Ahhh, Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee. Two such adorable people have never
before or since graced the Hollywood scene as a couple.
How do you describe a man like Bobby Darin? His was a renowned musician/songwriter/performer and also acted in several movies during the 1960s. His musical style spanned several genres from rock n' roll to pop to jazz to country. 1958 was the year that he really took off with his hit recording of
Splish Splash. This was followed by
Dream Lover, Beyond the Sea, Mack the Knife and hundreds of other fun and flirty, serious and sad songs. He died in 1973, tragically young at only 37, having a weakened constitution from a severe bout of rheumatic fever when he was a child.
Sandra Dee is almost better known than Bobby Darin now, although not so much for herself as for that song in
Grease that everybody seems to know. She made a "splash" in the 1959 release of
Gidget, the story of a girl who thinks surfing and surfer Moondoggie are "the absolute ultimate!" She was only 14-years-old at the time of the filming (if you go by her birthday being 1944 instead of 1942 which I think is more likely since in a 1980s interview she said she was not yet 16 when she met Bobby Darin in 1960). The pristine and perfect young miss, Sandra Dee represented chastity and purity, a tragic contrast with her personal life of sexual abuse as a child. Her career peaked and ended in less than 10 years, but all of her 1960s films are a delight unto themselves.
If only Bobby and Sandy's
happiness had been long-term, but alas, only about 4 years after their
wedding in 1960, divorce proceedings took effect. Theirs was one of
those flash-in-the-pan romances like Elvis and Priscilla Presley, where
you just fervently wish it could have lasted. Although, Sandy herself
admitted that they lived together for 3 years or so after the divorce
soooooooooooo. . . make of that what you will.
Their love kindled during the filming of
Come September,
a film released in 1961 and filmed in 1960 and where both
Bobby and Sandy were side-liners to the "big name" leads, Rock Hudson
and the exotic Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida. Rumor has it that
during the filming, Bobby simply would not leave Sandy alone. He
followed her everywhere on set, which is actually in keeping with his
somewhat obnoxious character of Tony who's determined to win the fair
hand of the charming and virtuous Sandy. Sounds fitting, eh?
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| A photo apparently snapped on their honeymoon. |
Honestly, if it wasn't for Bobby and Sandy, I wouldn't own
Come September.
They add a little bit of spark, a little bit of pizzazz, to an
otherwise average romcom. And of course, knowing that Bobby was doing
his hardest to woo Sandy while on the set is an additional charming
flair thrown in for good measure.
In an
interview
Sandy gave, she described her introduction to Bobby where he whistled
at her and she turned around to face him I guess she hadn't even noticed
him until he made his presence known. He said, "My name's Bobby Darin,
and I'm going to marry you." That was it, nothing more. She knew who he
was, of course, but until that moment had no idea he was in
Come September,
so that was a shock. Sandy described him as "abrasive, insulting, and
cocky" and it seems that her mother asked Bobby why he was
treating Sandy so rudely and he said, "because she doesn't give me
attention any other way." He loved to make her fight back which sounds
so like him.
Her mom encouraged Sandy at first to be nice to
Bobby, to spend time with him and get to know him because she had to
work with him on the set. But as soon as Sandy started liking him
romantically, her mom backed off, probably out of terror that the
relationship had developed into something she hadn't planned on. She did
not approve of their romantic relationship at all, and even left Sandy
high and dry when she was barely 16-years-old, for the first time in her
life, which actually spurred Sandy's marriage to Bobby because she was
lonely and scared.
