The Secret That Destroyed Kay Kendall
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- Please join me in this video, The Secret That Destroyed Kay Kendall.
Kay Kendall was destined for show business with her mother a Chorus Girl, her father a dancer, and her grandmother the famous Marie Kendall - Star of the Music Hall!
Working hard at what she loved most, acting - Kay Kendall thought she had hit the big time in 1946, she did indeed find fame, but for all the wrong reasons when she found herself starring in one of Britain’s greatest box office disasters!
Kay Kendall never gave up - the show MUST go on and in 1953 she found true stardom with her outstanding performance in the iconic film Genevieve! Kay continued to enjoy a string of successes with her vivacious, light-hearted manner and vibrant lovable personality she appeared in hits including “Doctor in the House” “The Reluctant Debutante” and the Gene Kelly musical “Les Girls”
Kay’s private life was far more complicated and interesting than the plot of any movie - as she embarked on a series of on-again, off-again affairs with married men, co-stars, directors, and producers!
In 1954 Kay Kendall was working on the film ‘The Constant Husband’ where she met and fell in love with her married co-star Rex Harrison, who had his own tangled web of relationships - together they were about to face the very worst that life could throw at them - one knowingly, the other seemingly oblivious - or were they?
Please join me in remembering the exciting, exhilarating, and ultimately tragic life of one of Britain’s most glamorous and beautiful comedy movie stars, and come with me as I take flowers to the final resting place of the wild, wonderful, and funny actress Kay Kendall.
For more information on Kay Kendall, I would recommend reading ‘The Brief, Madcap Life of Kay Kendall’ by the fabulous author Eve Golden - I really can’t recommend Eve’s work highly enough - I’m not sponsored or affiliated and any opinions are my own! The book is published by The University Press of Kentucky and is available from most online bookstores including Amazon.
If you are interested in finding out more about the Kay Kendall Leukaemia Fund the link is here:
kklf.org.uk/
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Please feel free to leave comments - we have a fabulous growing nostalgia community at Beautiful Bad and Bizarre - and it's great fun with some interesting conversations!
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Shar x
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I know many people, myself included , often say how good certain videos are. And that one liner gets worn out.
This video, and the others by this maker really are very good indeed. The art work and dialogue are top class and the narration is addictive. I was only browsing through TH-cam sat with a coffee, and was totally and thoroughly entertained.
Thanks for making and posting this video.
You have absolutely made my day! Thank you so much! I’m so pleased you enjoyed the video - honestly I can’t stop smiling - THANK YOU! ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre enjoy your well deserved compliments ❤️
I do 🤭 I appreciate them immensely ❤️ thank you x
Hi Steven yes I agree with you this really is well made and very good. I was just looking at anything and came across this video. I always liked the ACTRESS Kay Kendall.
@@JoJo1946 hi Joan please forgive the late reply, they really are very good aren’t they! I seem to have gotten into a lovely Sunday routine, a coffee, some honey toast and a nice morning watching an entertaining and informative video.
I’m a 61 yo yank who first saw her in Les Girls. She was brilliant. She stood out in a cast of greats. I’ve since tried to see all of her films. It is a travesty that her life was taken so young. Thank you for the lovely tribute.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment Lori ❤️ and for watching! It’s immensely appreciated and I thoroughly agree with you Kay was brilliant! Xx
My mum and I adored Genevieve. That bit where she gets up and plays the trumpet is hysterical and, naturally, I envied her beauty and could've thought of nothing better than to wake up looking exactly like her! Thank you so much for this. I teared up when you put flowers on her grave. I really appreciate that level of respect.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment 🥰 Genevieve is superb and still so watchable! Kay was a true talent and a true beauty🌹 Thank you so much for watching ❤️
The first time I ever saw Kay Kendall was in the film Genevieve and gave a fantastic performance. A beautiful woman who was so young when she past away. I loved the history you narrated about her but I was saddened to see how neglected her grave was. It is only we older generations that remember her work and seems to have been forgotten to history.
