About The Song
Hollywood icon Doris Day starred in dozens of movies and released more than 600 songs in her lifetime. But the box office star, known for her singular voice, never came around to the hit that might have been most associated with her career, “Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera).” In fact, Day never wanted to sing the song in the first place.
As it turned out, almost everyone involved with the tune was a bit reluctant to make it. Here’s what happened. Doris Day was cast in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1956 film The Man Who Knew Too Much alongside Jimmy Stewart. Hitchcock did not originally want Day in the film, but to get Stewart onboard, he had to agree to also hire Day and give her a song in the film penned by the famed songwriting duo Jay Livingston and Ray Evans, the writers behind such classics as “Silver Bells” and “Mona Lisa.” Hitchcock declared the song perfect. But Day was not as thrilled. In 2012, she told Terry Gross at NPR’s Fresh Air that she did not understand why such an upbeat, lilting song would be in a movie about a kidnapped boy. Martin Chilton at The Telegraph reports that Day also called it “a kiddie song,” but her third husband, Martin Melcher, who was also her manager, convinced her to record it.
Her performance won the film the 1956 Academy Award for Best Original Song and the song reached the No. 2 slot on the Billboard charts. Day reluctantly accepted the popularity the song garnered. “So maybe it isn’t a favorite song of mine but people loved it. And kids loved it,” she told Gross. The song became so associated with the star that it ultimately became the theme song for “The Doris Day Show,” a sitcom that aired between 1968 and 1973. In her 1976 autobiography, Day revealed that she was contracted to do the sitcom by Melcher and hadn’t even been aware of the arrangement before his death in 1968. She didn’t want to do a television show, much less one with that song as a theme.
Video
Lyrics
When I was just a little girl
I asked my mother what will I be?
Will I be pretty? Will I be rich?
Here’s what she said to me
Que sera, sera
Whatever will be, will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que sera, sera
What will be, will be
When I grew up and fell in love
I asked my sweetheart what lies ahead?
Will we have rainbows day after day?
Here’s what my sweetheart said
Que sera, sera
Whatever will be, will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que sera, sera
What will be, will be
Now I have children of my own
They ask their mother what will I be
Will I be handsome? Will I be rich?
I tell them tenderly
Que sera, sera
Whatever will be, will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que sera, sera
What will be, will be
Que sera, sera
I grew up with this song,my mother used to sing it and her voice was one of the best!
I’m now in my early 70’s and still love her voice & truly admired how pretty she was,que serra sera was always@ the top of my chart,R.I.P;Doris Day 💕 you for great memories?
Esas Canciones Que Se Traían Los “Gringos”, Esos Ritmos TranquiLos Pero Con Las MeLodías Que, Después Y tiempo Después Entenderíamos Por EL idioma ingLés, Cunas de Madera Que Nos Dejaron B-) O:-)
This song is a childhood favourite of mine
I loved how they used it in the movie, her singing it so her son could hear it and get rescued. Doris Day was my mom‘s favorite actress and she used to sing that song to me, that and Moon River. I love those songs.
My mother used to sing this. Oh, how I wish I could hear her sing it one more time.