Donna douglas biography book

The novel opens up in the s, centering around three students, Helen Millie and Dora. The three are so different with varying experiences and backgrounds but brought together by their goal to be nurses. Helen is always quiet and loves to study, and she is referred to as tell-tale. Her controlling mother monitors every aspect of her life so that she feels good when she gets a chance to live a life of her own far from her mother.

Dora comes from a humble background in a working-class district. In Nightingale, she is looked down upon by some students in the college. Coming from a tough life, she has fought hard to get far from home, especially away from her abusive step-father. She is a carefree girl, often arriving at school late after night outs. She is already repeating the preliminary training after failing, and this time, she realizes that she needs to get serious with her studies.

Can she be more focused and prove that she has what it takes to be a nurse? The three girls come together to form an odd alliance and slowly open up to each other as they spend 14 hours a day washing bed sheets and spreading beds. They are on their feet all day in uncomfortable shoes and heavy uniforms, and to make matters worse, the sister of the ward treats them so low.

The author has weaved three fascinating characters filled with fun, pain, honesty, and sadness. She seems to have done enough research concerning the lives of student nurses in the s, which made the story more compelling. Despite the hardship in the novel, the story captures the youthful, fun student experience as it covers stories from mishaps, impossible patients, cover-ups, and arrogant doctors.

Each student has their own story, which makes the story interesting. Every character is well developed, and the author lets the reader learn more about them while cheering them on to see each make it through nursing. Donna Douglas is a Sunday Times bestselling author of heartwarming sagas set in wartime Britain. She was born in Wandsworth, south London, where she first began making up stories while perched on top of the back yard coal shed.

Books were a luxury in her family, and trips to the library a rare treat, but she drew inspiration from watching storytellers on the TV show Jackanory, and from the girls' adventure comics her grandmother brought home from her cleaning job at the local newsagents. Her first novel, The Nightingale Girls, set in a hospital in s East London, was an immediate success, and ten more novels in the series followed.

She has since written two books in the Steeple Street series, featuring a district nurse in s Leeds, and is currently writing the Yorkshire Blitz series, set in wartime Hull, East Yorkshire. In a interview with The Lincoln Times-News , she described Ebsen as "a wonderful man, very much like my own father, a quiet, reserved, and caring person". In , both Ebsen and Douglas's mother, Elma Smith, died.

Douglas and Max Baer had visited Ebsen in the hospital, and following his death, both delivered a eulogy at his funeral. He reminded me so much of my own dad. Most of my scenes were with Buddy, and most of Max's with Irene. Buddy was just a wonderful man. I related to him so easily. The night before he died, Max and I went up to the hospital to see him.

Douglas and Wilson claimed that in , they had developed a screenplay from the book. The lawsuit claimed that the developed screenplay had been submitted to Disney, Goldberg, and Midler three times during and The judge found in favor of Walt Disney Pictures and the other defendants. Wilson stated at the time, "They would have had to copy our stuff verbatim for us to prevail.

The suit alleged that packaging for the "Elly May" Barbie doll featured a photo of her portraying the character.

Donna douglas biography book

It was settled on December 27, , and details were confidential, but both sides claimed to be content with the outcome. In addition to her frequent travelling for celebrity appearances and speeches, Douglas enjoyed gardening, spending time with friends and family, and answering her fan mail. Charlene Smith, Douglas's niece by marriage, said that Douglas returned to live in East Baton Rouge Parish around "She was always happy, always beautiful.

You always saw her with all her makeup on. She never looked her age. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item. American actress and singer — Pride, Louisiana , U. Zachary, Louisiana , U. Actress singer writer comedienne real estate agent inspirational speaker.

Roland John Bourgeois Jr. Robert M. About the author Donna Douglas is a Sunday Times bestselling author of heartwarming sagas set in wartime Britain. Read full bio. Most popular. A Nightingale Christmas Carol: Nightingales 8. Customers also bought items by.