Biography

 

                      Grace Kelly was born in Philadelphia, on November 12, 1929 into a wealthy family. With two sisters
                  and a brother, she spent her childhood in the Kelly home on the hill above East Falls, 3901 Henry Avenue.

                            She started school in the autumn of 1934, at the Academy of the Assumption, Ravenhill, Philadelphia, in
                  the parish of St. Bridget's, and attended it in the next nine years. In 1943 she transferred to the Stevens School
                  in Germantown, where she completed her high school education and graduated in May 1947. Then she left for
                  New York City where she was attending American Academy of Dramatic Arts and worked as a model and
                  TV player.

                           Grace Kelly made her stage debut in 1949 in the Broadway production of The Father by A.Strindberg.
                  Her first film appearance was in 1951 in Fourteen Hours. The following year she played Gary Cooper's wife
                  in the classic western High Noon. In 1953 MGM signed her and gave her the second lead in Mogambo. She
                  received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress for the role.

                           Dial M for Murder , an excellent thriller set in a claustrophobic London apartment and shot in 1953,
                  was the beginning of the fascinating co-operation with the best director of all time - Alfred Hitchcock. Grace
                  Kelly personified the essence of his cool blonde and he made the most brilliant use of her regal, sophisticated
                  and aristocratic beauty.

                          Their next movie, Rear Window, with the camera which almost did not leave the New York apartment,
                  was the most successful experiment of the ingenious director. Grace Kelly as Lisa Fremont was unique.
                  Magnificent. Unforgettable. She became a star.

                          In 1954 The Country Girl, with the unglamorous, depressive and so opposite of Lisa Fremont role,
                  won her an Oscar.

                          In the spring Grace Kelly arrived to the French Riviera to play Frances Stevens, the part Hitchcock
                  designed for her in the stylish To Catch a Thief . This beautiful, elegant, wise, sparkling cool blonde, active
                  and ambiguous, was one of her best performances.

                          High Society, a musical adaptation of The Philadelphia Story, was her last movie. The song
                  True Love, a beautiful duet with Bing Crosby, earned Platinum record.

                          In 1956 Grace Kelly married Prince Raineir III of Monaco, retired from film, became Princess Grace
                  of Monaco and the best ambassador of her new country. She had three children.

                          In 1962 Alfred Hitchcock offered her the leading role in Marnie but she had to refuse that. In 1977
                  she narrated a documentary The Children of Theatre Street.

                        On September 13, 1982, Grace Kelly suffered a stroke while driving and was killed.