She was truly wonderful ❤️ the cemetery is very old - Kay’s headstone was recently cleaned by the Musical Society - and someone had been there for her birthday with little laminated photos of her but sadly they were sun bleached🌹thank you so much for your lovely comment and thank you for watching ❤️
Me too, Genieveve, a good humour film and there was Kay's character, "wow, what a woman. I want one like that When I'm a man" I thought. And she played the plumpet beautifully too.
Is it wrong or creepy to have fancied a woman who died the year I was born ?
As lovely as this little cemetery was. I think the musicians and movie stars buried in Hollywood Forever Cemetery and other cemeteries in Hollywood are in settings that are well maintained and visited daily by hundreds of people and adorned with elaborate figures and monuments. I live in a small western town in the U.S. and Myrna Loy is buried here in one of the oldest cemeteries. She has a very small, plain headstone flat on the ground with just her name engraved on it, sitting very close to the lane running through the cemetery. Thank you for the lovely biography and photos of Kay Kendall, a beautiful woman who died much too young. Did anyone else notice how many times Kay’s beauty mark moved around her face in the various photos? She also was in a movie with Sandra Dee, another actress who had a tragic life but who, with her husband, Bobby Darin, gave birth to their son Dodd Darin who has lovingly kept his parents’ legacies alive.
Me too, I thought she was so beautiful and was very sad about her very early death
She and Kenneth More give "Genevieve" the bite it needs to avoid being too mushy. They completely steal the film. It'd have been nice to see their characters paired in another movie or two. I'd have loved to have seen them book into Joyce Grenfell's guest house.
Rex Harrison was married to Lilli Palmer when he started his affair with Kay. Palmer was having her own affair. Kay started to feel ill, tired, weak. Eventually, doctors discovered she was terminal with acute myeloid leukemia. Harrison loved Kay and agreed with his wife Lilli, to divorce so he could marry Kay and take care of her. He told the doctors not to tell her of her diagnosis, knowing it would devastate her and affect her personality and comedic timing. Medicine was given to her to keep her comfortable, and she was told they were vitamins. After Kay passed, Rex tried to get back with Lilli, but she was too in love with her lover and wed him.
It had been more common in previous decades to not always tell a terminal patient they were going to die because the idea was that it would cause increased depression, anxiety, and most importantly they can give up fighting to live as long as possible and make the most of their time in their final months or days. Usually, the person doesn't realize how fatal their prognosis is and so doesn't suspect and keep their energy up.
Still it wasn't fair to Kay Kendall's family or Kay herself when she became confused and unsettled. Then it went against the whole purpose.
Yes that’s absolutely true! Thank you so much for your comment and watching - it’s greatly appreciated x
As a teenager watching Genevieve I was enchanted - her comic timing was brilliant loved the trumpet scene.
it's one of my favourite movie scenes! xx
How astonishing it was that Kay thought she was sub par... What an extraordinarily beautiful woman with such an interesting life and personality, reflecting strength in challenging times for women.
Fascinating and wonderful stuff.
Thank you for your comment and for watching.
It blows me away that Rex Harrison personally received the news, alone, that Kay Kendall was terminally ill, and let Kay become increasingly sick & confused about her condition while never telling her the truth. I think people deserve to know the truth about the things that affect their bodies.
I completely agree with you! It did happen quite a bit back then - things were so different I think we don’t always appreciate how much better we have it now in that respect ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre I also can't believe - well, I guess I can - the one man said such insulting & untrue things to Kay about her appearance. I think Kay Kendall was staggeringly, stunningly beautiful. I really enjoyed your work on this video. You're really good at this.
I think personally Rex Harrison was a abstract snob as was obvious to all his friend's
Adore the film Genevieve…never knew about her siblings…I called my second eldest son Cavan as his dad’s side of the family are Irish…don’t hear of many people called it. Tragic end to her short life…surprised she had such doubts about her appearance as she was gorgeous…RIP lovely lady 🤍
@@Debbee75 Cavan is such a lovely name! It’s not one I’ve come across often! Yes Kay’s sister Kim is still alive and in her nineties now ❤️ Kay’s story is such an incredibly sad one xx thank you for watching xx
Another brilliant biography young lady. Thank you again for giving these forgotten stars a voice. I'm glad Kay is not alone and that someone who loved her is buried with her
Thank you so much Glenn! And thank you for watching! I also thought that about Kay’s brother Cavan ❤️ xxxx
How could someone have told this gorgeous woman she was ugly? She's so obviously beautiful, graceful and talented.
