Trivia

Ian Fleming modeled the James Bond character partially with Grant in mind.

Gave serious consideration to retiring in 1953, because he believed the success of Marlon Brando and Method acting meant his own kind of acting was a thing of the past. Eighteen months later he was lured back to make To Catch a Thief (1955), and therefore delayed his retirement until 1966.

Maintained a year-round suntan to avoid wearing makeup.

Remained close to Barbara Hutton's son Lance Reventlow after their divorce. The boy regularly stayed with Grant on some weekends. Grant referred to him as his son, was devastated when he died in a plane crash and helped Barbara with the funeral arrangements.

He gave his entire fee for The Philadelphia Story (1940) to the British war effort.

In later years, he said the character he played in Father Goose (1964) came closest to his real self.

In 1968, he and Michael Caine were walking together and a fan approached them, only recognizing Caine. At the end of the conversation the fan turned to Grant and commented how accommodating today's film stars are with the public, to which Grant nodded in agreement.

Although he became a Paramount Pictures contract player early in his film career, when the contract was up he made an unusual decision for the time: he decided to freelance. Because his films were so successful at the box office, he was able to work at any studio he chose for the majority of his career.

One of his favorite poems was a bit of doggerel: "They bought me a box of tin soldiers,/I threw all the Generals away,/I smashed up the Sergents and Majors,/Now I play with my Privates all day.".

Donated his entire salary for Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) ($100,000) to the U.S. War Relief Fund.

Became a father for the first time at age of 62 when his fourth wife Dyan Cannon gave birth to their daughter Jennifer Diane Grant (aka Jennifer Grant) on February 26, 1966.

Ran away from home at age 13 to join a mime troupe. His father tracked him down and brought him home, but he ran away again and rejoined the troupe.

Became seriously sick with infectious hepatitis and jaundice in 1948, and doctors gave him a less than 10% chance of survival. The problem was the damage that years of heavy drinking had done to his liver. Grant took more than six months to recover.

Was largely self-educated, as he had dropped out of school at age 14. However, he was a voracious reader throughout his life.

Initially decided to end his 1953 retirement just to make To Catch a Thief (1955). When the film proved to be a huge success, he agreed to make further films.

Once phoned hotel mogul Conrad Hilton in Istanbul, Turkey, to find out why his breakfast order at the Plaza Hotel, which called for muffins, came with only 1-1/2 English muffins instead of two. When he insisted that the explanation (a hotel efficiency report had found that most people ate only three of the four halves brought to them) still resulted in his being cheated out of a half, the Plaza Hotel changed its policy and began serving two complete muffins with breakfast. From then on, he often spoke of forming an English Muffin-Lovers Society, members of which would be required to report any hotel or restaurant that listed muffins on the menu and then served fewer than two.

Often spoke of his relationship with Sophia Loren as one of the most passionate romances in his life. She was almost 31 years his junior.

The late Christopher Reeve said that he based his portrayal of Clark Kent in the "Superman" films on Grant in the early part of his career.

Unlike several other major movie stars in his day, including James Stewart, John Wayne, Gary Cooper, etc., Grant never went bald and never needed to wear a toupee. Although he did dye his hair back to its natural black color when it started to gray in the 1950s, when he retired from acting in the 1960s he stopped dying it and his hair was all white by the time of his passing.

Thanks mainly to the strength and physical dexterity he gained as an acrobat when he was young, he did a majority of his own stunts during his film career (far more than people would think).

Turned down the role of James Bond in Dr. No (1962), believing himself to be too old at age 58 to play the hero. The role went to Sean Connery instead.

Held a press conference announcing his retirement from acting early in 1953, saying he was very angry over Hollywood's treatment of director Charles Chaplin, who had recently been blacklisted for his liberal political beliefs.

In His Girl Friday (1940), his character remarks, "Archie Leach said that", a reference to his real name.

Always cited his To Catch a Thief (1955) co-star Grace Kelly as his favorite leading lady. He attended her state funeral in 1982 and wept throughout the televised service.

Named the #2 Greatest Actor on The Greatest Screen Legends list by the American Film Institute.

Initally accepted his role in Houseboat (1958) because he was dating Sophia Loren, whom he was madly in love with. After she married someone else Grant, heartbroken, wanted to back out. He could not, but the director made sure the production was a smooth one.

Turned down the role of Prof. Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady (1964) because he felt he would either not be as good as Rex Harrison, who had originated the part on the London stage and on Broadway, or he would be accused of imitating Harrison. He told producer Jack L. Warner that unless Harrison was cast, he would not even go to see the film.

Kept himself slender and fit until he retired acting, never weighing above 180 pounds.

