Off The Record
This Legendary Actress Never Wanted A Funeral, Memorial, Or Grave Marking After She Died
Doris Day, a legendary performer and one of the greatest stars of the Hollywood Golden Age, passed away at the age of 97 a while ago.
She made nearly 30 films, recorded over 650 songs, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her contributions to the music and cinema industries between 1947 and 1967.
Despite the fact that the beloved actress and singer passed away in 2019, it was just revealed by a close friend that she did not wish to have a funeral, memorial service, or cemetery monument. Scroll below find out the reason why….
Doris Day’s talent, compassion, and humility are just a few of the many qualities that have earned her universal acclaim.
Doris had a successful acting career spanning 50 years, during which she earned widespread acclaim. Pillow Talk, Love Me or Leave Me, and The Man Who Knew Too Much were just a few of the films where she made a name for herself as an actress.
A total of one child was born to the 97-year-four old’s marriages. Day’s son from her first marriage to Al Jorden, Terry Mulcher, died of cancer same year (2004).
On top of his acting career, Day was a well-known animal rights activist. She was very generous and helped those without a voice…
As if that weren’t enough, Doris also won a Grammy for her singing.
Three of her songs, Sentimental Journey, Secret Love, and Que Sera, Sera, were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and the Doris Day Animal Foundation was founded in her honor.
Doris Day passed away in her Carmel Valley, California, home in 2019. Doris Day Animal Foundation, the organization she founded, announced her death from pneumonia and said that per her wishes, she will not be buried or memorialized in any way.
Instead of burying her, her ashes were scattered.
Bob Bashara, a close friend and her manager, said that she didn’t want to talk about the possibility of a funeral since she had a hard time dealing with mortality.
Her last requests were not made without good cause.
“She didn’t like death, and she couldn’t be with her animals if they had to be put down.
“I’d say we need to provide for her dogs [after she died], and she’d say, ‘I don’t want to think about it’ and she said, ‘Well, you just take care of them,’” recalls Bashara.
“She had several when her will was written, and she wanted to be sure they were taken care of. She didn’t like to talk about the dogs dying.”
In the early 1970s, Day became a vocal proponent of animal rights, publicly denouncing the fashion trend of fur coats and establishing the Doris Day Animal Foundation.
By auctioning off over a thousand of her belongings in 2020, she was able to contribute $3 million to the cause. She went so far as to help found a facility in Texas where abused and unwanted equines may be rehomed.
Day converted to Christianity after marrying Martin Melcher, a producer; she had been raised a Catholic.
When she was 16, she married trombonist Al Jorden, and they had one son, Terrence “Terry” Paul Jorden. Jorden became Terrence Paul Melcher after being adopted by Day’s third husband, film mogul Martin Melcher.
Following Melcher’s death in 1968, Day “drifted away” from organized religion, but remained “a spiritual person,” as Bashara put it.
“She believed in God, and she thought her voice was God-given,” he says. “She would say, ‘God gave me a voice, and I just used it.’”
Day left the acting business in the early 1970s, only to return for two TV series. Later, in 1985, she had her own talk program, Doris Day’s Best Friends, which aired for a year on the Christian Broadcasting Network.
Her friend and manager Bashara says he remains unsure as to why Day was reluctant to have a funeral, but explains, “I think it was because she was a very shy person.”
For a one-off TV series on Warner Bros. TV, Kaley Cuoco will play Doris Day.
Kaley Cuoco, star of the show The Flight Attendant and executive producer of the show, is developing a limited series based on the A.E. Published in 1976, Hotchner’s Doris Day: Her Own Story is the story of the actress. In this, Cuoco is the main attraction.
After the success of “Flight Attendant,” Berlanti Production is teaming up with Warner Bros., Norman Productions, and Cuoco’s Yes. There is currently no active network connection.
After the death of her third (of four) husband, she was left with a mountain of debt; nonetheless, she was able to avoid financial ruin because to her career in television, which she loathed. In the 1970s, Day began speaking up on behalf of animals. Cuoco, like Day, is an advocate for animal rights and care.
The Doris Day initiative is part of Cuoco’s overall exclusive deal with Yes, Norman and Warner Bros. Television Group to create new original programming. In 2019, she signed a new, exclusive, multi-year, overall arrangement with the Studio to continue working together.
From the messages she got, he said, Day knew her followers adored her. She just didn’t know why.
“She never let her celebrity affect her and who she was, and she was always the little girl from Cincinnati who was extraordinarily talented and went out in the world and did what she loved to do despite herself,” he says.
Her body was cremated, and her remains were dispersed.
The majority of her estate went to charity.
She will be remembered fondly for all time as a famous actress and singer. Doris Day, you may finally rest in peace.
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