The Vintage Bride: Grace Kelly

Grace Kelly, a Hollywood actress known for her beauty, first met her future husband in May, 1955 at a photo shoot arranged by the studio. He was Prince Rainier III of Monaco, the reigning monarch of a country comprised of 370 acres and from one of the oldest royal families, the Grimaldis. Eleven months later, on April 19, 1956, the couple were married in a religious ceremony at St. Nicholas Cathedral by the Bishop of Monaco.


Grace Kelly pictured with her father Jack, who walked her down the aisle.

"I don't want to be married to someone who feels belittled by my success," she once said. "I couldn't bear walking into a restaurant and hearing the maitre d' refer to my husband as Mr. Kelly."

 

Grace Kelly's wedding dress was designed by Helen Rose, a costume designer for MGM. Helen Rose had previously designed costumes for Miss Kelly for her movies, High Society and The Swan. Also on hand from MGM's staff, was hairdresser Virginia Darcy.

Seamstresses hard at work on Miss Kelly's wedding dress and veil. The dress would be comprised of 100 yards of silk net, 25 yards of silk taffeta, 125 year old lace purchased for the occasion and thousands of tiny beads and pearls.

A sketch by the wedding dress designer, Helen Rose

The wedding dress was later gifted to the Philadelphia Museum of Art by Princess Grace. The following description can be found on their website:

"From the crownlike wreath topping the headpiece to the bows down the back of the graceful train, Grace Kelly's wedding ensemble is simple but exquisitely detailed. Delicate rose point lace, a type of nineteenth-century Brussels needle lace that features elaborate floral motifs, forms the bodice, which appears seamless because the lace motifs were detached from their original ground and pieced together to follow the shaping of the dress. Touches of the lace, accented with lustrous seed pearls, unify the gown and accessories. The dress itself is constructed in four complex parts: the lace bodice with an attached underbodice, skirt support, and slip; a heavily pleated silk faille skirt that incorporates a smoothing petticoat, ruffled petticoat, and foundation petticoat; a triangular tulle and lace train insert; and a pleated silk faille cummerbund.

In style and detail the dress was conceived to complement the "fairy-princess" image of the bride. Above a bell-shaped skirt of ivory peau de soie supported by three petticoats, a high-necked bodice of Brussels lace was re-embroidered so the seams would be invisible and then accented with seed pearls."

Pearl-embellished lace also covers the prayer book, shoes, and cap, which is surmounted by an orange-blossom wreath. The circular silk net veil, especially designed so that the bride's face could be seen, is decorated with appliquéd lace motifs including two tiny love birds. H. Kristina Haugland, from Philadelphia Museum of Art: Handbook of the Collections (1995), p. 100.

 

The shoes were designed by David Evins. They were made from leather and accented with seed pearls, glass beads, silk lace and silk faille. Check out Grace's name inside the shoe.

 

"On her wedding day, Grace Kelly carried a small bouquet of lilies of the valley and this specialized missal, whose full title is Bride's Manual: A Manual of Catholic Devotion with Mass for the Marriage Ceremony and the Nuptial Blessing. The gilt-edged book, filled with prayers, hymns, meditations, and information in accordance with recent pontifical decrees, was a gift to the bride from a longtime friend of the Kelly family, Mrs. John F. McCloskey of Chestnut Hill. It was sent to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to be decorated with silk, lace, and seed pearls to match the wedding dress." -Philadelphia Museum of Art

Grace's sister Peggy was the matron of honor and there was an additional six bridesmaids along with four young ladies and two young gentlemen as wedding party attendants.

 

The bridesmaids' dresses were yellow organdy and designed by Joseph Hong for Neiman-Marcus and made by Priscilla of Boston.

 

 

"The bride's favorite color, yellow, was chosen for the bridesmaids' dresses; the shade, called "Sunlight," provided a pleasing contrast to the grayness of Monaco's cathedral. Made of sheer silk organdy over a built-in strapless taffeta underdress, the dress features a high neck, pleated sash, full bishop sleeves, and a wide, petticoat-supported skirt that flows gracefully into a short train.

