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  • 1949-1956: American Film Actress
  • 1954: Academy Awards - Best Actress
  • 1956-1982: Princess consort of Monaco

Grace Patricia Kelly Grimaldi was born 12 November 1929 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States to John Brendan Kelly (1889-1960) and Margaret Katherine Majer (1898-1990) and died 14 September 1982 Suffered stroke while driving of injuries from car accident. She married Rainier III of Monaco (1923-2005) 18 April 1956 .

Grace Patricia Kelly was an American film actress who, after starring in several significant films in the early- to mid-1950s, became Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in April 1956, which marked the end of her fil career.

After embarking on an acting career in 1950 when she was 20, Kelly appeared in New York City theatrical productions and more than 40 episodes of live drama productions broadcast during the early 1950s Golden Age of Television. From 1952 to 1956 she starred in several critically and commercially successful films, usually opposite male romantic leads 25 to 30 years older than her. In October 1953, she gained stardom from her performance in director John Ford's African-filmed adventure-romance Mogambo, starring Clark Gable and Ava Gardner, which won her a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In 1954 she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her deglamorized performance in the drama The Country Girl with Bing Crosby.[1] Other noteworthy films in which she starred include the western High Noon (1952), with Gary Cooper; the romance-comedy musical High Society (1956), with Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra; and three Alfred Hitchcock suspense thrillers in rapid succession: Dial M for Murder (1954), with Ray Milland; Rear Window (1954), with James Stewart; and To Catch a Thief (1955), with Cary Grant.

Kelly retired from acting at the age of 26 to marry Rainier, and began her duties as Princess of Monaco. It is well known that Hitchcock was hoping she would appear in more of his films which required an "icy blonde" lead actress, but he was unable to coax her out of retirement. Kelly and Rainier had three children: Princess Caroline, Prince Albert, and Princess Stéphanie. Kelly retained her link to America by her dual U.S. and Monégasque citizenship. Princess Grace died at Monaco Hospital on September 14, 1982, succumbing to injuries sustained in a traffic collision the previous day. At the time of her death she was 52 years old.

Princess of Monaco

RainierIIIandGrace

The royal couple Princess Grace and Rainier III, Prince Of Monaco

Kelly headed the U.S. delegation at the Cannes Film Festival in April 1955. While there, she was invited to participate in a photo session with Prince Rainier III, the sovereign of the Principality of Monaco, at the Prince's Palace, about 55 kilometers away from Cannes. After a series of delays and complications, she met him at the Prince's Palace of Monaco on May 6, 1955.[1] At the time of her initial meeting with him, she was dating the French actor Jean-Pierre Aumont.[2]

After a year-long courtship described as containing "a good deal of rational appraisal on both sides",[3] Prince Rainier married Kelly in 1956.[4] The Napoleonic Code of Monaco and the laws of the Catholic Church necessitated two ceremonies – both a civil ceremony and a religious wedding.[5] The 16-minute civil ceremony took place in the Palace Throne Room of Monaco on April 18, 1956,[5] and a reception later in the day was attended by 3,000 Monégasque citizens.[6][7] To cap the ceremony, the 142 official titles that she acquired in the union (counterparts of her husband's) were formally recited. The following day the church ceremony took place at Monaco's Saint Nicholas Cathedral, before Bishop Gilles Barthe.[5] The wedding was estimated to have been watched by over 30 million viewers on live television and was described by biographer Robert Lacey as "the first modern event to generate media overkill".[7] Her wedding dress, designed by MGM's Academy Award-winning Helen Rose,[7] was worked on for six weeks by three dozen seamstresses. The bridesmaids' gowns were designed by Joe Allen Hong at Neiman Marcus.[8] The 700 guests included several famous people, including Aristotle Onassis, Cary Grant, David Niven and his wife Hjördis, Gloria Swanson, Ava Gardner, Aga Khan III, Gloria Guinness,[9] and many others. Frank Sinatra was invited but did not attend.[10][11] Kelly and Rainier left that night for their seven-week Mediterranean honeymoon cruise on his yacht, Deo Juvante II.[7][12]

House of Grimaldi

Great coat of arms of the house of Grimaldi

Great coat of arms of the House of Grimaldi.

