From master storyteller Taraborrelli comes the powerful and moving story of one of royalty's most secretive families, led by Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco, told with passion and sympathy. photos.
Once Upon a Time
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She was an Oscar-winning Hollywood actress; he the scion of Europe's longest reigning monarchy. The marriage of movie star Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier Grimaldi of Monaco (a romance ironically spawned by a chance, MGM publicity-driven photo op) was one of the 20th century's most enchanting fables come to life. Yet, in veteran Hollywood biographer J. Randy Taraborelli's retelling, (the first comprehensive chronicle of the royal couple's romance and quarter-century reign) their day-to-day struggle with romantic inertia and a legacy of familial dysfunction cast their fairy tale existence in a bittersweet light long before the 1982 automobile accident that took Grace's life.
Taraborelli's struggle to walk the fine line between the respectful biography he intends and the salacious, tell-all exposes he decries makes for occasionally awkward passages. However, the author eventually succeeds in giving his royal subjects--and the ongoing conflicts with their respective families--a familiar, all-too-human scale. --Jerry McCulley --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
The "happily ever after" marriage of Grace Kelly to Prince Rainier III of Monaco is explored and demythologized in this fascinating, compelling and well-researched royal biography. After failed romances with married co-stars (Ray Milland and William Holden) and turning down a marriage proposal from Oleg Cassini, Kelly met Rainier, the prince of a popular Mediterranean resort town who was searching for a princess he hoped would become "the manifestation of all that we hope for and dream about in Monaco." Nine months after what was called "the wedding of the century" (watched by 30 million TV viewers) in 1956, Grace gave birth to the first of their three children. Never planning to stop making films, she bowed to her husband's wishes and soon her loneliness and boredom were replaced by severe depression. The prince encouraged her to accept Alfred Hitchcock's offer of the lead in Marnie. But the subjects of Monaco objected and forced her to withdraw. Before her tragic car accident death in 1982, Grace found contentment in the life she chose. As he demonstrated in his 2002 bestseller, Jackie, Ethel, Joan: Women of Camelot, Taraborrelli is adept at illuminating political intrigue and complex family dynamics. He smoothly weaves together hundreds of exclusive interviews (in fast-paced, short chapters) to create vivid, full-blooded portraits. This is the definitive book on a marriage that started as an arrangement but ended as a love story. 16 pages of b&w photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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First Sentence
Grace Patricia Kelly was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 12, 1929, the third of four children to John-better known as Jack-Brendan Kelly and Margaret Majer Kelly. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Grace Patricia Kelly was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 12, 1929, the third of four children to John-better known as Jack-Brendan Kelly and Margaret Majer Kelly. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Allyn
Format:Hardcover
I'm one of those people who is intrigued by queens and princesses and gladly grabs up most offerings on the topic. When I first saw this book, I figured that it would contain a story as perfect as its cover. Well, not quite.
It wouldn't be fair to say that "Once Upon A Time" has no redeeming qualities. If nothing else, it seems to be the only in-print biography of Grace Kelly-which makes it somewhat valuable for anyone trying to learn about this famous lady. Also, it is written in a readable, conversational way-nothing overly "intellectual." And one certainly couldn't say that this book is completely devoid of interesting people, quotes, or happenings. The story of Grace and Ranier is definitely one that would have some fascination almost regardless of how badly it was told.
Yet as I was reading this book, I had a nagging sense that it wasn't as "unputdownable" as it should have been. I'd often feel like stopping after reading a few pages and rarely felt like I was really "getting into" the book.
Perhaps this dullness can be explained by the fact that the book was just too long. The author repeated himself frequently, seeming to resort to variations on main ideas whenever he had nothing fresh to say. (He often mentioned something similar to this throughout the first half of the book: "Although Grace was a successful career woman who seemed to have it all, she just needed her parents' approval.") Another similar problem was that the author tended to spend too much time recounting dull periods in the couple's lives. Finally, many included quotes just screamed, "That completely didn't need to be said!"
There are some enlightening passages and quotes in this book, but if you read it you'll often find the problems instead of the positives. If you're looking for a good royal biography, read "Lilibet: An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II" instead.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By N. D. Harmon
Format:Hardcover
Looking back to when I visited Monaco as a teen and toured the Pink Palace grounds, I remember hearing about what a fairytale life this American woman was having living as the Princess of Monaco. Well, this book put all those beliefs to rest. The late Grace Kelly may have been an American Princess, but happy ever after was not part of the deal. Princess Grace married Prince Rainier of Monaco merely to make her father proud. Supposedly, the "ugly duckling" of the family, Grace Kelly sought refuge in the movies by becoming an actress. Part publicity stunt and part need for attention Grace married a man she barely even knew. The few times the two were together prior to marrying they were never alone. Grace became trapped in life that didn't provide an outlet such as her acting, the love she was always seeking or the happiness that seem to escape her. Her greatest solace was her three children although three others died do to miscarriage. Princess Grace was beautiful and elegant, but very much a bird in a cage.