"This dress, worn by Grace Kelly's oldest niece, is supported by a yellow organdy underdress with three skirts. Sprigs of machine-embroidered daisies enliven the sheer white organdy fabric, and the daisy theme was continued by the small daisy bouquet and by the halo of daisies, which was substituted for the hat depicted on the flower girls in the original design."  -Philadelphia Museum of Art

 

Prince Rainier wore his royal uniform of Monaco complete with sword, which they later used to cut their multi-tiered wedding cake.

 

The happy couple were driven through the streets of Monte Carlo in a Rolls Royce convertible as thousands of well-wishers lined the way for the newlyweds.

 

 

 

Prince Rainier and Princess Grace remained married until her untimely death in 1982 from an automobile accident. Prince Rainier never remarried and passed away in 2005. The couple had three children: Caroline, Albert and Stephanie.

 

Thanks for your visit today. Please join me next Sunday for another Vintage Bride.

The Vintage Bride: Scarlett O'Hara

Today's vintage bride is the fictional heroine of Gone With The Wind, Scarlett O'Hara.

Scarlett O'Hara, at the young age of 16, married Charles Hamilton in the spring of 1861. The Civil War had just begun and beaux were marrying their young ladies before heading off to war.

Scarlett's entire wedding happened two weeks after she said yes to Charles' proposal. Her mother, Ellen, wanted her to wait, but her father, Gerald, agreed to the short engagement.

Gerald and Ellen O'Hara with their daughter Scarlett and new son-in-law Charles Hamilton

Ellen had wrung her hands and counseled delay, in order that Scarlett might think the matter over at greater length. But to her pleadings, Scarlett turned a sullen face and a deaf ear. Marry she would! And quickly too. Within two weeks.

Learning that Ashley's wedding had been moved up from the autumn to the first of May, so he could leave with the Troop as soon as it was called into service, Scarlett set the date of her wedding to the day before his.

Scarlett has eyes only for Ashley
Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland, Thomas Mitchell, Barbara O'Neil, Vivien Leigh and Rand Brooks

In the midst of this turmoil, preparations went forward for Scarlett's wedding and, almost before she knew it, she was clad in Ellen's wedding dress and veil, coming down the wide stairs of Tara on her father's arm to face a house packed full with guests... [with] hundreds of candles flaring on the walls... and Ashley, standing at the bottom of the steps with Melanie's arm through his.

It's hoopless dresses in this publicity shot for GWTW.

In the book, Scarlett and Charles were married the day before Ashley and Melanie's wedding was to occur. In the movie, the wedding days were reversed.

From the movie:
Melanie (kissing Scarlett) Scarlett, I thought of you at our wedding yesterday and hoped yours would be as beautiful. And it was.
Scarlett (like a sleepwalker) Was it?
Melanie (nods emphatically) Now we're really and truly sisters.

Leslie Howard as Ashley with Vivien Leigh as Scarlett

Barbara O'Neil as Ellen O'Hara

Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O'Hara

In the book and movie, Scarlett wears her mother's wedding dress. Since the engagement was so short, there was no time to alter the gown before the wedding. Walter Plunkett, the costume designer for Gone With The Wind, took this into consideration when creating the wedding dress. He fitted the dress to Barbara O'Neil's measurements, so that viewers of the movie could see the improper fit on the current bride, Scarlett.

Reproduction of Scarlett's wedding dress-- front view

Reproduction of Scarlett's wedding dress-- back view

Italicized quotes are from the book, Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell

The Vintage Bride: Jill Esmond

On July 25th, 1930, Jill Esmond officially became the first Mrs. Laurence Olivier. Jill, a British actress, was 22 years old and her bridgegroom, Larry, was 23. Jill Esmond came from acting royalty. Her mother was the famous stage actress and suffragette, Eva Moore. Her father was the actor, playwright and manager, Henry V. Esmond. Together, Eva and Henry were the royal couple of the British stage.

