Doris Day's Estranged Grandson Ryan Melcher Is All Grown Up

Feb 18, 2022 by apost team

Doris Day was an actress, singer and animal rights activist that began her acting career during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is considered a legendary performer that saw equal success as a musical artist and actress on the big screen. She also played the title role in "Calamity Jane."

Day is best known for the films she starred in with Rock Hudson, mainly "Pillow Talk," which earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. After a long career as a film star, she went on to have her own sitcom from 1968 to 1973 called "The Doris Day Show." In 1978, Day founded the Doris Day Animal Foundation after seeing the appalling ways animals were being treated on movie sets.

Throughout her life, Day was married four different times. Her first marriage lasted only a couple of years, from 1941 to 1943, and was to trombonist Al Jorden. The star's second marriage was to saxophonist George William Weidler in 1946, and they were together until 1949. In 1951, Day married film producer Martin Melcher, and they were together until his death in 1968. Her last marriage was to Barry Comden, which ended in 1982.

Day had a hard time speaking about death and accepting it as a normal part of life to such an extent that she had no funeral, memorial or grave marker after her passing in 2019. Even people in her own family — including her own grandson – were unaware that the icon was near death and instead found out through the media. Read on to find out more about Day's estranged grandson.

Day was born on April 3, 1922. She developed an interest in dance and performance at an early age. She initially began her career as a singer with her hit song "Sentimental Journey." Day's acting success quickly followed, and her star shone brighter as she became the go-to lead for romantic comedies starting in 1959. The pairing of Day and Hudson proved to be a splendid success, and they remain a beloved on-screen duo of film history.

On top of her storied career, Day was also known for her fierce defense of animal rights: She lobbied Congress on behalf of animal welfare and created several animal welfare organizations, including a horse sanctuary. It's clear that her sunny personality and warm heart were not just personas in movies.

The legendary actress and golden-voiced crooner passed away at the age of 97 in the year 2019 after contracting pneumonia. Her remains were cremated. According to her manager and close friend, Bob Bashara, she wanted, "No funeral, no memorial and no (grave) marker."

Bashara added that he isn't completely sure why Day requested not to have a funeral but thinks it may have something to do with her personality. He said, "I think it was because she was a very shy person."

Surprisingly, even people in Day's own family weren't aware of her passing until they heard about it through the media. One of those people was Day's estranged grandson, Ryan Melcher – son of record producer and songwriter Terry Melcher. On May 14, 2019 – just one day after Day's passing – Ryan went to Facebook to share the reasons behind their estranged relationship.

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Ryan started off his post by writing, "It's been an emotional 24-plus hours since learning of my grandmother's passing." He commended Day for her work as an entertainer, philanthropist and advocate, as well as the time and energy she spent with her family.

However, Ryan said he heard about Day's passing by reading the news on social media. He continued, "Sadly, due to a divorce that I was thrown into the middle of while still an underaged child, I have not been able to see my grandmother for quite some time."

Ryan added, "When I was invited by Doris to dinner a few years ago after my father's untimely death in November 2004 (melanoma), her new business manager, a former fan, intervened…" Ryan claimed Bashara told him he would not be able to see Day because of the divorce between his parents.

However, Day's publicist Charley Cullen Walters told FOX that Ryan's allegations were untrue. He explained how Bashara did meet with Ryan, and they had a "cordial" conversation, "but they didn't make any definite plans other than (Bashara) would contact Ryan later." A few days later, a tabloid printed a story that shed Day in a bad light, and it was believed to be from either Ryan or his mother.

Walters explained, "Unfortunately, this is a little bit of history repeating itself and Doris made the decision that maybe it was best to just stay out of that issue and the family issue, although there was never any mention that he wasn't allowed to see her," he said. "Basically, there hasn't been any attempt to contact her since then. There haven't been any birthday cards, any visits, anything to me."

What do you think about Doris Day's legacy? Were you aware of her family life? Let us know, and be sure to send this to your loved ones.