The No. 1 Movie On July 17, 1962 Was A Rom-Com With Cary Grant And Doris Day

In July 1962, a band called The Rolling Stones made its first public performance, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in Georgia after engaging in prayer-based protesting, and a romantic comedy movie called "That Touch of Mink" was dominating at the U.S. box office. This Delbert Mann directorial effort premiered on June 14 and was still the number one film in the country by July 17. Americans were going gaga for the saga of New Yorker Cathy Timberlake (Doris Day) and high flying business exec Philip Shayne (Cary Grant), who share romantic sparks despite having drastically different expectations of a relationship.

Cathy wants to put a ring on a man's finger. Philip, meanwhile, is looking to be a "here today, gone tomorrow" lover. "That Touch of Mink" chronicled the duo navigating their differing mindsets and finding something real in the process. Though it got decent reviews, "That Touch of Mink" isn't a well-known film today and rarely gets mentioned when the best movies released during the 1960s come up for discussion. Still, the number one movie in America on July 17, 1962 remains a notable feature on many historical fronts, particularly when it comes to where it fits into the respective filmographies of its two iconic lead actors.

Every Cary Grant movie, from the worst to the best, tends to feature at least a couple of moments that remind you why he was such a Hollywood icon. Most of those films, though, were released before the mid-1950s. After that, Grant would still headline pictures (including some of his most acclaimed works, like "North by Northwest" and "Charade"), but his days of anchoring several movies a year were behind him. By the time he appeared in "That Touch of Mink," Grant was nearing the end of his tether – in fact, he would only appear in three further movies, retiring to spend more time with his daughter having grown jaded with Tinseltown.

Doris Day, however, was still at the height of her powers when she agreed to co-star in "That Touch of Mink," and it became one of her biggest hits. It may not be among the best romantic comedy movies of all time, but it was one of the highest grossing movies of 1962, with critics praising the co-leads for their work. According to Day, Grant was very private during the shoot but also a total pro. "Maybe the most professional, exacting actor I ever worked with," Day wrote in her 1976 autobiography (via TCM). "In the scenes we played, he concerned himself with every little detail: clothes, sets, production values, the works. Cary even got involved in helping to choose the kind of mink I was slated to wear in the film."