By C. Ronan
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I decided to purchase/read this book after reading several other books by the author J. Randy Taraborrelli. I didn't find this book as interesting as I thought I would. I don't think it was due to lack of research but probably due to getting people that knew her personally to talk, open up and be completely honest about Grace. I'm sure it was difficult to find people willing to share their private thoughts and conversations with the world in a book. She was such a national treasure both in America and in Monaco that I think the people around her and close to her want to protect her and her family. The author had mostly good things to say about Grace and Rainier. He researched her Irish heritage, talks about her immediate family, her film career, and her courtship with Prince Rainier, her early life as a Princess, life in Monaco, her marriage (which wasn't perfect), her children & relationship with Rainer, and finally her early death.
One thing that stood out most was that throughout her entire life as Princess she desperately missed her movie / acting career. She was made to give it up when she decided to marry Prince Rainier. I got a sense of sadness from the book about Grace's life. She desperatley wanted her parents approval, she gave up her beloved acting career to marry a man she didn't know (to please her father) and move to a country where she didn't know anyone or the language & culture. She was thrown into a life as a Royal with no experience. She had nothing but trouble when it came to raising her children (the girls). Overall, this book is a bit long but easy to read. It has some nice photos and was well.
One thing that stood out most was that throughout her entire life as Princess she desperately missed her movie / acting career. She was made to give it up when she decided to marry Prince Rainier. I got a sense of sadness from the book about Grace's life. She desperatley wanted her parents approval, she gave up her beloved acting career to marry a man she didn't know (to please her father) and move to a country where she didn't know anyone or the language & culture. She was thrown into a life as a Royal with no experience. She had nothing but trouble when it came to raising her children (the girls). Overall, this book is a bit long but easy to read. It has some nice photos and was well.
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3.9 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
really good
This a is a very good ind interesting book on Grace Kelly's life. I think it's well written, and some great photos and the author did a good job in writing it truthfully,... Read more
Published on Jun 19 2004 by M. J Myles
1.0 out of 5 stars
Trivial stuff--DON'T BOTHER WITH THE BOOK
This was just a regirgitation of all the other drivel written about her. Author should be ashamed to take his royalty check! Read more
Published on Jun 11 2004
2.0 out of 5 stars
Read this first
It's obvious Taraborrelli did some research - that is to be commended. However, if his research led to the picture that appears in this book, he never should have written it -... Read more
Published on May 1 2004
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once Upon a Time: Behind the Fairy Tale of Princess Grace an
A journalist and the popular biographer of such luminaries as Madonna, Frank Sinatra, and Michael Jackson now turns his focus on a supremely glamorous couple, the late Grace Kelly... Read more
Published on April 19 2004 by B. Viberg
3.0 out of 5 stars
fun, not too deep
Biography's, in general, are kind of odd- who knows how much truth you're actually getting?
I didn't know much about Grace Kelly before reading this book, aside from the fact... Read more
Published on Mar 4 2004 by lady detective
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once Upon A Time
J. Randy Taraborrelli has written a superb account of the lives of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier: Their courtship, the wedding, regrets and tribulations; and, finally, the tragic... Read more
Published on Feb 4 2004 by Toby Martin II (aka R. Howe)
3.0 out of 5 stars
Once Upon A Time: Behind The Fairy Tale of Princess Grace
This shows the more human side of royalty, and the troubled times of Princess Grace. At times the book got a little detailed on events and places, but it was still a very... Read more
Published on Feb 1 2004 by Tracey L. Pullum
3.0 out of 5 stars
Entertaining, but not a serious biography
This is typical Taraborelli -- affectionate, juicy, fun to read, and at times so impossible to believe that you have to giggle. Read more
Published on Oct 10 2003
3.0 out of 5 stars
JUST O.K.
Although the book is well written and contains some interesting passages, it ultimately becomes tedious. The pre-marriage section is far more interesting (as was Ms. Read more
Published on Oct 9 2003
4.0 out of 5 stars
Poor...poor Grace!
Let's be honest here, when Grace Kelly accepted Rainier's marriage proposal, she had no idea what life was going to be for her in Monaco, not to mention that she hardly knew the... Read more
Published on Sep 24 2003
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