Flashback: ‘Pillow Talk,’ Starring Doris Day And Rock Hudson, Turns 65

A number of the most famous actors and actresses in the world were performing on the stage of the Palm Springs High School auditorium in the month of March in the year 1949. Bob Hope, who was serving as the Mayor of Desert Circus Week, made the decision to rehearse his well-known radio show in front of the students. He did this with his friends. It was Doris Day and Phil Harris who were performing on stage. Day performed such songs as “It’s Wonderful” and “It’s Magic.” Not a doubt, it was.

An attempt was made by Hope to spoof the song “Buttons and Bows” from his newest film, “The Paleface.” The musical comedy that he performed with Day was titled “Red Roses for a Blue Lady.” There was a parody of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet that was performed by Day, Hope, and Harris. Over the course of several decades, Hope and Harris were both indispensable members of the desert community. Desert was a frequent destination for Day.

Rock Hudson was a visitor at the Beverly Hills residence this weekend with Doris Day to do a lot of publicity posing for their new movie “Pillow Talk,” but don’t get any incorrect ideas; they’ll be chaperoned by Doris’s friend Marty Melcher, according to a report that was published in July of the following year, ten years later.

At Racquet Club Hudson, Mr. and Mrs. Marty Melcher (Doris Day) had a home in the desert at Bermuda Dunes. Her other handsome co-star, Cary Grant, who she would later act with in “That Touch of Mink” in 1962, also had a home in the desert. Both James Garner and Chuck Connors, who appeared beside her in the 1963 film “Move Over, Darling,” were frequently seen in the desert. Clark Gable, who appeared alongside her in the film “Teacher’s Pet,” and Kirk Douglas, who appeared in the film “Man with a Horn,” were also present in this region. Over the course of several decades, Frank Sinatra made the desert his home and appeared opposite Day in the film “Young at Heart.”

When “Pillow Talk” was first released, it was reviewed by America – The Jesuit Review, which stated that it was “a good deal funnier and more inventive than most comedies.” (From that point forward, it would serve as a model for the success of Day films.)

The following is an excerpt from the article that was published in 2019 for the same publication and was reported by Moira Walsh: “There is nothing more futile than describing the plot of a comedy, except perhaps trying to explain why it is funny.” In any case, “Pillow Talk” is about a New York career girl played by Doris Day who, without ever having seen him, develops a strong and justifiable dislike for a song writer played by Rock Hudson. Hudson is the one who shares her party-line phone, and it appears that Hudson spends all of his waking hours whispering protestations of undying love over that telephone to a group of girlfriends. It is by chance that the songwriter discovers that his irate phone-sharer is the kind of girl he would like to get to know better. In spite of the fact that he is well aware that his true identity will not bring him any success, he manages to get himself introduced using a name and personality that he has assumed.

“The seasoned moviegoer should have no trouble filling in the details from this point forward,” the commentator said. When it comes to this innocent and gentlemanly Texan, does the heroine tumble before him like a ton of bricks? Is she able to discover his true identity at the psychological moment and come up with an appropriate method of retribution? Does everything finally come to a happy conclusion, with the hero being able to convince her that his motives are indeed honorable? ‘Yes!’ is the simple response to each and every one of these three queries.

In light of the fact that the publication took issue with certain aspects of the content, the endorsement came as a complete surprise. “For the majority of its running time, the film possesses another quality that is difficult to precisely define, but which is essential when there is material that is considered to be risque.”The movie is not meant to be realistic; its Technicolor settings and costumes, as well as the economic situations of its protagonists, have a grandeur that is never-never-land, and the developments in the plot are comical.In spite of this, it does make an effort to strike a healthy equilibrium between truth and unreality, and it focuses its jokes in such a way that they are aimed at making fun of human frailties rather than providing approval for them.There are a few situations in which it is not entirely successful in walking the tightrope between being sophisticated and being offensive.At one point in the story, when the protagonist goes away with the hero for the weekend, the moral tone undergoes a full and utter transformation. This change in tone is not mitigated by the fact that the story is predictable and that the protagonist and hero do not experience any negative consequences.” I’m relieved.!!

The conclusion of the reviewer was as follows: “As I write this, I am not certain whether the Legion of Decency will assign the film an A-lII or a B rating.” Both of these decisions are quite reasonable; the first one emphasizes that the picture is not objectionable to adults in any significant way, while the second one emphasizes that there are certain circumstances in which it goes beyond what is acceptable. At a time when the majority of comedies on screen are so weak, it seems a shame that an entertaining comedy should be marred by questionable material. This is the case regardless of the decision that is actually made. It is really a questionable.

Both Hudson and Day appeared in a reimagining of the song “Pillow Talk” called “Lover Come Back.” Bosley Crowther published this article in The New York Times: “Mr. Hudson and Miss Day are delicious, he in his big sprawling way, and she in her wide-eyed, pert, pugnacious, and eventually melting vein ‘Pillow Talk’ was but a warm-up for this springy and spirited surprise, which is one of the brightest, most delightful satiric comedies since ‘It Happened One Night.'”

One of the themes that was present in “That Touch of Mink” was the praising of modesty, as well as a situation that was supposed to be compromising but ended up not being compromising at all. It was made abundantly clear in Day’s films that women should put off marriage.

Exactly one year later, Day was starring in the film “Please Don’t Eat the Daisies,” which depicted a marital existence that was both hectic and beautiful.

In the opinion of critic Jerry Pam, Daisies was a bit of a letdown or disappointment. “Fresh from her triumphs in ‘Pillow Talk’ Doris Day cannot be too happy with the attempt at comedy and though she warbles ‘Que Sera,’ ‘Any Way the Wind Blows,’ and the title song, there is much to be desired.” After giving a brief summary of the plot, Pam writes: “One can accept the quaintness of Doris Day even with four of the most rambunctious kids in captivity, but David Niven’s sanity must have departed years ago after having to suffer the slings and arrows (literally) of his impossible offspring.”

Pam goes on to say that “Niven is his typical self, which is sufficient for the majority of his fans.” Janis Paige has very nothing to do other than wiggle her derriere, but the fact that Patsy Kelly has returned after a period of sixteen years is a memorable occasion. If you go to the Hollywood Paramount Theater with the expectation of seeing a fairly light comedy, you will get exactly that.

In addition, Lynn Hopper expressed his admiration for the movie and, in particular, for Joe Pasternak, the film’s producer, stating that Pasternak “is an advocate of the ‘good clean fun’ type for entertainment.” We all enjoy a little bit of heat in our lives and in the movies we watch. I have no problem with the use of sexual content in photographs, but I won’t misuse it. This ought to be a pure and typical thing.