The Grimaldi Family, with few exceptions for enemy occupations, have been primary rulers of Monaco since the 13th Century. Their family ancestry can be easily traced to many of the great noble families of Europe. See Also:

The couple had three children:

  • Princess Caroline, born January 23, 1957
  • Albert II of Monaco (1958-), current Prince of Monaco
  • Princess Stéphanie, born February 1, 1965





Children


Offspring of Rainier III of Monaco (1923-2005) and Grace Kelly
Name Birth Death Joined with
Caroline of Monaco (1957-)
Albert II of Monaco (1958-) 14 March 1958 Prince's Palace of Monaco, Monaco, Monaco Tamara Rotolo (1961-)
Nicole Tossoukpé (1971-)
Charlene Wittstock (1978-)
Stéphanie of Monaco (1965-)



Siblings


Offspring of John Brendan Kelly (1889-1960) and Margaret Katherine Majer (1898-1990)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Margaret Katherine Kelly (1925-1991)
John Brendan Kelly (1926-1985)
Grace Kelly (1929-1982) 12 November 1929 Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States 14 September 1982 Princess Grace Hospital Centre, Monaco, Monaco Rainier III of Monaco (1923-2005)
Elizabeth Ann Kelly (1933-2009)


See Also

Bibliography

External Links

Royal Succession Charts

Monegasque royaltyWp globe tiny
Vacant
Title last held by
Ghislaine Dommanget
Princess consort of Monaco
1956–1982
Vacant
Title next held by
Charlene Wittstock

References

  1. ^ "Grance Kelly Visits Monaco Prince". The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA) 252 (127): p. 1. May 7, 1955. https://www.newspapers.com/image/176199821/. 
  2. ^ (May 30, 1955) "Grace's Riviera Romance" 28 (22): 14–15. ISSN 0024-3019. 
  3. ^ "Prince Rainier III of Monaco". The Times: pp. 59. April 7, 2005. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/prince-rainier-iii-of-monaco-qljng2mdtm5. 
  4. ^ 1956: Prince Rainier marries Grace Kelly, BBC: On This Day. Accessed 31 May 2008.
  5. ^ a b c The Big Week in Monaco: Movies' Pretty Princess Assumes a Real Life Title. 40. Time Inc. April 30, 1956. p. 37. ISSN 0024-3019. https://books.google.com/books?id=R08EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA37. "'I'm halfway married,' she exclaimed after the first wedding, a 16-minute civil ceremony in his crimson-damasked throne" 
  6. ^ Hintz, Martin (2004). Monaco. Children's Press. ISBN 978-0-516-24251-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=JA1ZS1y5dcwC. 
  7. ^ a b c d Choron, Sandra; Choron, Harry (2010). Planet Wedding: A Nuptial-pedia. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-618-74658-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=4aTXcSLozQYC&pg=PA103. 
  8. ^ Bulwa, Demian (March 29, 2004). "Memorial scheduled for designer Joe Allen Hong". SFGate (Hearst Communications). http://articles.sfgate.com/2004-03-29/bay-area/17416165_1_high-fashion-north-beach-merced-county. 
  9. ^ Vickers, Hugo (2007). Horses & Husbands – The Memoirs of Etti Plesch. p. 170. ISBN 978-1-904349-54-9. 
  10. ^ Quine, Judith Balaban (1990). The Bridesmaids: Grace Kelly and Six Intimate Friends. Pocket Books. ISBN 978-0-671-70770-5. https://books.google.com/books?id=kES3iselUHAC. 
  11. ^ Davies, Jennifer. Fatal Car Accidents of the Rich and Famous. RW Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-909284-04-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=Og6BkCU0akUC&pg=PT38. 
  12. ^ Taraborrelli 2003, p. 149


Footnotes (including sources)

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