillow Talk- which would be her only Oscar nod- although she lost to Simone Signoret for Room At The Top. Day and Hudson would go on to star together in two more films (Lover Come Back [1961] and Send Me No Flowers [1964]). Her friendship with Hudson lasted for decades after, and she was supportive of him when it was revealed he had HIV.
As the 1960s began, Day continued to star in sophisticated battle-of-the-sexes comedies, such as That Touch Of Mink (1962) opposite Cary Grant,and Move Over, Darling (1963) with James Garner (which boasts one of Day's most sensual title songs). However, movie tastes change, and- despite Day being the number one box office draw for four years (1960, 1962-1964)- audiences were finding it more difficult to connect with her America's-Sweetheart image. Films like The Glass Bottom Boat (1966) and Where Were You When The Lights Went Out? (1968) really didn't stretch Day's acting talents, and she made her last film in 1968- With Six You Get Eggroll, a blended-family comedy-drama which suffered in comparison to the recently-released Yours, Mine And Ours. Day reputedly turned down two major film roles during the 1960s- Maria in The Sound Of Music (1965), stating she was too American to play a nun from Salzburg, and Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate (1967), as she found the story 'vulgar and offensive'. Julie Andrews and Anne Bancroft took the respective roles- and the Best Actress Oscar nominations that ended up coming with them.
1968 turned out to be a year that Day would probably have liked to forget. Her third husband, Martin Melcher, died suddenly. Without her knowledge, Melcher (who was also her manager at the time) had signed her for a TV series. Were that not bad enough, after Melcher's death, it was discovered that he had squandered virtually all of her money. Broke, and deeply in debt, Day honoured the contract and The Doris Day Show ran for 128 episodes between 1968-1973. The show changed formats throughout its five-year run- moving from the family ranch to San Francisco, with Day herself going from secretary to a magazine publisher to sole staff writer for a magazine. It was a ratings success, but at the end of the fifth season with CBS primed to renew it, Day cancelled her own show, stating in a press conference that she didn't wish to continue working on it and felt she had done 'all that could be done with this material'. Some top-quality shade there...
From thereon, Day retired from acting to focus on animal welfare, something that had always been important to her, setting up the Doris Day Animal Foundation. Settled in Carmel Valley, California, Day contented herself looking after the animals on her ranch, turning down invites for work or acclaim; a life-long fear of flying meant that she wouldn't attend many events. She turned down tributes from the American Film Institute (AFI) and the Kennedy Center Honors as both required attendance in person. She also repeatedly turned down the offer of an Honorary Academy Award. However, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004 for her services to acting and charity. In the Wham! song 'Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go', Geiorge Michael sings to his paramour 'You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day'. That's a good description of her. A sunny, likeable presence- you would struggle to find someone with a bad word to say about her- whose loss will be keenly felt. You really won't see her like again.
Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this very sad time.
Rhys, Matt, & Tez
The Watchers