The bride's parents, Eva Moore and Henry Esmond

Jill and Larry first met in 1928 when they co-starred in the play, Bird in Hand: Olivier played a squire's son and Jill played an innkeeper's daughter, his romantic counterpart. In 1929, the couple found themselves separated by an ocean. Jill had traveled to New York City with the play, Bird in Hand, while Olivier remained in London.

After being separated for a few months, Olivier was given the opportunity of starring in a play called Murder On The Second Floor, to be produced in New York City. Olivier recalled,  I managed to find a chance to play in New York and I jumped at it. The show- Murder On The Second Floor- only lasted five weeks. But I got to see Jill.  Once reunited in NYC, the couple decided to select Jill's engagement ring together and purchased the ring from Tiffany's.

In 1932, Silver Screen magazine ran a super sweet article on Jill and Larry (whom they referred to as Lorry). They included the following details on the Oliviers' wedding, which is basically one of the fluffiest things I've ever read. Here's the excerpt:

On or about July 11, 1930, A.D., Jill and Lorry were sitting on a river bank at the country estate of some friends. There were birds in the trees. The grass was green. The river whispered lazily by them. The sun was at its zenith and all was tranquil. Lorry suddenly turned to Jill.

"All this gadding about," said he, "is silly. We've got to be married."

"That's a noble idea," replied Jill. "When?"

Lorry counted the days on his fingers. There was work in the offing, and it looked as if their honeymoon would be molested by the fall openings.

"Say two weeks," said Lorry.

"Two weeks," said Jill.

They were married on July 25 and there were TWO bishops on hand- the wedding was very fashionable- and the guests were notable. Followed the honeymoon.

"No more being separated," said Lorry.

"Right'o," said Jill

And two very brave young people, both in a profession which is legendary for keeping people apart, made a pledge. 

Jill and Larry were married at All Saints, located on Margaret Street in London. The ceremony was officiated by Bishop Perrin. Jill's brother, Jack Esmond, drove her to the church, but it was her mother, Eva Moore, who walked her down the aisle. Jill's father had sadly passed away in 1922.

Jill's floor-length wedding gown was made from parchment satin and featured an embroidered sweetheart neckline with side ruching and long, fitted sleeves. Her tulle veil flowed from her art deco headdress, made in part from cream-colored pearls. For Jill's formal wedding portrait (above), she's photographed with a small bouquet of lilies secured with ribbon. For the actual wedding, she carried a larger bouquet of what appears to be daisies accented with fern leaves and wrapped in tulle.

Laurence Olivier rented his morning suit for the wedding, which featured striped pants, a dark colored jacket with a lighter shade for the vest. ...He looked a complete Charley in hired morning clothes: sleeves too short and trousers failing to hide his actor's love of costume: white spats [black and white shoes]. A button hole marched with a pointed pocket handkerchief- gaudy but not neat. He was the proudest of grooms, his brow nobly plucked by Jill, and his Ronald Colman moustache his hour consuming pride, and the bride he had first proposed to almost two years before was his for ever. -Tarquin Olivier on his parents' wedding, from My Father Laurence Olivier

Eileen Clark had the distinction of being maid of honor. She and the little girl, who attended to Jill's train, both wore short-sleeved dresses, leaf green in color, with matching necklaces. The best man was Denys Blakelock.

Newspaper clipping

The happy couple greeting guests at their reception

After the ceremony, the reception was held in the garden at Eva Moore's home at Whitehead's Grove. The couple were to honeymoon at the house of a friend of Eva's at Lulworth Cove in Dorset, right on the sea.

Larry and Jill had only one son together, Tarquin, born in August, 1936. The Oliviers' marriage came to an end, in 1937, when Larry left Jill and moved into Durham Cottage, in London, with Vivien Leigh. The couple later divorced, in 1940. This was Jill's only marriage, but the first of three for Olivier.

The Vintage Bride: Suzanne Holman Farrington

Wedding bells rang for Suzanne Holman, the only child of Vivien Leigh and her first husband, Leigh Holman, on Friday, December 6th, 1957. The lucky groom was Robin Farrington, a 29 year old insurance executive.