Someone spiteful I can only imagine! She was stunning 🌹
According to wikipedia, he and his wife Lilly Palmer agreed to a divorce specifically so he could marry Kay Kendal and look after her. I suspect he didn't tell her because he thought it was kinder than telling her the truth. People don't always do the right thing, but that doesn't mean they do it from spite.
I don’t think he did it from spite but I’m also not entirely confident about Wiki - from what I understand he and Lili were separated and she had someone else in her life who she married as soon as she divorced Rex!
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre I found a couple of sources, not just wikipedia. Sounds like Lilly was already having an affair and divorce allowed her to pursue that relationship. She ultimately married her lover. So, she was probably very happy to get the divorce. Seems Kays family were totally unaware of her terminal prognosis at least. Thinking about it, I wonder if Kay Kendal knew or didn't know. Seems extraordinary that a doctor would have let a man, not her husband know but not the patient. It is a fascinating story. Would make a lovely movie. Just had a flash back to my youth, see comment below. How times change.
I only just remembered this duscusion from my youth. I was just recalling my high school years, when a nurse came to our school and was talking about caring for the terminally ill. This was about 1975/76. I remember she said something about the dilemna of informing patients about a terminal diagnosis. Should they or shouldn't they let the patient know. The dilemna being that you could never tell how a person would cope. Some people basically just gave up and died very quickly, some died on the rough date they were given as being the end. Some decided to fight it and extended the timeline. Occasionally, they hadn't died. Maybe the dictor didn't tell her because he figured she would do better not knowing? These days there is no question.
i just wanted to say thank you for producing this wonderful, poignant, so moving and so informative film about Kay Kendall, I thoroughly have enjoyed watching it and will watch it again, thanks and all the very best, a movie fan x
Thank you so much for your beautiful comment! Reading it has made my day! ❤️❤️❤️
I was never a fan of Harrison ,he didn't have star quality in my opinion,and I have always found him creepy
Pretty much agree with you BUT I do love many of his films - however I’ve never understood ‘Sexy Rexy’ as he is often referred to 🤣🤭 and his ability to have so many beautiful women wanting to be with him - totally beyond me!
He was a bit of a cad, really.
He was!
That's your opinion, many might say the same about you.
He was a very rude and ignorant man.
The way you present these videos, is just so informative and interesting. These films should be taken up by a production company and put out on TV
I really appreciate your lovely comment thank you so much and thank you for watching! xx
When she was told she wasn't good looking enough and didn't have the talent, I was shocked.
Kay was stunning and exceptional in every movie and I'm not surprised she suffered because of that.
Perhaps it's not a good thing for most women to compare themselves to Hedy Lamarr. Hedy was both beautiful and brilliant and I imagine Kay set the bar impossibility high in that revelation.
Being dead in her early 30s is a stone cold tragedy.
I thought she was lovely and again, you've made a special tribute with this video.
Thanks.
Regards.
Sid. Xx
Same here! She struggled with her appearance until the end! Such a tragedy on many levels! Hedy Lamarr - wowzers she was beautiful! And highly intelligent too! Thank you as always for your lovely Comment Sid - very much appreciated as ever ❤️ xxxx
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre Hedley! That's Hedley! 🙂 Seriously though, Kay was lovely & whoever told her that was blind. Or gay. Or both.
I can't understand any of this. What a naturally beautiful, graceful, and talented woman. I am 59 and have loved her since I was 16. Seeing her, listening to her, and watching her move still make me feel peaceful.
WOW, SHE LOOKS JUST LIKE KIM NOVAK , THK YOU FOR SHARING KAYS BACKGROUND , OMG THE MAN THAT TOLD HER SHE WAS NOTHING , THATS HORRIBLE , GEE , WHAT A LIFE , WHAT A TRAGIC END TO A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, RIP KAY , 🙏😢💔
How that man could say that she was ugly is beyond me. I had a photo of Kay Kendal in my bedroom that I would look at most days and I thought she was beautiful. Another great video, thank you.
