QUE SERA, SERA
THE FILM ICON, WHO TURNED 96 THIS MONTH, IS STILL ACTIVE AND PUTTING ENERGY INTO HER PASSIONS
Ageless Doris Day at 96
Doris Day is as enamored with her fans as they are with her. “The amount of fan mail she still gets is crazy,” her friend and biographer
Pierre Patrick tells the Weekly. “When I was at her house for her birthday, there were bags of mail in the garage and she’s great at answering it all.” Even when her admirers get a little wild, the legendary actress and animal advocate welcomes them with open arms.
“If a feral cat wanders on her property,” says Bob Bashara, Doris’ business manager and close friend, “she’s bound to take it in and care for it.”
It’s just one of the things that makes her so happy.
“I’ve been blessed with good health, wonderful pals, lovely fans and so many precious four-leggers,” tells Doris.
“What more can I ask for?” she asked the Weekly on the eve of her 96th birthday earlier this month, on April 3. Doris’ positivity is contagious, as proven by the star’s three-day celebration that’s now tradition in Carmel, California, her home since 1981.
“People come in from all over the world and bring her gifts,” Pierre beams, and all the proceeds from the festivities benefit the Doris Day Animal Foundation, a passion project she’s run for four decades. In fact, Doris refuses to slow down or be limited by her age.
“There’s a little Doris Day empire and it’s very, very busy,” Pierre says of his friend’s indomitable spirit.
A beloved star of 42 films, such as Calamity Jane and Pillow Talk, Doris was also a top-selling recording artist from 1949 to 1967 with hits such as Whatever Will Be,
Will Be (Que Sera, Sera) and Everybody Loves a Lover. When she left Hollywood, though, her priorities shifted from show business to devoting her life to animal rescue and welfare.
“I loved my singing and acting career, but my greatest accomplishment is the important work I do for my two charities,” she says of her foundation and the Doris Day Animal League.
The work is her fountain of youth. “She’s very healthy,” Pierre assures. “Doris sleeps well and eats well, and her life is really focused now on taking care of her animal groups,” he says, adding that her foundation has a scholarship for veterinary students named for her “and she reviews
many applications for it throughout the year.”
“I’m driving five hours to see her for her birthday,” Jackie Joseph, Doris’ former co-star and friend, tells the Weekly.
A lifelong animal advocate, Doris was dubbed the “Dog Catcher of Beverly Hills” during her years in Los Angeles. While filming 1956’s The Man Who Knew Too Much with James Stewart, America’s sweetheart got tough with director Alfred Hitchcock. “She didn’t like the way the animals were being treated [on set],” Bob shares, so she gave an ultimatum – things change or she walks.
When she wasn’t working, she’d bike around town and rescue strays to find them homes. Her menagerie is what led her 480km away to Carmel, where she could have more space for her animals. Today, she still surrounds herself with furry creatures. “My household is full of dogs and cats,” she says.
Doris adores her small circle of human friends too and they visit her often at home. “She loves to go out to the ocean,” Bob says, “and she loves singing. She sings around the house a lot and her voice is terrific! We keep telling her she could record again if she wanted to. But she’ll say, ‘Oh, I’m rusty!’”
Her voice can still be heard in many current film and TV projects, however, and the legend is actively involved with choosing which ones get her stamp of approval. “Licencing is a big deal,” Pierre tells. “Her song Dream a Little Dream was just featured in I, Tonya, and
It’s Magic was featured in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.”
Doris admits, “It’s amazing to me how often I still get offers to appear in various projects and to record.” Adds an insider, “She’s flattered producers try to lure her out of retirement all the time and there have been offers for her to guest on everything from Black-ish to Mom.”
Her decision to stay out of the limelight is one she doesn’t second guess. “I have no regrets,” Doris reveals of her bold decision to choose animals over acting so many years ago.
As kind-hearted as she is, life has often treated her cruelly. Three times divorced, Doris’ third husband, Martin Melcher, passed away in 1968, leaving his wife shocked to find that he’d squandered away her fortune. And her only son, Terry – from her first marriage to trombonist Al Jorden and later adopted by Martin – died from cancer in 2004 at the age of 62.
“My son was the love of my life. We talked every day and I miss him very much,” says Doris of the painful loss. Still, she refuses to let grief consume her.
“We can’t change the past,” she insists. “I think you have to get through the bad times to appreciate the good things in life. I’ve had my share of both and I always say, I’m like one of those dolls with the round bottom – if life deals you a blow, you just have to bounce right back!”
It’s a philosophy that’s served
her well and won her respect from some famous fans.
“Clint Eastwood is her neighbour in Carmel Valley and he’s signed a few things that will be sold at her birthday auction,” Pierre says. “He was the one who gave her the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes in 1989. He drove her to Beverly Hills and that was her last big LA appearance.”
During her speech that night, Doris said she was humbled by the honour and the adoration. “I don’t understand it, but I love it and I’m very grateful for it,” adding, “It’s been a wonderful life and I’m not finished yet. I think the best is yet to come!”
Nearly three decades later, she’s striving to live up to that promise. “I’m so proud of the strides we’ve made – and continue to make – in the animal welfare community,” she says of the noble way she uses her stardom. Lea Price, director of communication for Doris’ foundation, tells the Weekly, “It means so much to Doris that her fans come to Carmel from all over the world to help raise money for the foundation.
”Doris admits she’s never been much for birthday celebrations, so using hers for charity is the perfect way for her to connect with her fans.”
“It means more to me than I can say,” she says of their generosity and support. “And I love them all.”
‘ It’s been a wonderful life and I’m not finished yet. I think the best is yet to come’