Screenland Plus TV-Land (Nov 1953 - May 1955)

barrassed, it really was so wonderfully charming and nobody minded." She laughed again at the memory, but it was a laughter born from warm understanding and not derision. Then suddenly her whole mood changed. Her sparkling eyes became serious and she fixed her gaze directly on me. "There is absolutely no romance between Gary Cooper and me. There could not be. He has a lovely wife. I haven't met her, but everybody says she is lovely. He has a daughter of whom he is extremely proud. I did meet Maria and with tremendous pleasure. Gary and I are friends, good friends, I hope. But there is no romance." She spoke the words slowly, meaningfully. I demanded to know if a romance would be possible if Gary were not married. Miss Pascal was startled by the question. She looked away from me for a moment and there was a pause. Then, speaking softly, she said, "1 just don't know what to say. I've never thought about it. But I guess I could not absolutely dismiss the possibility of a romance with Gary if he were not married. Who knows what the future will bring? Or what will happen in life? Or what the heart will want?" Who knows what the future will bring? Does Gary? Or Rocky? I saw Gary and Rocky in Rome, where Gary was the recipient of one of the greatest public ovations ever accorded a visiting movie star. Both looked wonderful, and publicly, at least, seemed as happy and gay as newlyweds. and inconsistent. She's the one who makes or breaks the rules. Her rules. Her personal publicists rarely know where they stand, or what stand to take. They can't keep up with her taboos. Like the time she decided, "pictures in bathing One moment Doris is warm and ingratiating; the next she's in another world. But close friends have known for years that their marriage has been hovering near divorce and that both of them have been profoundly distressed by it. Three important factors have so far kept it going: their great love for Maria, their deeply-rooted religious faith, and the respect they have for one another. Some of these friends explain that though Gary and Rocky desperately want to bring contentment and peace to the other, Hollywood life has somehow wrung the meaning out of their marriage. They explain further that Rocky's coming to Europe had been planned long before the CooperPascal headlines began, as a sort of trial vacation to restore that indescribable essence which marriage needs for success. Did their experiment work? Probably not. Will another effort be made for the sake of Maria? Everybody hopes so. If not, is there a place for Giselle Pascal in Gary Cooper's life? The French actress refuses to rule it out specifically, and though Gary also insists that he and Miss Pascal are just good friends, he too has made it a point not to commit himself irrevocably on the possibility of a more meaningful relationship between them. At this crucial point, none of the three principals in this human drama has an inflexible idea as to what the outcome will be. Or where the flights of the heart will take them. Gary, Rocky and Giselle are three intelligent human beings. Each has the good sense to know that life must very often be a compromise. Each is prepared to accept the final decision with the hope that it will bring happiness to all. end suits are undignified, unless you're on a beach." Like another time, she said: "interviewers have over-publicized my marriage. Magazines have used too many home-sittings and pictures illustrating my personal life. I don't want any more." All future requests, therefore, had to be refused. Editors fussed and writers fumed. But when the family was offered a weekend in Las Vegas in exchange for a layout of publicity pictures, she had a change of heart and mind. They not only posed all over the place, she posed in a bathing suit, too! Weeks went by before her studio succeeded in pacifying the injured parties and smoothing down ruffled feelings of those who believed they had been "taken." In the midst of the chaos, guess who couldn't have been more surprised! Her friendships are flexible. She waxes warm and ingratiating, then suddenly without provocation (or so it seems) she transports herself into another world. Says a prominent actor who's worked with her in pictures and on radio and who knows: "Doris Day is wonderful — when you can reach her. But sometimes she's so preoccupied she doesn't even know you're there. She'll dash into her dressing room, slam the door and you wonder what's got into her. Several minutes later she's so charming and sweet, you hate yourself for having questioned her motives!" She has a quiet way of getting her way. She got her way and separated the team of Doris Day and Gordon MacRae, when she made "April In Paris" with Ray Bolger. When she and her jormer favorite dance director, LeRoy Prinz, disagreed on a dance, they shot the number her way when she returned to the studio — several days later. Jack Donohue, who is her current favorite dance director, will direct her next in "Lucky Me." Rumors to the contrary, she insists there was never a feud with Gordon MacRae. His nonchalant indifference on their sets was obviously annoying, especially to her. But even when he played golf on his lunch hour and held up production, instead of telling him off, she told him nothing. Instead, she sent word to the front office. For her next picture, she thought, it would be nice to have a tall leading man "for a change." When they cast her in "Calamity Jane," the studio asked to borrow Howard Keel from MGM — and got him. Several months later, Gordon asked for his release from Warner Bros, and got what he wanted, too. She still insists there was no Day-MacRae feud! Her reluctance to give her own time for benefits and other worthy causes, makes her a target for criticism. She has her reasons, that perfectionist bugaboo for one, which makes impromptu singing next to impossible. On one occasion she did agree to appear, but everyone waited in vain. One side says it was deliberate. Her side insists there was a misunderstanding and she wasn't notified. It's certainly possible. Her change in attitude and personality stems from her third marriage, studio associates insist. What is considered to be a "hands off" attitude on the part of Marty Melcher, is a constant source of annoyance. General instructions are always to "clear through Marty" on anything pertaining to Doris. He is her manager; her brilliant career and her great new contract (they say he'll produce her pictures) are the direct results of his efforts and wisdom. At any rate, something or someone has obviously influenced a basically friendly and expansive person. Hollywood doesn't like Doris Day because in remaining remote and dispassioned from a great industry and its people, her sense of loyalty seems to have become remote, too. In return for the greatest rewards a town can offer a stranger at the gates, time, talent and allout interest should be reasonably available. Or so it's generally believed by those who add up the score. MEG MORGAN What Hollywood Likes About Doris Day! Hollywood likes Doris Day because she's never gone Hollywood. She's retained her original warmth and enthusiasm, there isn't a neurotic bone in her body, she'd rather laugh than eat and she loves to eat! She's perfect proof that it's possible to remain soft and feminine and still acquire Hollywood fame, fortune and happiness — without resorting to ex 55 WHAT THEY LIKE AND DISLIKE ABOUT DORIS [CONTINUED FROM PACE 29]