AMERICAN ACTRESS AND singer Doris Day has died at the age of 97.

The Doris Day Animal Foundation confirmed that she died at her Carmel Valley, California, home. The foundation said she was surrounded by close friends.

“Day had been in excellent physical health for her age, until recently contracting a serious case of pneumonia, resulting in her death,” the foundation said.

Tributes to the Hollywood icon have been pouring in:

The actress became one of the biggest Hollywood stars of her time, appearing in movies like Calamity Jane and Pillow Talk. 

She won three Grammy Hall of Fame awards and a Golden Globe lifetime achievement award and in 2004 joined a long list of actors to receive her own star on the Hollywood walk of fame.

Along with her roles on screen, the Ohio native also became known for her activism in the area of animal welfare. 

She was a founding member of the Actors and Others for Animals organisation, and later went on to found her own Doris Day Pet Foundation in 1978.

- With reporting from Associated Press