Grace Kelly: 30 Years Later

30 years ago, today Grace Kelly (Princess Grace of Monaco) died in a tragic car accident. It’ll show pictures of Grace and her life as a Princess of Monaco.

Grace was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA on November 12, 1929, by the name, Grace Patricia Kelly. She was born to John B. Kelly, Sr. and Margaret Katherine Majer. She grew up as Catholic and are of Irish and German descent. While attending an Academy, Grace modeled fashion, at the age of 12 she played the lead in ‘Don’t feed the Animals’.

Grace’s father didn’t approve of her dream of acting, although, she pursued her dreams. Grace was given an interview with the school administration officer, due to her uncle. Grace made her movie debut in 1951, ‘Fourteen Hours’. She was noticed by Gary Copper and starred her in, ‘High Noon’. After her films, her acting career took off.
Grace was heading to the 1955 Cannes Film Festival. There she was invited to participate in a photo session at the Palace of Monaco with Prince Rainier III. After many delays and complications, Grace finally got to meet Rainier in Monaco. She left Monaco and came back to America, where she worker on another film, ‘The Swan’. Rainier and Grace, privately, became corresponding to each other.
In December, Rainier came to America on a tour, although many people thought that he was looking for a wife. A interviewer asked if he was seeking a wife, he answered, “No.” Rainier met Grace’s parents and three days later, he proposed, Grace accepted and the families began which was called, “The Wedding of the Century.”

Grace and Rainier both had civic and religious weddings. The 40-minute civic ceremony took place in the Palace Throne Room of Monaco on April 18, 1956. The next day, the religious wedding was held at Monaco’s Saint Nicholas Cathedral. Grace’s Wedding dress was created by MGM’s Academy Award-winning, Helen Rose.
Grace gave birth to her first daughter, nine months and four days after the wedding. A little over the year later, they announced the birth of their second child and first son, Prince Albert. 7 years later, they had another child, Princess Stephanie.
Grace was also a member of the International Best Dressed List since 1960.

On September 13, 1982, while driving with her daughter, Stephanie, to Monaco from their home country: Roc Agel, on the French side of the border, Grace suffered a stoke. Which caused her to drive her Rover p6 off the side of the road and down a mountainside. Grace was pulled alive from the wreckage, but had suffered serious injuries and being unconscious. She died the following day at the Monaco Hospital, later called “The Princess Grace Hospital Center” in 1985. Stephanie suffered only minor bruising, although it later emerged that she had suffered serious cervical fracture.