Legendary Hollywood actor and singer Doris Day died of pneumonia at her home in Carmel Valley in California on Monday. She was 97.
“Day had been in excellent physical health for her age, until recently contracting a serious case of pneumonia, resulting in her death,” the Doris Day Animal Foundation said in a statement on Monday. “She was surrounded by a few close friends as she passed.”
Day was famed for her “wholesome, girl-next-door appeal” in several box office hits. During her three decades of work in film, she sang and danced, as well as acted. “Her 39 films – many still incredibly popular and shown frequently today – stand as a testament to her talent,” the statement said. Though she never won an Oscar, she was nominated once, in 1960 for Pillow Talk. She won the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004 and a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement in 2008.
She was born on April 3, 1922 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Though she initially wanted to become a dancer, she had to abandon the dream after an accident, according to BBC. She began her professional singing career at 15, and had her first hit, Sentimental Journey. That and Que Sera Sera were her biggest singing hits. She was also known for films such as That Touch of Mink, Young at Heart and Love Me or Leave Me.
Since the 1970s, Day focused her energies on the Doris Day Animal Foundation.
She wished to have no funeral or memorial service and no grave marker, the foundation said in its statement.
Here are some reactions from her co-workers and celebrities on Twitter:
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