Cary Grant

Cary Grant was born Archibald Alec Leach on January 18, 1904 in Horfield, Bristol, England. He was the only child of Elias James Leach, a factory worker, and Elsie Maria Kingdon, a seamstress. His father was an alcoholic who abandoned the family when Grant was young, and his mother suffered from depression and was institutionalized when he was nine years old. He later discovered that she had not died as he had been told by his father, but was still alive in a mental hospital. He reunited with her when he was in his late twenties. Grant developed an interest in theater and performing at an early age. He joined a troupe of acrobatic comedians called the Pender Troupe at the age of 16 and toured with them in England and the United States. He adopted the stage name Cary Grant in 1929 and began working as a film actor in Hollywood. He initially appeared in crime films and dramas, such as Blonde Venus (1932) and She Done Him Wrong (1933), opposite Mae West. He soon became known for his roles in romantic comedies, such as The Awful Truth (1937), Bringing Up Baby (1938), His Girl Friday (1940), and The Philadelphia Story (1940), where he displayed his charm, wit, and impeccable timing. He also starred in more serious films, such as Only Angels Have Wings (1939), Penny Serenade (1941), and None but the Lonely Heart (1944), for which he received Oscar nominations. Grant had a close collaboration with director Alfred Hitchcock, who cast him in four films: Suspicion (1941), Notorious (1946), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959). In these films, Grant played more complex and ambiguous characters, often involved in suspenseful and thrilling situations. He also appeared in other popular films, such as Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), An Affair to Remember (1957), Indiscreet (1958), Charade (1963), and Father Goose (1964). He retired from acting in 1966, after making 72 films. Grant was married five times, to Virginia Cherrill, Barbara Hutton, Betsy Drake, Dyan Cannon, and Barbara Harris. He had one daughter, Jennifer Grant, with Cannon. He was also romantically linked to several actresses, such as Sophia Loren, Grace Kelly, Ingrid Bergman, and Audrey Hepburn. He became a naturalized American citizen in 1942, but retained his British citizenship. He was a supporter of the Republican Party and a friend of President Ronald Reagan. He was also interested in spirituality and experimented with LSD therapy in the 1950s. Grant died of a stroke on November 29, 1986, in Davenport, Iowa, while preparing for a performance of his one-man show, A Conversation with Cary Grant. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered in California. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors of all time, and has been ranked by various critics and media outlets as the best or second-best male star of Hollywood’s Golden Age. He has been praised for his versatility, charisma, elegance, and style. He has also been cited as an inspiration and role model by many actors, such as George Clooney, Hugh Grant, Tom Hanks, and Pierce Brosnan12345