Princess Grace Kelly’s Candid Comments in Final Interview Before Car Crash That Took Her Life

Grace Kelly’s life may have looked like a storybook romance from the outside, but the Oscar-winning actress-turned-royal made it clear she didn’t see it that way. In one of her interviews, published in April 1982, just five months before her death, the Princess of Monaco reflected on her choices, her struggles, and why she rejected the idea of a “fairy tale” life.

Grace Kelly Reflected on Her Hollywood Exit and Life in Monaco

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Kelly became a household name in the early 1950s, starring in classics like “Rear Window” and winning an Academy Award for “The Country Girl.” But just as her Hollywood career was peaking, she made a decision that stunned fans and the film industry alike. At 26, she walked away from acting to marry Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956. The couple went on to build a family together, welcoming three children: Princess Caroline, Prince Albert, and Princess Stéphanie.

Despite constant speculation that she might someday return to the screen, Kelly dismissed the idea in her People cover story.

“To act, to have a career, and do it well, you have to do it completely, and I don’t have the time for this,” she said. “I did enjoy and take pride in my work as an actress, yet I’m bemused by suppositions that my life since has somehow been less fulfilling. That certainly is not the case.”

She also pushed back against the notion that her royal life was charmed. “I certainly don’t think of my life as a fairy tale,” she told the magazine. “I think of myself as a modern, contemporary woman who has had to deal with all kinds of problems that many women today have to deal with. I am still coping — trying to cope.”

The Princess of Monaco on Family, Privacy, and Her Legacy

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The April 1982 interview also showed a fiercely protective mother. Kelly refused to comment on her daughter Caroline’s divorce, insisting that her children’s personal lives were not for public discussion.

She did, however, share that becoming a grandmother was something she looked forward to. “Being a grandmother would be an exciting experience,” she said.

She wasn’t afraid to express her frustration with how the media portrayed her, calling an ABC TV movie about her life “icky and revolting.” “All you have is your name and your reputation,” Kelly said. “When people try to take that away, you are naturally going to resist.”

Just months later, on September 13, 1982, Kelly suffered a stroke while driving near Monte Carlo, causing her car to plunge off a mountainside. She died the next day at age 52. Her daughter Stéphanie, then 17, was in the car and survived.

Though she never met them, Kelly’s 11 grandchildren still honor her memory. They affectionately call her “Mémé des anges,” or “Grandma of the Angels.”

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