Was very hurt when he lost his two Academy Award nominations, particularly None But the Lonely Heart (1944), which he thought was his best performance. This is why he was so excited when he accepted his Honarary Academy Award in 1970.

If you look closely at his teeth, you'll find that he only has one incisor (front tooth). Apparently when he was a boy he knocked out a tooth while ice skating. Rather than get into trouble with his father, he opted to go to a nearby dental college and have them gradually push his other teeth together to fill in the gap. Only one person (an eagle-eyed cinematographer) ever noticed and mentioned it to him. It's described in depth in the book "Evenings with Cary Grant".

He and Charlton Heston attended a dinner at 10 Downing Street honoring the then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, whom they both greatly admired. Afterward Heston said to his wife Lydia Heston, "You know I sat next to Mrs. Thatcher." She replied, "That's nothing--I got to sit next to Cary Grant!".

From 1932-44, he shared a house with Randolph Scott, whom he met on Hot Saturday (1932). Scott often jokingly referred to Grant as his spouse. The 1940 census report shows Scott as head of household and Grant as his partner. Many studio heads threatened not to employ them together, unless they lived separately. Grant's marriage to Barbara Hutton permanently dissolved his living arrangement with Scott.

Was very close friends with Ingrid Bergman, his co-star in both Indiscreet (1958) and Notorious (1946). Grant was one of the few who supported her throughout her notorious affair with Rossellini, and while Bergman was in exile in Italy he accepted her Best Actress Oscar in 1958.

Received Kennedy Center honors in November 1981. President Ronald Reagan wrote how pleased he was to be able to honor his friend, while Grant stated that he was glad James Stewart was at the ceremony.

According to his will (dated November 26, 1984), his body was to be cremated and no funeral service held. His ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

Replaced James Stewart as hapless ad man Roger Thornhill in North by Northwest (1959). Stewart very much wanted the role, but director Alfred Hitchcock decided not to cast him because of the box-office failure of Vertigo (1958), which Hitchcock blamed on Stewart for looking "too old" and chose Grant instead, even though he was actually four years older.

Became a director of Fabergé cosmetics in 1966.

Douglas Fairbanks was his boyhood idol, with Fairbanks' "healthy" tan being the inspiration for Grant's constantly dark skin.

Hated his performance in Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), saying it was way too over the top and that it was his least favorite film.

His final appearance at the Academy Awards was in 1985 to present James Stewart with an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement.

Fell madly in love with Sophia Loren while filming The Pride and the Passion (1957) when he was 53 and she was 22. At the time Grant was still married to actress Betsy Drake and Loren was involved with 45-year-old producer Carlo Ponti, who was also married. Both men eventually separated from their wives and proposed to Loren at the same time; she chose Ponti.

Though financially well off, he was considered "tight" by his servants. They reported that, among other things, he charged fans for his autograph, marked the height of the liquor in every bottle, counted the logs for the fireplace and kept a detailed record of how much food was bought and how much was consumed. However, he was well liked by his servants and paid them very well.

On April 18, 1947, King George VI awarded Grant the King's Medal for Service in the Cause of Freedom, citing his "outstanding service to the British War Relief Society".

In 1971, fearful that Dyan Cannon would take their daughter Jennifer with her to New York and Europe, Grant filed for joint custody. When the judge ruled that Jennifer should remain in California with her father, taking time out to visit her mother, he was jubilant. He could plan to spend every evening waiting for her to come back from school and every weekend teaching her to ride a horse. Within eight weeks he had sold the rights to his last films with Universal for more than $2 million. Operation Petticoat (1959), The Grass Is Greener (1960), That Touch of Mink (1962) and Charade (1963) were all included, as was Penny Serenade (1941), the only one of his earlier films to which he still retained the rights. He had no more connection to the movie business. He invested in a property development in Malaga in southern Spain and another near Shannon in Ireland.

People were surprised by his retirement in 1966 and, despite the attempts of directors as important as Howard Hawks, Billy Wilder, and even Stanley Kubrick to get him out of retirement and into their films, he never worked again.

Was a great fan of Elvis Presley and attended his Las Vegas shows. He is seen discussing Elvis' performance with him backstage during the closing credits of Elvis: That's the Way It Is (1970).

Always wore a gold chain around his neck with three charms attached. The three charms represented the religions of each of his former wives: a St. Christopher for Virginia Cherrill (Roman Catholic), a small cross for Barbara Hutton and Betsy Drake (Protestants), and a Star of David for Dyan Cannon (Jewish). (Donaldson).

John Cleese's character in A Fish Called Wanda (1988) was named "Archie Leach" after Grant's real name.

He strongly disliked Method acting and never played a villain.

Holds the record at the Radio City Music Hall as its leading star--27 films for a total of 113 weeks. Fred Astaire is the runner-up with 16 films for 60 weeks.