Doris met fellow actor Rock Hudson when the pair worked together on the 1959 film, “Pillow Talk”. The two stars hit it off instantly, and they lit the screen up with their combined energy. She later told People that it was easy to get along with Rock, and that he had a great sense of humor.
Critics and the public alike were invested in this on-screen partnership, and they were ready for more – and they didn’t disappoint.
That same year, she nabbed the role of Ruth Etting, in "Love Me or Leave Me". The film would end up becoming the biggest hit of her career. Day even said herself that it was her best performance. And she wasn’t the only one. The Academy granted the film multiple awards, including the award for Best Writing and Best Music.
She is widely praised for her work in "Calamity Jane." Day quickly rose to become the queen of musical comedy. And everyone in Hollywood was dying to work with her.
In 1956, Day worked on the Alfred Hitchcock film, "The Man Who Knew Too Much". Until that point, she had only been doing musical comedies, so it was uncharted territory for the actress.
Of course, she still sang in the film, including one song, “Que Sera, Sera,” which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Day and Hudson were back at it a few years after their successful first film. This time, it was in 1961’s "Lover Come Back", directed by Delbert Mann. They appeared in one more film together in 1964, before the tragic news of his AIDS diagnosis got around.
The actor passed away in 1985. Day would later recall in her interview with People that she believed the reason people liked them together so much is because “they could see how much we liked each other.”
Although Day’s career lasted for decades, the shift in Hollywood’s demand would likely mean the end of her popularity. After all, here she was, the all-American girl who was sweet and naive. But as the Golden Age started to give way to a new tide, the demand for that type of character started to fade away.
Unfortunately, she would find herself dealing with much more pressing issues.