True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess - Hardcover

Leigh, Wendy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312342365 ISBN 13: 9780312342364

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books, 2007

Synopsis

   Her Serene Highness, Princess Grace of Monaco, the legendary Hollywood screen siren, Grace Kelly is an American icon whose beauty is unrivalled, and whose oft-imitated aristocratic style and cool elegance has never been eclipsed.
 
            Wendy Leigh- after three years' research - has gained unprecedented access to over one hundred sources who have never talked about Grace before, including nine of her until now undisclosed romances - among them an English aristocrat, an American tennis player, and a Hollywood legend - and also including her priest friend, Father Peter Jacobs, and Bernard Combemal, the former head of the S.B.M, the consortium that runs Monaco.
            Wendy Leigh provides revealing new details about Grace's life, including her premarital romantic swan song which took place during her voyage to Monaco, the hitherto untold story of her troubling relationship with bridesmaid, Carolyn Reybold and the moving story of Grace's lifelong relationship with actor, David Niven.
            Wendy Leigh paints a compelling portrait of Grace, the ambitious young actress, Grace, the dutiful princess who transformed the principality of Monaco into a jet-set haven, Grace, the kind-hearted philanthropist, Grace, the loving mother, and Grace, the patriotic American. 
            Wendy Leigh's book has not been written for those readers who wish to view Grace as a saint, but for those who - like Leigh herself - believes that she was a strong and wonderful woman.     

About this title

About the Author

is the New York Times best selling author of eleven books including 'Prince Charming; The J.F.K. Jr. Story,' and 'The Secret Letters of Marilyn Monroe and Jacqueline Kennedy.' She lives in London.

From Publishers Weekly

Grace Kelly's public persona sounds glam: a Hollywood star marries royalty. But behind the cameras were decades of unhappiness and a lonely death. And in this well-researched biography, Leigh (Prince Charming: The John F. Kennedy, Jr., Story) presents Kelly as the daughter of a self-made millionaire known for his philandering and emotional indifference. Yet she was eager to impress him and longed for attention. She found it onscreen and in a series of affairs with older, married men: Ray Milland, Bing Crosby, Gary Cooper and the Shah of Iran. In fact, according to Leigh, she had affairs before and after her marriage. Kelly looked cool, but she was sexually aggressive—a subject that Leigh doesn't shy away from. The mystery is why the Oscar winner chose Prince Rainier, the ill-tempered, cash-strapped ruler of a tiny principality. It wasn't a love match: Rainier got a $2 million dowry, while Kelly's glamour turned a dissolute country into a playpen for the rich and famous. Kelly hoped to keep her career and was crushed when she realized marriage had trapped her. She could divorce—but she couldn't take her children. Leigh makes certain to note Rainier's infidelities—along with chronicling Kelly's history, acting career and charitable work in Monaco. (Apr.)
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About this edition

• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0312342365
• ISBN 13: 9780312342364
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320