What can I say about a man such as Cary Grant? He's acted in dozens upon dozens of movies and had hit after hit from the 40's on. As I spoke with a close friend about the various Cary Grant movies I've seen I never realized just how many I've seen! He's so well rounded with his acting, doing comedies, dramas, suspense, and romance without breaking a sweat. He has a charm about his stance and his voice that make women swoon and men want to be him.
If I could have the personality of any actor, past and present, I'd probably want it to come closest to Cary Grants. Unlike Fred Astaire & Gene Kelly who had to dance or Bing Crosby & Frank Sinatra who had to sing, to get their women, Cary never had to do anything of that. He did more to move a woman to fall in love with him just by the way he looked at her. Just watch any of the movies I've seen (listed in released order) below and you'll know exactly what I mean. I've taken the liberty of including the leading lady he acted beside. I don't think there was any woman of his acting era who he didn't get to easily sweep off his feet. He is truly every man.
She Done Him Wrong (1933) - Mae West
Topper (1937) - Constance Bennett
The Awful Truth (1937) - Irene Dunne
Bringing Up Baby (1938) - Katherine Hepburn
Holiday (1938) - Katherine Hepburn
His Girl Friday (1940) - Rosalind Russell
My Favorite Wife (1940) - Irene Dunne
The Philadelphia Story (1940) - Katherine Hepburn
Penny Serenade (1941) - Irene Dunne
Suspicion (1941) - Joan Fontaine
The Talk of the Town (1942) - Jean Arthur
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) - Priscilla Lane
Notorious (1946) - Ingrid Bergman
The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947) - Myrna Loy
The Bishops Wife (1947) - Loretta Young
People Will Talk (1951) - Jeanne Crain
Monkey Business (1952) - Ginger Rogers
To Catch a Thief (1955) - Grace Kelly
An Affair to Remember (1957) - Deborah Kerr
Houseboat (1958) - Sophia Loren
North by Northwest (1959) - Eva Marie Saint
Charade (1963) - Audrey Hepburn
Father Goose (1964) - Leslie Caron
Now I tell you, name another actor who has had a line-up of women like that on THEIR resume of movies? And those are JUST the movies I've seen. He's got SO many others with other leading ladies I'm sure. I hope I get to see them all! I've noticed in the beginning he did a lot of movies with Katherine Hepburn and Irene Dunne (due to contracts with the studio at the time) but his friendship with Alfred Hitchcock put him in several of his movies. Unfortunately he declined to be in my favorite Hitchcock movie, Rope, because he was rumored to be gay and felt if he were to appear in the movie then critics would have that as proof that the rumors were true. Rope is laced with homosexual undertones throughout the movie. James Stewart stepped into the role and the rest is history.
Of all the Cary Grant movies I've seen I'd have to say the ones I love the most are His Girl Friday, The Bishops Wife, Arsenic and Old Lace, and Bringing Up Baby. They are all truly great but these four are by far my favorites. I can watch them each every single day and never get tired of them.
Which Cary Grant movie(s) have you seen?
Did you read the recent book written by his daughter? I believe she address the gay rumors, among other things.
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