By Michelle Donaghey Correspondent
BREMEN — Doris Day really was and is as sweet as she was portrayed in the movies that she starred in, says her former personal secretary and assistant, Mary Anne Barothy, author of the book, “Day at a Time: An Indiana Girl’s Sentimental Journey to Doris Day’s Hollywood and Beyond.”
Barothy, who lives in the Indianapolis area and works for the Little Sisters of the Poor, spoke to a full house of around 40 who came to the Bremen Public Library last Wednesday to hear about her memories of living with the celebrity. Some came from Rochester to listen to her and to buy books and them autographed.

    “(Day) was just as nice as she could be and was very down to earth,” said Barothy, who had dreams of being a secretary to a star since she was 14 years old.
Barothy went on in detail to tell the captivated audience her path to becoming Day’s friend, confidant and secretary as they sat and munched on a variety of cookies and drank teas of all flavors provided by the library.
Barothy's fascination with the star began when she saw the movie “Calamity Jane” with her mother when she was 10 years old. Later, when she was a teenager, she found she enjoyed listening to the star sing.
    “The music appealed to me. It was something I gravitated toward and she made me and everyone feel good. She was cute, too. Somehow, I became a fan,” said Barothy, who said she responded to an ad in the back of a fan magazine to start a fan club.
    At that time there was one in London, England, but that didn’t stop her. Through the club’s quarterly journal, she learned of another fan, Eileen, who lived in Ohio who told her stories and details of meeting the star a couple of times a year on her trips to California.
    Barothy decided she would like to also meet Day, taking her first trip to Los Angeles in 1965, leaving a day when there were shootings reported by the paper she worked for, The Indianapolis Star, at the Los Angeles Airport.
    “That didn’t stop me. I decided to go anyway,” said Barothy, who was set on fulfilling her dreams.
    That first trip was not as eventful as she had hoped. She did get to see her house where she and her friend Eileen asked Day’s then secretary if she could meet with her. They were told to go to the studios where she was filming "Glass Bottom Boat," but unfortunately for them, Day was on location in Catalina. But she did get to make friends with some women who then became friends and were known as “The Day Gang.” The women would call to give each other updates on information they learned about their idol.
    Barothy went back in 1966, during which time she frequented a bakery called Bailey’s Bakery in Malibu, where Day was often seen with some of her friends.
“Finally one day before I was about to leave (to fly home), she came in,” said Mary Anne, who noted she did not sit facing the door “purposely” as she was afraid how she would react.
    “My reporter kicked in” said Mary Anne, who at the time worked for the "Indianapolis Star" as a society reporter. Mary Anne said she asked questions such as when her next recording was going to be as if she was going to write a personal story on the star.
“What I really remember most about it is that I felt like I was a friend,” she said. Because of this meeting she decided she wanted and had to move to California as Day’s husband, Martin Melcher, told her to contact him about the possibility of a job working for Day.
    After her college graduation in 1968, Barothy decided to make her move to the sunny state. The only major requirement was that her shared apartment had to be within biking distance of Day’s house. Barothy found a job with May Corporation after learning that Melcher had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly.
    During that time, true Doris Day fans as they were, Barothy and her friends decided to cruise by Day’s house to see Day and her son Terry, moving some things out. They learned that mom and son decided to rent a house in Palm Springs, which was a far ride from where they planned to be for dinner. They decided to stay overnight in the area and on the way home, got to see Elvis on the freeway back to LA in a traffic jam and even got to talk with the star who said if he knew they would be in town, he would have had them over!
    Her break finally came due to two broken legs she suffered after a car accident when she was laid up and frequented the Bailey’s Bakery where she and Day ended up talking on some occasions.
Persistence and luck finally paid off for the young woman. One night the phone rang with Doris Day calling asking if she and a friend would like to go to breakfast and the Farmer’s Market the next day.
    While she did not get the job working for Day right then, it did give her the connections she needed for Day to look for her later on. While she was working for the Air Force doing military service manuals, she was asked if she could be a secretary on a trial run at first. Barothy said her  class in speed writing definitely paid off.
    Days were spent with the star, often for 12 hours at a stretch at the studio while she filmed, bringing along some of her dogs. At this time, Day was doing her own television show, “The Doris Day Show.” Barothy was there helping with fan mail, publicity, working around the house and shopping
Eventually after an employee who helped care for the 11 dogs Day owned had to resign, Barothy was asked to move in to help her as a secretary with daily tasks like walking the dogs and once, helping her move a grand piano that wasn’t exactly in the place the star wanted it when floors were redone.
    “We broke the leg off!” laughed Barothy, noting how the huge monstrosity was laying on the floor minus one leg with the two worried if the two others were to follow.
    Calling the insurance agent and telling him of the accident, she recalled how many who associated with Day had the same type of fun, comical disposition their employer had when asked what they should do.
    “Break the other leg. You’ve got the two legs deductible!” said Barothy laughing of the memory.
    The author also shared how she was able to go to the Academy Awards when Day’s handyman, Bob, suggested she approach her boss and friend about the tickets she received which she would not use.
    Day didn’t want to go so Bob and his wife and Barothy did, walking down the red carpet with JoAnne Woodward and Paul Newman.
    “She was and is a really nice lady and is always a genuine and fun person,” said Barothy of her former boss noting that giving the tickets to them is just one of the many great things she would do for others.
    Day also loved and still does love animals, said Barothy. “She is very much into animal welfare and has done such things as rescue dogs that were in Hurricane Katrina.”
Barothy urged that those who go to California to take their pets and stay at the Cypress Inn, which Day and her son own and which is a pet-friendly establishment.
    When Barothy is asked about Day, who is now 87 and lives in the Carmel, Calif. valley, she advises everyone not to listen to tabloid reports and that she is doing just fine.
“She is doing great and has great faith and a very positive attitude,” said Barothy.
    Happy to share her story with everyone, Barothy hopes the public enjoys her book which looks into the life of the star which never would have happened without her teenage driven dream, something she still finds hard to comprehend.
    “I never would have dreamt that all of this would have ever happened,” said Barothy, who would not disclose when and why she left employment with the star.
    “You need to read the book,” she said smiling.