High Society: The Life of Grace Kelly »

DONALD SPOTO is the author of twenty-five books, including bestselling biographies of Alfred Hitchcock, Tennessee Williams, Laurence Olivier, Marlene Dietrich, Ingrid Bergman, and Audrey Hepburn. He earned his Ph.D. degree from Fordham University. Spoto is married to the Danish school administrator Ole Flemming Larsen; they live in a quiet village, an hour’s drive from Copenhagen.

Drawing on his unprecedented access to Grace Kelly, bestselling biographer Donald Spoto at last offers an intimate, honest, and authoritative portrait of one of Hollywood's legendary actresses.

Publishers Weekly

In bringing noted film historian Spoto's biography of the late actress and monarch to life, George K. Wilson takes a natural, understated, unfussy approach in keeping with Kelly's own performing technique. Given Spoto's background, it comes as no surprise that the material focuses largely on Kelly's professional career, downplaying salacious elements of her celebrity. Wilson, therefore, must confine his displays of emotional fire to a few key points along the journey. Noteworthy characterizations include the legendary director Alfred Hitchcock—who viewed Kelly as his muse—in all of his gruff eccentricity and the brilliant but notoriously tyrannical filmmaker John Ford. Wilson also scores in his portrayal of Kelly's demanding parents, who discouraged her interest in show business. A Harmony hardcover (Reviews, July 13). (Jan.)

Introduction 1

Pt. I Fade-In (1929-1951)

1 Off the Main Line 11

2 The Student Model 35

Pt. II Action (1951-1956)

3 Less Is More, Or Not 59

4 L'affaire Gable 91

5 Over the Moon 109

6 Friends and Lovers 141

7 Climbing Over Rooftops 169

8 Crisis 187

9 Playing the Princess 209

Pt. III Fade-Out (1956-1982)

10 High Society Rearranged 231

Notes 275

Bibliography 287

Index 291