Trivia

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How did Grace react to the news of Bing Crosby's death?

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General

Appeared in ads for Max Factor Colorfast Lipstick (with Green Fire costar Stewart Granger), Lustre-Creme Shampoo, Lux Toilet Soap, and Old Gold cigarettes.
Grace is referenced in the songs "Grace Kelly" by Mika; "Grace Kelly Blues" by Eels; "Grace Kelly with Wings" by Piebald; "Grace Kelly" by the Motion Sick; "Vogue" by Madonna; "We didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel; "'59" by Brian Setzer Orchestra; "Six Billion People" by Paul Gilbert; "Grace Kelly" by Los Coquillos; "Four Flights Up" by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions; "That Night" by Rufus Wainwright; and "Grace Kelly" by Die Ärzte.
Grace and Alec Guinness (her co-star in The Swan) had a tradition of slipping a tomahawk into the other's bed for years.
Grace was a friend of the Kennedy family for many years. In 1954, when Jack Kennedy was hospitalized for a back problem, Jackie snuck Grace, dressed as a nurse, in to visit him to raise his spirits.
Grace was denied admission to Bennington College in Vermont.
Bing Crosby proposed to Grace a short time after making The Country Girl, but she turned him down.
Grace was of Irish-German descent: her father John Brendan (Jack) was Irish and her mother Margaret was German.
Grace was the second youngest of four children in the Kelly family. The Kelly children were Peggy (b. 1925), John Jr. (b. 1927), Grace (b. 1929), and Elizabeth Anne (b. 1933).
On 22 May 1950, Grace received a plaque from the publication Theatre World, for being one of twelve of the most promising personalities of the Broadway stage for 1950.
The gallery Faubourg St. Honore in Paris exhibited compositions of dried flowers by Grace in 1977.
Grace toured the northeastern United States in 1978 with a program of poetry on "Birds, Beasts and Flowers."
The city of Philadelphia honored Grace in the spring of 1982 with the "Grace Kelly Film Festival".
The National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., has a bronze bust of Grace, made by Dutch sculptor Kees Verkade, donated by Prince Rainier.

Grace and Rainier had bought her ancestral home, a cottage on a 35-acre holding at Drimurla outside Newport Village where her grandfather lived before emigrating to the United States.
Grace was one of many famous tenants of the Barbizon Hotel for Women when she lived in New York. Other tenants included Candice Bergen, Liza Minnelli, Cloris Leachman, Ali MacGraw, and Edith "Little Edie" Bouvier Beale.
Grace was not pleased over ABC television's plans to air a miniseries about her life starring Cheryl Ladd.
Grace was named for her aunt Grace, who had died in her early 20s.
Artist Andy Warhol made a screen print of Grace Kelly in 1984.
A 1997 British television documentary by investigative reporters David Carr-Brown and David Cohen claims that Grace joined the Order of the Solar Temple months before her death in 1982. The cult, headed by Joseph di Mambro, is said to have named her a High Priestess of the Order. Grace reportedly gave the group nine million dollars, but had second thoughts afterwards and demanded her money back. However, the Order of the Solar Temple did not exist until 1984, and there is no evidence (neither external nor internal to the Solar Temple or the similarly named, but separate, Sovereign Order of the Solar Temple) that shows that Grace was a member.
Grace was the first actress to appear on an American postage stamp.
In the television sitcom Grace Under Fire, Brett Butler played a character named Grace Kelly.
Grace was one of 1,558 celebrities honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 8 Feburary 1960, when the Walk of Fame was started.
Had three children with Prince Rainier of Monaco: Princess Caroline, Prince Albert, and Princess Stephanie.

Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings" was played at Grace's funeral.
Grace's first royal portrait was by Ralph Cowan, for which she wore a gown by Luis Estevez gown of imported white Chantilly lace.
When she pursued her acting career in the early 1950s, Grace Kelly lived at Manhattan House, a white brick, 21-story, 10-tower complex at 200 E. 66th St. that occupies an entire city block of New York City's Upper East Side.
A street in Monaco is named for Grace: Avenue Princess Grace.
Grace had an art studio at Roc Angel where she worked on her pressed flower art.
Grace has been romantically connected to Gary Cooper, JFK, Bing Crosby, Marlon Brando, Clark Gable, Prince Aly Khan and The Shah of Iran, Ray Milland, Oleg Cassini, and William Holden, among others.
Grace was to appear in The Poppy is also a Flower, an anti-drug movie by the United Nations.
Grace was educated at Philadelphia's Raven Hill Academy and Stevens School, and at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
The American Film Institute ranked Grace as #13 in its list of all-time great female stars.
James Stewart gave the eulogy at Grace's funeral: "You know, I just love Grace Kelly. Not because she was a princess, not because she was an actress, not because she was my friend, but because she was just about the nicest lady I ever met."
Although Grace was very private and didn't even want her measurements to be made known, her comp cards as a fashion model included these measurements:
- Size: 10-12 (in 1950s dress sizes)
- Bust: 34"
- Height: 5'9"
- Waist: 24"
- Hips: 35"
- Weight: 118 lbs
- Hat: 22
- Shoe: 6B
Grace received a Weimaraner as a wedding gift from her brother Jack. She also had a poodle named Oliver and a great dane.
On 4 December 2007, an 18 Karat Gold and Diamond Bracelet-Watch, by Van Cleef & Arpels from 1949 that had once belonged to Grace, was auctioned at Sotheby's sale of Magnificent Jewels in New York. Its value was estimated to be $15,000-$20,000.

Wedding

Grace's Cartier engagement ring from Rainier featured a 10.47-carat emerald-cut diamond and two baguette diamonds mounted in platinum. She wore the ring as her character's engagement ring in High Society.
When their engagement was announced in 1956, Grace drank vodka on the rocks and Rainier had a sidecar.
Rainier gave Grace a Van Cleef & Arpels pearl necklace for their engagement in 1955. She can be seen wearing it in Van Cleef & Arpels by Sylvie Raulet on page 36.
As a wedding present, Rainier gave Grace a Van Cleef & Arpels set of a necklace, bracelet, and earrings.
The House of Creed was commissionied by Rainier to create a perfume, Fleurissimo, especially for Grace as a wedding present. Fleurissimo was subsequently worn by fellow style icons Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Madonna.
Singers Georgia Gibbs and Channing Pollock were featured performers at Grace's wedding to Rainier.
Grace carried Rev. J.M. Leleu's Bride's Manual: A Manual of Catholic Devotion with Mass for the Marriage Ceremony and the Nuptial Blessing during her wedding to Prince Rainier. The book was decorated by MGM's wardrobe department.
Grace's wedding dress was designed by Helen Rose, MGM's costume designer, who dressed Grace for High Society and The Swan.
The wedding dress consisted of a rounded collar, full skirt of ivory peau de soie, and a fitted bodice made from Brussels lace embroidered with seed pearls. The lace was over a century old and had flower designs in it.
The shoes paired with Grace's wedding dress were from Evins, New York, and were designed by David Evins.
For her wedding, Grace's hair was styled by Sydney Guilaroff.
Priscilla Kidder (a.k.a. Priscilla of Boston) designed the bridesmaids' dresses.
Famous guests at Grace's wedding included Aristotle Onassis, Gloria Swanson, and Ava Gardner.
Of Grace's wedding, fashion designer Oscar de la Renta said:
On her wedding day, Grace Kelly gave new meaning to the word icon. Her whole look, from the regal veil to the feminine lace details and the conservative gown, made her an ageless bride.
Artist and theatrical producer Gant Gaither escorted Grace to Monaco for the wedding. He wrote the book Princess of Monaco; the Story of Grace Kelly about her.
As a wedding present from MGM, Grace received her entire wardrobe from High Society, as well as her magnificent wedding dress.
Grace's bridal bouquet was of lily-of-the-valley, and the ribbons of her bouquet had small sprigs attached to them. She left the bouquet on the altar of the Chapel of St. Dévote after the wedding.
Grace's matrons of honor carried bouquets of tea roses, and the flower girls carried white daisies.

