Cary Grant

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This article is about the actor. For the vocal coach, see Carrie Grant. For the architect, see Archibald Leitch. For collegiate football coach, see Archibald Leech (football coach).
Cary Grant

in To Catch a Thief (1955)
Born Archibald Alexander Leach
January 18, 1904(1904-01-18)
Bristol, England, UK
Died November 29, 1986 (aged 82)
Davenport, Iowa, United States
Years active 1932–1966
Spouse(s) Virginia Cherrill (1934-1935)
Barbara Hutton (1942-1945)
Betsy Drake (1949-1962)
Dyan Cannon (1965-1968)
Barbara Harris (1981-1986)
Domestic partner(s) Maureen Donaldson (1973-1977)[1][2]

Archibald Alec Leach (January 18, 1904 – November 29, 1986), better known by his stage name, Cary Grant, was a British actor known for mostly American films. With his distinctive Mid-Atlantic accent, he was noted as perhaps the foremost exemplar of the debonair leading man, handsome, virile, charismatic and charming. He was named the second Greatest Male Star of All Time of American cinema, after Humphrey Bogart, by the American Film Institute. He was well known for starring in classic films such as The Philadelphia Story, North By Northwest, Notorious, His Girl Friday, To Catch A Thief, Bringing Up Baby and The Bishop's Wife.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life and career

Archibald Alec Leach was born in Horfield, Bristol, England in 1904. He attended Bishop Road Primary School. An only child, he had a confused and unhappy childhood. His mother Elsie was placed by his father in a mental institution when Archie was ten. She never overcame her depression after the death of a previous infant child. His father, who subsequently had a son with another woman, told him that his mother had gone away on a "long holiday". It was not until he was in his thirties that Leach discovered her still alive, living in an institutionalized care facility.

He was expelled from the Fairfield Grammar School in Bristol in 1918. He subsequently joined the "Bob Pender stage troupe" and traveled with the group to the United States as a stilt walker in 1920, on a two-year tour of the country. When the troupe returned to England, he decided to stay in the US and continue his stage career.

Still under his birth name, he performed on the stage at The Muny in St. Louis, Missouri, in such shows as Irene (1931); Music in May (1931); Nina Rosa (1931); Rio Rita (1931); Street Singer (1931); The Three Musketeers (1931); and Wonderful Night (1931).

[edit] Hollywood stardom

After some success in light Broadway comedies, he came to Hollywood in 1931, where he acquired the name Cary Lockwood. He chose the name Lockwood after the surname of his character in a recent play called Nikki. He signed with Paramount Pictures, but while studio bosses were impressed with him, they were less than impressed with his adopted stage name. They decided that the name Cary was OK, but Lockwood had to go due to a similarity with another actor's name. It was after browsing through a list of the studio's preferred surnames, that Cary Grant was born. Grant chose the name because the initials C and G had already proved lucky for Clark Gable and Gary Cooper, two of Hollywood's then-biggest movie stars.

Having already appeared as leading man opposite Marlene Dietrich in Blonde Venus, his stardom was given a further boost by Mae West when she chose him for her leading man in two of her most successful films, She Done Him Wrong and I'm No Angel (both 1933).[3] I'm No Angel was a tremendous financial success and, along with She Done Him Wrong, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, saved Paramount from bankruptcy.

in The Philadelphia Story (1940)
in The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Grant starred in some of the classic screwball comedies, including Bringing Up Baby with Katharine Hepburn, His Girl Friday with Rosalind Russell, Arsenic and Old Lace with Priscilla Lane, and Monkey Business with Ginger Rogers. His role in The Awful Truth with Irene Dunne was the pivotal film in the establishment of Grant's screen persona. These performances solidified his appeal, and The Philadelphia Story, with Hepburn and James Stewart, showcased his best-known screen persona: the charming if sometimes unreliable man, formerly married to an intelligent and strong-willed woman who first divorced him, then realized that he was—with all his faults—irresistible.

Grant was one of Hollywood's top box-office attractions for several decades. He was a versatile actor, who did demanding physical comedy in movies like Gunga Din with the skills he had learned on the stage. Howard Hawks said that Grant was "so far the best that there isn't anybody to be compared to him".[4]

Grant was a favorite actor of Alfred Hitchcock, notorious for disliking actors, who said that Grant was "the only actor I ever loved in my whole life".[5] Grant appeared in such Hitchcock classics as Suspicion, Notorious, To Catch a Thief and North by Northwest. Biographer Patrick McGilligan wrote that, in 1965, Hitchcock asked Grant to star in Torn Curtain (1966), only to learn that Grant had decided to retire after making one more film, Walk, Don't Run (1966); Paul Newman was cast instead in Torn Curtain, opposite Julie Andrews.[6]

In the mid-1950s, Grant formed his own production company, Grantley Productions, and produced a number of movies distributed by Universal, such as Operation Petticoat, Indiscreet, That Touch of Mink (co-starring Doris Day), and Father Goose. In 1963, he appeared opposite Audrey Hepburn in Charade.

