I was in the audience at Grant's 1984 Clearwater, FL show, "A Conversation with Cary Grant." He was 80 years old at the time, looked 65, and sat on a 3-legged stool with no back, not a high-backed chair like in this miniseries. After showing clips from his films, he took questions from the audience. You could tell he'd been asked the same questions in previous shows because he had instant answers for everything.
Then I said to him, "Mr. Grant, in my opinion, you are the epitome of true class!" He thanked me as the audience applauded. I asked, "Mr. Grant, in your lifetime you've been blessed in many ways, both financially and emotionally. What I would like to know is, what is the one thing you always wanted in life but never got?"
He instantly jolted backwards like somebody had punched him in his chest. The audience was deadly silent. He frowned and stared at me for a good 10 to 15 seconds. I really thought I had angered him! It was the only time in the 90 minute show that he frowned, looked angry, or was at a loss for words.
Then he relaxed and said, "As you know I did not come from a large family. I have one child, a daughter." I said "Yes, Jennifer who's in her senior year at UCLA." He smiled and seemed pleased and said, "Oh you know about her? The one thing I always wanted but never got was a very large family. Nobody's ever asked me that before. Thank you for asking!"
At that moment, I felt I'd made a true connection with the man. I also felt bad for his wife, Barbara Harris Grant, who at 33 was 47 years younger than him and sitting in the audience, because he never had any children with her. I will never forget that night and my time with him !
