Grace Kelly received the journalist Pierre Salinger from ABC in Monte Carlo and left an unlikely return to the cinema on the air.
Little could Pierre Salinger have imagined when on June 22, 1982, he asked Grace Kelly how she would like to be remembered that this question would make enormous sense the following September 14, when she died as a result of injuries in a fatal traffic accident that ended his life at the premature age of 52.
The one who was Hitchcock's muse in the films Rear Window and To Catch a Thief was thoughtful about this question and she stated that "I would like to be remembered as someone who did her job well, that she was compassionate and kind." When the one who had been President John Fitzgerald Kennedy's press officer wanted to redirect the response towards the cinema, the mother of Carolina, Alberto, and Estefanía Grimaldi made an enormous exercise in humility: I don't see anything in my career that makes me stand out from the crowd. from other persons. I was very lucky, but I don't think I achieved enough as an actress to be remembered for that particular one."
Pierre Salinger, who was a senator in 1964 and Robert F. Kennedy's campaign manager four years later, weighed in on the idea of posterity and reframed the question as if I had a different life from his own, how would he choose to live it. Grace Kelly, Oscar winner for The Anguish of Living (1954): "If I could be reincarnated, I would like it to be one of my dogs, they have simple and easy lives."
Grace Kelly, was very upset with the press that made up statements and news that were not true
Salinger did a rather wry interview with Grace Kelly, all the while confronting her with her American roots and her naturalization as a European upon marrying Rainier of Monaco. One of the issues on which he influenced the most, both at the beginning of the interview and at the end, was the confrontation between what he considered the serious press and the sensationalist one, of which Kelly said he felt he was a victim.
"We have (in Monaco) a press office and media directors can call to speak to me. I will be happy to tell you if something is true or not. I don't care about negative opinions, that they say they don't like Monaco, but I'm sorry when they put words we haven't said into our mouths or quote us with things we haven't expressed. There is very little we can do about it," said the Monegasque princess.
"My husband and I are public figures and we accept it, but my children don't like it. It is difficult for them because the paparazzi follow them non-stop", recounted the former actress, who, even so, stood up for the photographers: "It is not their fault, they try to make a living, it is the editors who buy the photos. Things are invented, romances that do not exist. It is very unpleasant”, stressed Grace Kelly, who at the same time stressed the importance of press freedom: “The difference in points of view is very important. The more newspapers there are, the better, but individuals also have to take moral responsibility.
Another issue they addressed was women's liberation, to which Grace Kelly responded with words that could hardly be understood today but must be placed in their historical context: "The price of freedom and independence brings loneliness often. Alcoholism among women has increased enormously. Women should have the right to work and to choose their profession. There are many professions open to women in which they can do extremely well. I was the first woman to serve for five years on the Board of Directors (in Hollywood), it was very interesting and I enjoyed it."
She was the winner of an Oscar and the muse of Alfred Hitchcock, but she did not consider returning to the cinema
One of the dreams of Grace Kelly fans that remained unfulfilled was her return to the cinema, from which she retired in 1956 with the films The Swan and High Society, but she did not seem very interested: "I don't know. It's flattering that people think I can return to movies more than 25 years later. To do it right, it's a full-time job. It would mean a complete reorganization of my life and a very difficult decision to make. I never say never or always.
Grace Kelly also addressed the education of her children in the interview, in which there was a place for the teachings she received as an American, "adapted to what could be useful to them", and also stressed that "I have tried to expose them to the maximum possible points of view. Likewise, "we have always tried to raise our children with our adult friends, that all ages were together, it was more beneficial and fun for everyone." She also highlighted that "Monte Carlo is at certain times of the year an international meeting place and we seat many nationalities at our table."
The Monegasque princess revealed that she spoke English with her children, who had gone to French schools, a language they spoke among themselves and with their father, the remembered Rainier of Monaco: "I always surrounded my children with people who spoke English, but, In addition, two of my children speak German, two Spanish and two Italian", highlighted the actress who claimed that "most of the discipline comes from the mother, but the threat of a father weighs heavily when the children are adolescents, The father's presence is very important.
She had learned French, read and written, but she did not speak it well enough when she came to the Principality to become the wife of Rainier of Monaco, but she learned it, "by osmosis" and, above all, "by reading a lot." Very busy with the tasks of her rank, with philanthropic activities and representation in the Principality, Grace Kelly considered that time was running short for all the plans she had.
