Dennis Day

Dennis Day was born on July 12, 1942 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA and later moved to Downey, California, USA. He started acting at age six and after auditioning with his sister, was a Mouseketeer for the first two seasons of The Mickey Mouse Club in 1955-1957. He came out as gay to his family and moved to San Francisco, California, USA when he turned 18. Though he later told a Rolling Stone interviewer in 1971 that he was bisexual and had used drugs. He continued to work as an actor and dancer, including at Theatre La MaMa in New York and in Los Angeles. Day married Henry Ernest Caswell, his partner since the early 1970's, in 2009. Day and Caswell at one time ran a guesthouse for gay actors in San Francisco; from the 1960's until the early 1980's, Day worked for the Living History Centre, producing Renaissance and Dickens Christmas fairs, playing Newington Butts at the Renaissance fairs and also coaching other actors. They moved in the mid-1980's to Oregon, first settling in Ashland, and then in Phoenix, where they had a house. Caswell also worked for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, while Day made and sold wine jelly and worked seasonally for Harry & David. Day was reportedly last seen on July 17, 2018 after Caswell, (who has dementia), was admitted to the hospital after a fall. Day reportedly left on foot, telling a third housemate, a live-in handyman, that he was going to visit friends, but his cat and dog were left behind, and the dog was found roaming by neighbors. One neighbor had a letter written by Day mentioning being assaulted by the handyman, who told police that Day was also exhibiting signs of mental problems. After Day was reported missing, his car was found in the possession of people approximately 200 miles (320 km) away in Coos County, who, according to police, said that they had permission to take it, possibly in exchange for helping the handyman. In August 2018, police searched the property after neighbors complained of a "bad smell". Friends began asking for help locating him starting in November that year, and in February 2019, after his family learned of his disappearance, his case was featured on an episode of Dateline NBC. Police had searched Day's residence and elsewhere, but in early April 2019 human remains were discovered on the property. On June 6, 2019, it was announced that the remains were confirmed as those of Day, though a cause of death was not announced. On July 5, 2019, Oregon State Police arrested the former handyman in connection to Day's death. The man, 36-year-old Daniel James Burda, was charged with several crimes in connection with Day's death, including manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and identity theft. Dennis Day disappeared on July 17, 2018 in Phoenix, Oregon, USA. His Body was discovered on April 7, 2019 in Jackson County, Oregon, USA.