Grant was considered a maverick by virtue of the fact that he was the first actor to "go independent," effectively bucking the old studio system, which almost completely controlled what an actor could or could not do. In this way, Grant was able to control every aspect of his career. He decided which movies he was going to appear in, he had personal choice of the directors and his co-stars and at times, even negotiated a share of the gross, something unheard of at the time, but now common among A-list stars.

Grant was nominated for two Academy Awards in the 1940s. He was denied the Oscar throughout his active career because he was one of the first actors to be independent of the major studios. Grant received a special Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1970. In 1981, he was accorded the Kennedy Center Honors.

[edit] Retirement

Although Grant had retired from the screen, he remained active in other areas. In the late 1960s, he accepted a position on the board of directors at Fabergé. By all accounts this position was not honorary as some had assumed, as Grant was regularly attending meetings and his mere appearance at a product launch would almost certainly guarantee its success.

In the last few years of his life, Grant undertook tours of the United States in a one man show. It was called "A Conversation with Cary Grant", in which he would show clips from his films and answer audience questions. Grant was preparing for a performance at the Adler Theater in Davenport, Iowa on the afternoon of November 29, 1986 when he suffered a massive cerebral hemorrhage. He had suffered a minor stroke in October 1984. He died later that night at St. Luke's Hospital at age 82.

[edit] Personal life in Hollywood

Grant's personal life was complicated, involving five marriages. Rumors persisted regarding his sexual orientation.

[edit] Marriages

Grant's first wife, Virginia Cherrill, divorced him on March 26, 1935 following charges that Grant had hit her. They had wed on February 10, 1934.

Grant married the ultra-wealthy socialite Barbara Hutton and became a father figure and lifelong influence on her son, Lance Reventlow, who died in a plane crash. The couple were derisively nicknamed "Cash and Cary," although in an extensive prenuptial agreement Grant refused any financial settlement in the event of a divorce. After divorcing in 1945, they remained lifelong friends. Grant always bristled at the accusation that he married for money. He said with his typical wit, "I may not have married for very sound reasons, but money was never one of them."

Grant married his third wife, the actress Betsy Drake, on December 25, 1949. He appeared with her in two films. This would prove to be his longest marriage, ending on August 14, 1962. Drake introduced Grant to LSD, and in the early 60s he related how treatment with the hallucinogenic drug—legal at the time—at a prestigious California clinic had finally brought him inner peace after yoga, hypnotism, and mysticism had proved ineffective.[7][8][9]

His fourth marriage, to actress Dyan Cannon, who was thirty-three years his junior, took place on July 22, 1965 in Las Vegas. The marriage was followed by the premature birth of his only child, Jennifer Grant, on February 26, 1966 when Grant was sixty-two. He frequently called her his "best production", and regretted that he hadn't had children sooner. The marriage was troubled from the beginning and Cannon left him in December 1966, claiming that Grant flew into frequent rages and spanked her when she "disobeyed" him. The divorce, finalized in 1968, was bitter and public, and custody fights over their daughter went on for around ten years.

On April 11, 1981 Grant married his long-time companion, British hotel PR agent Barbara Harris, who was forty-seven years his junior. Harris was by his side when he died.

[edit] War years and US citizenship

Grant became a naturalized US citizen in 1942 in order to defuse the scandal resulting from his failure to return to Britain to serve in the military. One British movie reviewer once wrote that British actors who had remained in Hollywood should only be photographed in black and white, so the audience doesn't see the yellow streak across their spines. He had, in fact, volunteered for service in the Royal Navy as early as 1940, but at 36 was past the then-maximum enlistment age. This prompted Grant to declare that he wanted to go back to do his bit, even if it meant being a "fireman". However, certain portions of the British Government thought Grant would be more use to the war effort if he remained in Hollywood. During the war years, Grant donated entire salaries of several movies to British war charities, and it is even rumored that Grant was working for British Intelligence, monitoring suspected Nazi sympathies among the Hollywood elite. This, however, has never been substantiated as records on the subject remain classified to this day. In 1947, King George VI awarded Grant with the King's Medal for his services to Britain during hostilities.

