Doris Day (1924–2019,) originally Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff, was an American singer and film actress. Her performances in 1950s musicals and 1960s sex comedies made her a Hollywood megastar.
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Day started her career as a strong-voiced contralto, recording her hit Que Sera, Sera (“Whatever Will Be, Will Be”) for the Alfred Hitchcock film The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956,) in which she also played the lead.
Day then made the musicals Calamity Jane (1953,) Young at Heart (1954,) and The Pajama Game (1957.) Her screen persona—that of a cheerful, freckle-faced girl-next-door with an understated strength of character—came to exemplify the 1950s’ American woman.
Day was well-known for playing chaste roles in such movies as Teacher’s Pet (1958,) Pillow Talk (1959,) Lover Come Back (1961,) That Touch of Mink (1962,) The Thrill of It All (1963,) and Send Me No Flowers (1964.)
Day retreated from Hollywood in late 1960. She turned to animal-welfare activism and founded the Doris Day Animal Foundation in 1978. She occasionally appeared on television and in The Doris Day Show (1968–73.)
The autobiography, Doris Day, Her Own Story (1976,) exposed much of the turmoil beneath her peppy public personality.
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Doris Day
The really frightening thing about middle age is the knowledge that you’ll grow out of it.
—Doris Day
Topics: Age, Worry, Death, Aging
If it’s true that men are such beasts, this must account for the fact that most women are animal lovers.
—Doris Day
Topics: Men
People hear what they see.
—Doris Day
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