Cary Grant was known for many things: his dashing good looks, iconic accent, and his ability to act in both comedies and dramas.
Later in life rumors swirled about his sexuality, and those rumors would follow him even after his death in 1986.
But in a recent interview with The Guardian, his daughter Jennifer is setting the record straight and debunking the rumors about her legendary father.
“He wasn’t flirtatious with men,” the only child of Grant said.
Jennifer spoke with The Guardian ahead of the ITV series premiere of Archie, which is based on the early life of her father.
“If you’re around your parents a lot, you see them in ways that almost no one else does. And I never saw a hint of that,” the Beverly Hills, 90210 actress said.
“I think I would have picked up on it – not that I would’ve cared. But I have to speak the truth of the matter: Dad was charming, and he had great friendships, but he wasn’t flirtatious with men.”
Jennifer suggested the rumors were the result of her father’s style and the characters he played, which ironically, contradicted how he was raised.
He was born into extreme poverty in Bristol, England in 1904. When he was just 11 years old his mother, who lived with mental illness vanished. And when he was 16 he emigrated to the United States as a stage performer.
“Dad transformed himself in a very American can-do way,” Jennifer said. “The self-made man and all that. But he was a Brit at heart, very refined and polished. Even in the way he ate. He loved his corned beef and cabbage. And crumpets. Cornflakes!”
“A friend of mine sent me a picture the other day of Gregory Peck, my father and Mervyn LeRoy and they’re good buddies. But I never got that hint.”
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Hopefully this will put all the rumors to rest.
