Doris Day’s 100th birthday is celebrated today with Move Over Darling at BBC4, his colleague revealed that ‘he wanted to propose her’ even though he broke her ribs accidently on set.
Garner had worked in Golden Age of Hollywood, with the heady likes of Marilyn Monroe, Ava Gardner and Lana Turner but, according to him, two actresses shone far more brightly. The Silver Screen veteran stated: “I had to play love scenes with a lot of screen ladies, but of all the women I’ve had to be i*****e with on the screen, I’d rate two as s*****t by far – Doris and Julie Andrews, both of them notorious girls next door.” And he explained why.
Garner further added: “Playing a love scene with either of them is duck soup because they communicate something s*** which means I also let myself go somewhat and that really makes a love scene work.”
While talking about Day: “Doris didn’t play s***, she didn’t act s***, she was s***. And then she could take s**** scene and make you laugh. Which is better in the b*****m than a lot of things. And Doris was a joy to work with. Everything she did seemed effortless. She’s so sweet and so professional – she made everyone around her look good. I think Doris is a very s*** lady who doesn’t know how sexy she is. That’s an integral part of her charm… I don’t think she could have had the success she’s had if she didn’t have this s*** whirlpool frothing around underneath her All-American-girl exterior.”
He added, “We didn’t see each other much over the following years, but we’ve stayed friends because we talk on the phone regularly. I don’t know how, because Jim hates the telephone. I usually have to call him. “Can’t you pick up a phone?” I say, but he just grumbles.”
She have also described the terrifying moment when her co-star broke two of her ribs on set while filming Move Over Darling.
Doris said: “We had fun. He’s a marvelous actor. He’s very real when he talks to you. He’s so funny and so nice, I just love him. Even though he broke two of my ribs. Jim, if we don’t speak for a while, I forgive you for breaking my ribs. Both of them. Don’t give it another thought.”
The shooting scenes of Garner felt heavy bandages under her costume and discovered he had cracked two of her ribs when he grabbed her the day before.
Instead of the accident, Doris always seemed to have good luck with her on-screen husbands than her real life. In 1963’s Move Over Darling was another box office smash for Day,
