Doris Day

Doris Day is a first-rate entertainer remarkable for her outstanding songs and acting roles in the showbiz community. She is a singer, an animal welfare activist, and an actress who made her way to the spotlight in the year 1936. Between 1951 and 1966, Day was one of the top ten singers of the 20th century, having launched her career as a big band singer. She got into acting by starring in the 1948 film Romance on the High Seas, which successfully turned her career around for good and eventually inspired her to become a motion picture actress for the next twenty years.

What is Doris Day known for?

• An American singer, animal welfare activist, and actress.
• Ranked as the No. 1 female vocalist 9 times between 1949 – 1958.
• Her song “Que Sera, Sera” in the film “The Man Who Knew Too Much” in 1956.

Where is the birthplace of Doris Day?

Back to her early life, Doris Day was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. She was born to William Joseph Kappelhoff, a choirmaster and music teacher, and Alma Sophia, a housewife. The actress’s birth name is Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff while all of her grandparents were German immigrants. Her parents separated many years ago due to her father’s alleged infidelity. The singer-actress is the youngest of three siblings; she had an older brother called Richard who died before her birth and another brother called Paul who she is two to three years younger than.

Doris’ initial plan was to become a dancer but her chances of becoming a professional dancer blew up after a car accident injured her right leg on October 13, 1937. As for her education, she attended the prestigious Western Hills University High School.

When did Doris Day pursue her music career?

• Doris Day began her professional career as a vocalist on the WLW radio program ‘Carlin’s Carnival’. Her radio performances attracted the attention of Barney Rapp, who was looking for a girl vocalist and appointed her.
• She adopted the stage name Doris Day in 1939 while working for Rapp. She, later on, worked with Les Brown and released the song ‘Sentimental Journey’ in 1945 which became very popular and established her career as a successful singer.
• She performed many songs with Brown’s band and became a much-loved voice by the late 1940s. In 1947, she met the composer Jule Styne and his partner Sammy Cahn, who asked her to audition for a role in the film ‘Romance on the High Seas’.
• The movie ‘Romance on the High Seas’ (1948) not only marked her debut as a film actress but also provided her with her first No. 1 hit recording as a soloist, ‘It’s Magic’. By the early 1950s, she became one of America’s most sought-after actresses and singers and was a darling of the masses.
• Doris Day co-starred with James Cagney in the 1955 biographical film, ‘Love Me or Leave Me’, which was based on the life story of Ruth Etting, a singer who rose from dancer to movie star. The film garnered critical and commercial success, becoming Doris Day’s biggest hit so far.
• She gave one of her most memorable performances as an actress in 1959 when she starred in the movie ‘Pillow Talk’, co-starring Rock Hudson and Tony Randall. She went on to star in two more films with Hudson and Randall, ‘Lover Come Back’ (1961) and ’Send Me No Flowers’ (1964).
• Her success streak continued throughout the 1960s and she appeared in several hit films such as ‘The Ballad of Josie’ (1967), ‘Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?’ (1968), and ‘With Six You Get Eggroll’ (1968). She decided to retire from films in 1968.
• Her third husband died in April 1968 and Doris Day discovered that he along with his business partner had squandered her earnings, leaving her deeply in debt. Thus she had to continue working and started appearing in the television series, ‘The Doris Day Show’ even though she hated the idea of working on television.
• The first episode of ‘The Doris Day Show’ aired in September 1968, and the show became very successful. It ran for five seasons till 1973. She largely retired from acting after ‘The Doris Day Show’, though she continued to make sporadic appearances on television.
• In April 2014, Day made an unexpected public appearance to attend the annual Doris Day Animal Foundation benefit. The benefit raises money for her Animal Foundation.

Does Doris Day win the awards?

Doris has been nominated for several awards and has won many awards in her career. Some of her notable honors are listed below:

• In 2004, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush for her achievements in the entertainment industry.
• She received a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement in Music in 2008 and is the recipient of three Grammy Hall of Fame Awards (1998, 1999, and 2012).
• In January 2012, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association presented Doris Day with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

To whom Doris Day was married?

Reflecting on her personal life, Doris was married four times in her life which failed marriages as well. The actress-singer married her first husband in March 1941, his name is Al Jorden. However, their marital relationship didn’t last as long as the couple divorced in February 1943. Day entered her second marriage on the 30th day of March 1946 with saxophonist George William Weidler, who happens to be the brother of American actress Virginia Weidler. Like her first marriage, this one only survived for a few years, as the actress and her husband called it quits on May 31, 1949.

Doris got married for the third time at the age of 29. This time, she found love in the arms of movie producer Martin Melcher and their wedding took place on 3rd April 1951 lasting until April 1968 when Melcher died. Until the time of his death, he was a practicing Christian Scientist along with his wife. Day’s fourth marriage was to Barry Comden, who was a maître d’hôtel at one of Day’s favorite restaurants at the time. Their marital relationship survived from April 14, 1976, to April 2, 1982. It was later revealed that Barry filed for divorce from Doris because she cared more for her animals than him.

From her first marriage, She had a son Terrence Paul Jorden, later known as Terry Melcher. On 13th May 2019, she said goodbye to the world at the age of 97. She died due to pneumonia. Her death was announced by her charity, the Doris Day Animal Foundation.

What is the reason behind Doris Day’s death?

Doris Day died on May 13, 2019. Her death was announced on her animal foundation website. The statement read;

“Doris Day passed away early this morning at her Carmel Valley home, having celebrated her 97th birthday on April 3 of this year. Nearly 300 fans gathered in Carmel last month to celebrate Day’s birthday. The day had been in excellent physical health for her age, until recently contracting a serious case of pneumonia, resulting in her death. She was surrounded by a few close friends as she passed.”

According to the statement released on her animal foundation website, Doris died of pneumonia.

How much is Doris Day’s net worth?

Doris Day performed for the most part of her life, but it was after she embarked on a solo career and recorded over 650 songs from 1947 to 1967 that her amazing talent finally brought her to a wider audience. Being a talented actress, she also received her shot at fame in the early 1960s after featuring in several Hollywood productions. From her real estate business and mixed career as an entertainer, Day has accumulated a huge fortune estimated at $200 million USD prior to her death. However, her salary is yet to be disclosed. In the case of disclosure, we will let you know.

How tall is Doris Day?

Observing her body statistics, Doris stands a height of 5 feet 7 inches and weighs around 62 kg. Similarly, She has a pair of blue eyes and blonde hair color. She used a 36B bra size, 10 (US) shoe size, and 6 (US) dress sizes. Further, her body measures 38-26-37 inches.