The couple, reunited after Suzanne's vacation with her parents, discuss engagement rings.

Robin, on meeting Vivien Leigh for the first time, said,  "I was very nervous, and as she came into the drawing room I walked forward to shake her hand. Unfortunately, the cat inserted itself onto my toe and I have never done such a good rugger conversion. The cat flew across the room. It was a very bad beginning."


Suzanne and Robin's wedding invitation. Photo courtesy of Kendra Bean at VivandLarry.com

Hundreds of wedding invitations were sent out to family, friends and colleagues. The invites read:
Mr. Leigh Holman and Lady Olivier request the pleasure of your company at the marriage of their daughter Suzanne Mary Holman to Mr. Robin Neville Farrington, at Holy Trinity, Brompton, on Friday, December 6th at 3pm and afterward at [the Hyde Park Hotel for the reception].

Recipients were asked to RSVP to Lady Olivier at her Lowndes Cottage, in London.


Suzanne arrives at Holy Trinity

The wedding took place at Holy Trinity, Brompton, in London. Suzanne arrived with her father, Mr. Leigh Holman, while Vivien arrived separately with Sir Laurence Olivier.

The bride wore a long-sleeved, chapel train wedding gown, with a slight V-neck. The dress featured bows on both the right and left sides. Her short, curly hair was topped with a small circular crown, trimmed in white flowers, with a long veil attached. Suzanne's father walked her down the aisle as approximately five hundred wedding guests looked on; the bride's face covered by her veil.

Mr. and Mrs. Robin Farrington

Suzanne carried a cascading bouquet and what appears to be a small bible during the ceremony.

The Happy Bride

After the wedding, guests were invited to attend the reception at the Hyde Park Hotel. Since this was an afternoon wedding, only champagne was served at the reception, and of course, wedding cake.

Vivien Leigh with her first husband, Leigh Holman

Vivien wore a leopard-pattern coat, topped with a fur scarf. The pattern had been hand-painted onto the silk coat. One newspaper said that Vivien's outfit put all the mink coats and smart costumes in the shade. The gentlemen were dressed in morning suits with striped pants, light colored vests and dark jackets.

First couple unknown (probably relatives of the Holmans or Farringtons), Leigh Holman, Vivien Leigh, Gertrude and Ernest Hartley and partial side view of Laurence Olivier

The newspaper reporters made quite a fuss over the fact that Sir Laurence attended. At the reception, Olivier stayed in the background and was quoted as saying, "I'm staying out of the limelight on this occasion. This is Suzanne's day. She and her mother and her father are what you might call 'on-stage.' I'm just taking it quietly in the wings."

Suzanne and Vivien at the wedding reception

Suzanne was quite happy that Sir Larry attended, "I'm so glad that both my father and stepfather came. I don't find it at all unusual, just very good fun."

Sir Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh

Suzanne and Robin enjoyed a long union and remained married until Robin's death in June, 2002, leaving Suzanne a widow. Together, they raised three sons and were grandparents several times over.



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The Vintage Bride: Vivien Leigh, Part Two

When Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier first met, they were both married to other people: Vivien had married Leigh Holman, a barrister, in 1932 and Olivier had married Jill Esmond, an actress, in 1930. After carrying on an affair for some time, Vivien and Larry finally decided to leave their respective spouses and move in together, in 1937. However, they weren't able to obtain divorces from Leigh Holman and Jill Esmond for another three years.

Marriage rumours started following the couple around as early as September, 1939. Photoplay jumped on the wedding train, too, with this imaginative drawing of what Vivien Leigh should wear for the ceremony. They called it a navy blue with pink accents, dinner costume of faille taffeta that will be a stunning addition to any trousseau after the ceremony. 

"I feel that when a man loves a woman and vice-versa, there isn't much sense in keeping it quiet," Vivien Leigh said in a newspaper interview. In January, while Vivien was vacationing at Lake Arrowhead, the divorce proceedings finally began.