She was stunning! People can be strange and there is usually an ulterior motive behind nasty comments - possibly jealousy - but one thing can be certain - the executive was the one with problem - not Kay! I totally agree with you - she was beautiful ❤️🌹Thank you for your lovely comment - it’s very appreciated! ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre Yes, John Geigud once described Anthony Quayle as having a face like "Two tins of condemned veal". I've always suspected that a rejected advance was at the root of that comment.
she probably turned him down .....😂
Kay had a less than attractive nose as a young ingenue, and did eventually have a rhinoplasty. She insisted the surgeon give her “a cute upturned nose”. She was thrilled with the result. She preferred to be photographed in profile because she loved her new nose and new profile. She was stunning.
The first time I saw Kay Kendall was in Les Girls, and at 18, I was immediately in Love. I will always remember her as serenely elegant, incredibly beautiful, and the epitome of English sophistication. Best of all, she made me laugh! I still mourn her passing.
She was superb - so beautiful and talented - I agree ❤️ thank you for watching the video 🌹
Loved Genevieve, such a great family film. I’ve always found her short life so tragic. Only Rex Harrison knows why he decided not to tell Kay how poorly she was. So very sad 😢
I agree - Genevieve is such a great film! And yes - it was such an incredibly tragic situation 😢 thank you so much for watching ❤️❤️🌹
She was so young when she died, how sad, thank you once again a beautiful tribute to a wonderful lady xxx
She was - and so talented and beautiful - thank you for your lovely comment! xxxx
This actress was stunningly beautiful. To me she brings back memories of 1960s Sunday afternoons watching old movies.
Yes!!!! Sundays were always roast dinner and movie days ❤️❤️❤️
Dirk Bogarde in his autobiography, 'A Postilion Struck by Lightning' tells of a time Kay Kendall came to visit him..apparently the surgery on her nose destroyed her sense of smell, but suddenly for a brief time, she could smell again. Dirk talks of them running around trying to find things for her to sniff, and then just as suddenly, the ability disappeared. He also commented that she always dressed in honey coloured clothes.
Thank you so much - I have Dirk’s autobiography he was another wonderful star of the past!
@@BeautifulBadandBizarreDirk wrote such incredible autobiographies! I’d love a special on him, he was a deep, complicated, funny and very humane man. Love your videos Shar!
Thank you for your comment and for watching.
With a belatedly discovered gift of comedy, she was right on the brink of stardom, one of the saddest tales of "Gone too soon" ever!
I completely agree - we will never know what wonderful films/performances we have missed - thank you so much for your comment and for watching ❤️
This lady, was in part of my mother's life. My mum was on stage as part of a dance troop. Her big show was 'Babe in the woods'. Petula Clarke, started her singing with some thanks to my aunt. My grandfather, was a wages manager at Bentalls in Kingston. Petula got to perform there.
My mum has worked with a lot of silent movie stars, and Fallagan and Allen. I have all the theater programs, and photos. Interesting time.
Oh wow!!!! That’s so interesting thank you so much for sharing that! That’s absolute treasure to have those theatre programs! I collect vintage film magazines and anything associated with Diana Dors - very interesting time indeed - makes me very happy researching those years! ❤️
When I was a child in Chessington, Surrey I would walk past Petula Clark’s childhood home in Salmons Road on my way to school. Coincidentally our neighbour was a buyer at Bentalls and her granddaughter grew up to be the actress Abigail Cruttenden, who’s brother is the comedian Hal Cruttenden.
@@markshrimpton3138 My mum was born in Bond Road. My aunt lived on Tolworth Park Road. I still go up and visit my cousin. Not a fan of Kingston Town, perfer Surbiton. 😁
@@Jakki61 I had to look up those two streets as I left Chessington in 1968 for Southampton. My father worked at the Ordnance Survey opposite Chessington Zoo as was. I visited Chessington in 2012 for a funeral that was the first time since leaving.
Heard many despicable things about Rex Harrison. To be sure, he had a priblem with "Truth".
She was absolutely magnificent in the film Genevieve
She was - especially considering what she was going through at the time - Dinah Sheridan looked after her ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre That's lovely to know. Thank you!