[edit] Rumors regarding sexual orientation

Throughout his time in Hollywood, Grant was rumored to be either homosexual or bisexual. Early in his career he was a roommate of the openly gay silent star William Haines.[10] In 1932, he met fellow actor Randolph Scott on the set of Hot Saturday. The two shared a rented beach house, known as "Bachelor Hall", on and off for twelve years. In 1944, Grant and Scott stopped living together but remained close friends throughout their lives. Rumors ran rampant at the time that Grant and Scott were lovers. In 1957, Grant's English chauffeur claimed to have been in a sexual relationship with Grant. Grant immediately filed a lawsuit against him. The driver attempted suicide.[11]

In their biographies of Grant, Marc Eliot, Charles Higham and Roy Moseley contend that Grant was bisexual. Higham and Moseley claim that Grant and Scott were seen kissing in a public car park outside a social function both attended in the 1960s. It has even been suggested that Grant and Scott were married in a secret ceremony in Mexico.[12] Randolph Scott's son Christopher refuted these rumors. Following the death of his father in 1987, Christopher wrote a book, Whatever Happened to Randolph Scott? in which he denied that his father was homosexual. According to Darwin Porter's biography Brando Unzipped, Grant also had an affair with Marlon Brando in the early 1950s.[13]

Homosexual screenwriter Arthur Laurents indicated that Grant was bisexual. In his memoir, he says, Grant "told me he threw pebbles at my window one night but was luckless—I wasn't home. ... his eyes and his smile implied that ... he would have liked doing what we would have done had I been home.[14] William J. Mann's book Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood, 1910-1969 recounts how photographer Jerome Zerbe spent "three gay months" in the movie colony taking many photographs of Grant and Scott, "attesting to their involvement in the gay scene." Zerbe says that he often stayed with the two actors, "finding them both warm, charming, and happy."[15]

Others, however, deny the rumors. In a 2004 interview, Grant's fifth wife, Barbara, says of the rumored Grant-Scott relationship "It wasn't the case at all. In fact, the house that they had down on the beach was known to have women going in and out like running water."[16] Grant himself always denied the rumors, saying "If someone can't find anything bad to say about you, you are a tightwad or a homosexual."[17] When comedian Chevy Chase joked about Grant being gay in a television interview with Tom Snyder in 1980 ("Oh, what a gal!") Grant sued him for slander; they settled out of court.[18] Grant complained to writer/director Peter Bogdanovich about the Chevy Chase incident, emphatically insisting that while he had many gay friends, including Cukor, William Haines, and costume designer Orry-Kelly, and had nothing against homosexuals, he was not one himself.[19] However, he did admit in an interview that his first two wives had accused him of being a homosexual.[20]

In a 2004 interview for the Turner Classic Movies production, Cary Grant: A Class Apart, Grant's third wife, Betsy Drake, commented, "Why would I believe that Cary was homosexual when we were busy fucking? Maybe he was bisexual. He lived 43 years before he met me. I don't know what he did."[21]

[edit] Politics

Grant was a Republican, but did not think movie stars should publicly make political declarations.[22] Ironically, during his career some people considered him to be a left-winger, as he publicly condemned McCarthyism in 1953 and vocally supported his blacklisted friend Charles Chaplin. Grant was also criticized by right-wing columist Hedda Hopper for vacationing in the Soviet Union after filming Indiscreet (1958). He appeared to worsen the situation by remarking to an interviewer, "I don't care what kind of government they have over there, I never had such a good time in my life."[23] However, after his retirement from acting Grant was active in a number of Republican causes. He introduced First Lady Betty Ford to the audience at the Republican National Convention in 1976.[22] He was also a vocal supporter of his friend Ronald Reagan during the 1980s.

[edit] Tribute

Statue of Cary Grant in Millennium Square, Bristol, England.
Statue of Cary Grant in Millennium Square, Bristol, England.

In 2001 a statue of Grant was erected in Millennium Square, a regenerated area next to the harbour in his city of birth, Bristol, England.

In November 2004 Grant was named "The Greatest Movie Star of All Time" by Premiere Magazine.[24] Richard Schickel, the film critic, said about Grant: "He's the best star actor there ever was in the movies."[25]

Ian Fleming stated that he partially had Cary Grant in mind when he created his suave super-spy, James Bond. Sean Connery was selected for the first James Bond movie because of his likeness to Grant. Likewise, the later Bond, Roger Moore, was also selected for sharing Grant's wry sense of humor.