Fashion

Grace wore Swarovski crystals in High Society.
When Grace broke her arm, she reportedly used an Hermès scarf as a sling.
The Kelly bag, by Hermès, was renamed for Grace Kelly after she was photographed carrying one while stepping off a plane. Kelly reportedly used the bag to help conceal her pregnancy from photographers, and she reportedly owned quite a few of the bags.
Grace was notorious for purchasing accessories, mostly shoes and gloves.
The classic head-cover of a silk scarf crossed under the chin and knotted at the side or nape of the neck is universally known as the "Grace Kelly".
Grace wore a Van Cleef & Arpels tiara to her daughter Caroline's wedding.
A Helen Rose dress from High Society and a green Givenchy suit that Grace had worn to a state dinner with the Kennedys were auctioned in 2007 at Sotheby's.
For the 25th anniversary of Grace's death, six top American fashion designers--Oscar de la Renta, Carolina Herrera, Ralph Lauren, Zac Posen, Ralph Rucci and Vera Wang--created one-of-a-king gowns inspired by clothing that Grace had worn. The gowns were exhibited at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City, and auctioned off to benefit the Princess Grace Awards by Sotheby's on 24 October 2007.
In addition to these outfits, a green Givenchy sleeveless dress with matching fringed bolero jacket worn on a visit to the White House with President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy, and a Helen Rose gray-over-rose chiffon gown appliqued with rhinestones and pink and white embroidered flowers from High Society were worn.
On 15 October 2007, Estée Lauder launched their limited edition shade of lipstick--Princess Grace Coral--in honor of Princess Grace. The color was inspired by the color of lipstick she wore on her wedding day. Grace and Estée Lauder were friends.

Movies & Acting

Grace's first commercial featured her spraying a can of insecticide around a room.
Early in Grace's career, when she was auditioning for plays, many casting directors found her to be too tall (she was reportedly 5'6"-5'7").
Her first Broadway role was playing Raymond Massey's daughter in August Strindberg's The Father. Reviewer Brooks Atkinson of the New York Times wrote, "Grace Kelly gives a charming, pliable performance of the bewildered and brokenhearted daughter."
Grace was cast in High Noon after director Stanley Kramer saw her acting off-Broadway.
Grace's Academy Award acceptance speech for Best Actress for The Country Girl was very short:
The thrill of this moment keeps me from saying what I really feel. I can only say thank you with all my heart to all who made this possible for me. Thank you!
Grace lost the 1953 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress (Mogambo) to Donna Reed (From Here to Eternity).
Admissions officers at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts described Grace's voice as "nasal" and "improperly placed". She took speech classes while attending the Academy. However, even when she made it to Hollywood, many directors and casting agents still found Grace's voice quite unusual.
Grace was offered a role in Mogambo with Clark Gable and Ava Gardner, but MGM wouldn't take her unless she signed a contract. It was a seven-year contract and the first major one that Grace signed.
Grace drove a Sunbeam Alpine Sports Roadster in To Catch a Thief.
When Grace married Prince Rainier, she had not fulfilled the terms of her contract with MGM.
Served on the board of directors of Fox.
According to Hedda Hopper, Grace's Oscar win for The Country Girl over Judy Garland for A Star is Born was the closest Oscar race to date. Grace won with just six votes more than Judy.
The engraving on Grace's Academy Award reads
Academy First Award
to
Grace Kelly
for her performance in
"The Country Girl"
When she was still alive, Grace's Academy Award was on a simple table in a private living room. These days, it is kept in Prince Albert's private rooms.

Many thanks to Steph for her suggestions and trivia facts.