Prince ‘saves’ Kelly house
THE Philadelphia home where Oscar-winning actress Grace Kelly grew up and accepted a marriage proposal from Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1955 is now in the hands of the royal family.
Her son, Prince Albert of Monaco, has confirmed to People Magazine that he was the recent buyer of the six-bedroom, 2.5-storey Colonial home in the city’s East Falls section.
He said in an interview on the magazine’s website that the house was “very special to our family”.
He said he was happy to have saved it “from a near certain death or development”.
The property last made headlines in 2014 when its 81year-old former owner pleaded no contest to animal cruelty charges for keeping cats and dogs in unsanitary conditions.
The prince told the magazine he planned to visit Philadelphia tomorrow as he considers plans for the home.
“We’re still trying to figure out what we’re going to do with it,” he said.
“We’re looking at having it contain some museum exhibit space and maybe use part of it for offices for some of our foundation work.”
The home was built in 1935 by Kelly’s father, John B. Kelly.
He was a three-time Olympic gold medal-winning rower in the 1920s and later a prominent businessman.
Grace Kelly left Philadelphia at age 20 for Hollywood, but remained adored by Philadelphians. The city mourned after she died in 1982 from injuries suffered in a car crash in France at the age of 52.