Sandra Dee, whose birth name was Alexandra Zuck, was an actress and teen idol of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Most of her movie roles catered to the teenage audience of the time and capitalized on her youthful charm, innocent image, and blonde ‘girl next door’ beauty. But in an effort to hold on to her girlish persona, Sandra Dee fell victim to an eating disorder and substance abuse which put the brakes on her Hollywood career.
Born in 1942 in Bayonne, New Jersey, Sandra Dee always had a captivating charm and a winning smile. When she was just 12 years old, she won her first beauty pageant. Her new crown helped her catch the attention of talent agents and led to modeling opportunities. More beauty pageants and modeling gigs came her way which opened the door for her entry into the entertainment industry.
In 1957, at the age of 15, Dee signed a contract with Universal Pictures. Execs at the studio saw potential in the young beauty and began grooming her for movie roles. She made her film debut in the 1957 movie, Until They Sail and followed it up with an appearance in the 1958 movie, The Reluctant Debutante. Both of these roles were small, but they provided Dee with valuable experience and exposure.
Sandra Dee’s breakout role came in 1959 when she starred as the title character in Gidget. Her portrayal of a naïve, fun-loving surfer girl resonated with moviegoers. Gidget was a box office success and solidified Dee’s status as a teen idol. After Gidget, Dee went on to star in Imitation of Life in 1958, A Summer Place in 1959, Tammy Tell Me True in 1961, and its sequel, Tammy and the Doctor in 1963 and a slew of other films.
One of those films was Come September, which was released in 1961. This movie was the film debut for a handsome young actor named Bobby Darin. Dee and Darin met on the set and began a relationship. They married as soon as filming wrapped up and twelve months later, Sandra Dee gave birth to her only child, a son named Dodd Mitchell Darin.
Sandra Dee and Bobby Darin starred together in the 1962 romantic comedy, If a Man Answers, and again in 1965 in That Funny Feeling. Their marriage, however, was a tumultuous one. Since Sandra Dee and Bobby Darin were both well-known celebrities, their personal struggles were highly publicized. The celebrity tabloids had a field day with their marital troubles and extensively covered their 1967 divorce. Following the divorce, Dee was released from her contract with Universal Pictures and her Hollywood career was essentially over.
That wasn’t the end of her personal struggles. Sandra Dee was under a tremendous amount of pressure from the studio to maintain her youthful appeal. As a result, she developed an eating disorder and battled anorexia nervosa for the rest of her life. This was at the time that doctors and psychologists were first studying and identifying the disorder and putting a name to it. Dee openly discussed her eating disorder in the 1970s when she sought treatment. She explained that her disorder stemmed from the pressure to maintain a perfect image as a Hollywood star, as well as from her personal and emotional challenges.
Sandra Dee also dealt with alcoholism. After the death of her mother, Dee spiraled into depression and became reclusive. She later stated that she lived on soup, crackers, and Scotch for months and lost so much weight that she weighed only 80 pounds. She finally got help for both her eating disorder and drinking problem.
The last four years of her life, she suffered from kidney failure and required dialysis. She died on February 20, 2005, at the age of 62 years old.