One of the best known actresses in the United States in the mid to late twentieth century was Doris Day.
On April 3, 1922, she was born in Ohio. A 1937 automobile injury left her with a severely injured right leg. Von Kappelhoff performed in an amateur competition for a Cincinnati radio station. She became a regular performer onWLW after winning the competition.
Barney Rapp, Bob Crosby, and Les Brown were some of the popular big bands. Von Kappelhoff was suggested a new stage name by Rapp. Doris chose Doris Day. She took her last name from a song that she had won several years before. Day enjoyed two number one hits, “Sentimental Journey” and “My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time”, while singing with Brown’s band.
When she embarked on a solo career in 1946, Day remained a big band singer. She starred in Romance on the High Seas in 1948. During the 1950s and 1960’s, Day starred in a number of films, including The Man Who Knew Too Much, Please Do not Eat the Daisies, and With Six You. She was nominated for an Academy Award. She won an Oscar for her performance in The Man Who Knew Too Much. The Doris Day Show moved to weekly network television in 1968. The show was in production until 1973.
Day became a spokesman for animal rights after the completion of the show. She started several nonprofits, including the Doris Day Animal League. She was against the treatment of animals in laboratories. The Presidential Medal of Freedom was awarded to Day in 2004.