John Cleese's character in the film A Fish Called Wanda was named Archie Leach[26], a reference to Grant's legal birth name.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] Feature films

[edit] Short subjects

[edit] References

  1. ^ Cary Grant at the NNDB
  2. ^ Donaldson, Maureen, and William Royce. An Affair to Remember: My Life With Cary Grant. New York, New York: Charter Books. 1990. ISBN 1557733716
  3. ^ Encyclopedia Britannica, Cary Grant biography
  4. ^ Interview of Howard Hawks with Joseph McBride, in Hawks, Howard and Gerald Mast, Bringing Up Baby, p. 260. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1988.
  5. ^ Nelson, Nancy, and Cary Grant. Evenings With Cary Grant: Recollections In His Own Words and By Those Who Loved Him Best. Thorndike, Maine: Thorndike Press. 1992. p.325. ISBN 1560543426
  6. ^ McGilligan, Patrick. Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light. New York, New York: Regan Books. 2003. pp.663-664. ISBN 006039322X
  7. ^ White, Betty. "Cary Grant Today" - Saturday Evening Post - (c/o CaryGrant.net) - March 1978
  8. ^ McKelvey, Bob. "Cary Grant - Hollywood's Zany Lover Reaches 80" - Detroit Free Press - (c/o CaryGrant.net) - January 18, 1984
  9. ^ Godfrey, Lionel. Cary Grant: The Light Touch. New York, New York: St. Martin's Press. 1981. ISBN 0312123094
  10. ^ MarcEliot, Cary Grant: A Biography (2004).
  11. ^ MarcEliot, Cary Grant: A Biography (2004).
  12. ^ Eliot, Marc Cary Grant: Grant's Sixth Marriage (2005)
  13. ^ Porter, Darwin Brando Unzipped (2006)
  14. ^ Laurents, Arthur. Original Story by: A Memoir of Broadway and Hollywood. New York, New York: Knopf. 2000. p.131. ISBN 0375400559
  15. ^ Mann, William J. Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood, 1910-1969. New York, New York: Viking. 2001. ISBN 0670030171
  16. ^ Jaynes, Barbara Grant and Robert Trachtenberg. Cary Grant: A Class Apart. Burbank, California: Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Turner Entertainment. 2004.
  17. ^ leninimports.com Cary Grant: Biography.
  18. ^ Eliot, Marc. Cary Grant: The biography. New York, New York: Harmony Books. 2004. ISBN 140005026X
  19. ^ Bogdanovich, Peter. Who the Hell's in It: Portraits and Conversations. New York, New York: A.A. Knopf. 2004. ISBN 0375400109
  20. ^ Marc Eliot, Cary Grant: A Biography (2004)
  21. ^ Drake, Betsy and Robert Trachtenberg.Cary Grant: A Class Apart. Burbank, California: Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Turner Entertainment. 2004.
  22. ^ a b Jaynes, Barbara Grant and Robert Trachtenberg.PBS: "Cary Grant: A Class Apart" - Washington Post - May 26, 2005
  23. ^ Eliot, Marc Cary Grant (2004)
  24. ^ "The 50 Greatest Movie Stars of All Time" - Premiere Magazine
  25. ^ Hammond, Pete."Remembering Cary Grant at 100" - Associated Press - (c/o CBS News) - May 21, 2004
  26. ^ Archie Leach (Character) - A Fish Called Wanda - IMDb - 1998

[edit] Further reading

  • Bogdanovich, Peter. Who the Hell's in It: Portraits and Conversations. New York, New York: A.A. Knopf. 2004. ISBN 0375400109
  • Eliot, Marc. Cary Grant: The Biography New York, New York: Aurum Press. 2005. ISBN 1845130731
  • Higham, Charles, and Roy Moseley. Cary Grant: The Lonely Heart Thompson Learning, 1997, ISBN 0151157871
  • Johannson, Warren, and William A. Percy. Outing: Shattering the Conspiracy of Silence. Harrington Park Press, 1994, pp.146-7.
  • Kael, Pauline. "The Man from Dream City - Cary Grant" - The New Yorker - July 14, 1975 - (reprinted in: Pauline Kael: For Keeps - 30 Years at the Movies. Dutton, 1994.)
  • McCann, Graham. Cary Grant: A Class Apart Fourth Estate, 1997. ISBN 1857025741
  • Morecambe, Gary, and Martin Sterling, Cary Grant: In Name Alone Robson Books, 2001. ISBN 1861054661
  • Nelson, Nancy, and Cary Grant. Evenings With Cary Grant: Recollections In His Own Words and By Those Who Loved Him Best. Thorndike, Maine: Thorndike Press. 1992. ISBN 1560543426
  • Vito Russo, The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies [revised edition] Harrow & Row, 1987. ISBN 0060961325
  • Wansell, Geoffrey. Cary Grant: Dark Angel. Arcade, 1997. ISBN 1559703695

[edit] External links

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Persondata
NAME Grant, Cary
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Leach, Archibald Alexander
SHORT DESCRIPTION English actor
DATE OF BIRTH January 18, 1904
PLACE OF BIRTH Bristol, England
DATE OF DEATH November 29, 1986
PLACE OF DEATH Davenport, Iowa, U.S.
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