Vivien's mother, Gertrude Hartley, weighed in on the future Oliviers, "After the divorces, they will be happy as larks. They adore each other. After all, that's all that anyone can demand from life."  Olivier and Leigh's respective divorces became absolute later that year in August.

"To us it is apparent that we are planning to marry fairly soon," said Olivier.

Now that they were officially divorced, they could, at last, become Mr. and Mrs. Olivier. Vivien and Larry decided to keep their upcoming marriage, and all of its details, a secret. The only people who knew in advance were Ronald Colman and his wife, Benita Hume. Benita even went to her jeweller and purchased Vivien's wedding ring, as a ring for herself, so as to not arouse suspicion for the happy couple. Garson Kanin was then drafted as best man and Katharine Hepburn as maid of honor.

On Thursday night, August 29, Vivien, Larry, Garson Kanin and Katharine Hepburn drove to Santa Barbara. The ceremony was held at the San Ysidro resort ranch belonging to Ronald Colman and/or Mr. and Mrs. Al Weingand (I've never looked into the ownership of the ranch, so depending on which newspaper article or biography you read, the owner somewhat varies).

As soon as Thursday became Friday, at 12:01 am on August 30, 1940, the couple were married by Judge Fred Harsh. They exchanged wedding vows outside, in the garden, facing east toward England.

"Larry and I sat talking about whether or not we really should get married and then we arrived and stood outside in the open air facing England and it was one minute past midnight and we were married. The service was cut so short by the judge that all we did was to say the 'I do's,'  I wanted to say 'I love, honour and obey' and I kept complaining that the judge was cutting my best lines but all he said was 'I now pronounce you man and wife. Bingo!’" -Vivien Leigh

Apparently, Olivier had told Judge Harsh that they wanted a very short ceremony. "Okay. I'll give you the shortest ceremony you ever saw," the Judge reportedly replied.

According to Katharine Hepburn's biographer, Christopher Andersen (An Affair to Remember), the ceremony itself lasted for only three minutes. "The justice of the peace, by now thoroughly sloshed, kept calling Vivien 'Lay' and the groom 'Oliver.'" 

Strangely enough, though they'd been part of the wedding planning, the Colmans didn't attend the nuptials. Instead, they went out on their yacht and waited for the newly married Oliviers to join them. The happy couple didn't arrive until after 3:00 am and then celebrated with a small white cake and champagne. Vivien and Larry spent their honeymoon on the Colmans' yacht before returning to Hollywood.

One reason, that Vivien and Larry snuck away from Hollywood for their wedding, was to avoid the hoopla they thought the press would bring to the ceremony. However, they did such a great job of hiding their elopement, they began to fear that no one would discover their secret.

In 1960, Ronald Colman recalled the events of that weekend. He reported that the newlyweds were slightly anxious that their nuptials had yet to be reported on the radio.

“By 9 o’clock (in the evening on August 31st) we might have been described as definitely fidgety. After all, there’s not much point in having a secret the other fellow doesn’t want to know.

‘We certainly pulled it off, didn’t we?’ I said.

‘We certainly did,’ said Larry gloomily, downing some apple pie.

“At 10 o’clock, thank goodness, the story broke and thinly disguised relief was plain on every face.

‘Too bad,’ said Larry heartily.

‘Too good to last,’ sighed Vivien, with an incandescent smile.

‘Well, that’s the way it goes,’ remarked Benita wittily. After that, we had a very happy ending.”

The Oliviers had nothing to worry about as word of their nuptials had been reported earlier in the day in the newspapers. By the time the couple returned to Hollywood, they had made headlines around the world and were greeted with a press conference, from which these pictures originate. The caption on the above picture reads: Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh having won freedom from former mates say it with smiles as Mr. and Mrs. O. Honeymoon is now over.

Read about Vivien's wedding to Leigh Holman here.
Read about Olivier's wedding to Jill Esmond here.

Next Sunday's vintage bride will be Vivien's daughter, Suzanne Holman Farrington.


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