@@ginnylorenz5265 My pleasure! ❤
A wonderful presentation - thank you! Kay's story reminds me of the wonderful American actress, Judy Holliday, who also was also not made aware of her cancer diagnosis and grim prospects, by those closest to her. Today this is unthinkable, but such were the times it seems.
Thank you so much! Oh yes Judy - totally! She is definitely one of my all time favourites ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre Would love it if you did a video of her! She was a great actress.
The guy who told her she was ugly was an absolute pisspot of a man! She was a stunner and an amazing actress! Thanks for posting. Just one thing what happened when she and Rex tried to get married the first time please?
I agree! Ahhhh well I will soon be uploading a video in Rex 🤭 he was absolutely fascinating - all will be revealed!!!! ❤️
Thank you for telling her story, beautifully done.
Thank you Kerry ❤️ and thank you watching xxxx
She was magnificent starring along with John Gregson and Kenneth more ,a great tribute you gave her.
Thank you Peter! And thank you so much for watching ❤️ I love Genevieve - it’s such a good movie and a great cast! Xx
And Dinah sheridan
It is amazing how much she was able to accomplish despite a terminal illness. She had a brief but sparkling life.
I do agree! Thank you so much for watching ❤️
Absolutely disgusting that he did not tell her. She was the only person who needed to know.
So sad.
It was a big responsibility for him to make that decision - it certainly took a lot of important choices away from both Kay and her family 😔
Different times when it was thought detrimental to the patient to be told. Difficult to apply the norms of today to yesteryear as attitudes to so many things were different - not right or wrong. Societies have now evolved as they always will.
It was decided that she couldn't handle it.
@lddixon2394 I agree, it's unfair to judge people 70 years ago by current norms.
An excellent tribute to a talented actress. Kay Kendall was wonderfully glamorous, with very beautiful eyes, and she had such style and elegance. Thank you for providing this very interesting summary of her life.
Thank you so very much for your lovely comment and for watching the video! It’s immensely appreciated! ❤️🌹
I understand Rex Harrison shielding her but that cemetery is disgracefully neglected. What an insult to Kay and everyone else interred there.
I have to be honest - I hadn’t visited before and I initially thought that - until I walked inside - it’s quite wonderful! Yes it’s a little overgrown but in a sort of nice way - it’s truly beautiful - lots of birds and squirrels - in fact it’s a little oasis of nature tucked behind busy London streets - you could be in a village graveyard rather that a sprawling metropolis! ❤️🌹
I thought it was a very beautiful graveyard. Nature was allowed to show her beauty there. Some fantastic trees. Absolutely magical place. I will go there next time I am in Hampstead.
It was a beautiful cemetery! I like that nature has taken over. Prefer that to well manicured lawns with lines of manicured graves..how depressing that would be.
@@jackiecarter5193 it was lovely - I thoroughly enjoyed walking around and reading some of the wonderful inscriptions ❤️
@@fransimms3803 it’s really quite magical! Such interesting monuments in there too - lovely artwork ❤️🌹
I received a cut out Kay Kendall doll with all the cut out clothes in 1956 Christmas stocking I just loved it and remember the tears when my mum told she died a few years later seems harsh not to have told her I guess but Rex probably thought he was sparing her some pain
She was truly beautiful to a young kid who wanted to be just like her
Ah wishful thinking
Thank you so much for sharing that memory! I didn’t know there was a cut out Kay doll - oh my goodness I bet they would be worth a small fortune today - I love things like that! ❤️❤️❤️
Wow! Vivien Leigh remained friends with her. Kay really loved Rex and he seems to have wanted her to be happy. Amazing that she got a big star and became famous herself !
Kay was such a talented actress ❤️
I LOVE the knowledge and facts you give us. I enjoy YOUR channel l thank you. 👱♀️
Thank you and thanks for watching.
WHAT A WONDERFUL STORY, LOVELY ENDING. HOPING KAY HAD FINAL RITES AND ANNOINTING TO FURTHER HER JOURNEY. THANK YOU.
Thank you so much Beryl and thank you for watching ❤️❤️❤️
Rex Harrison doesn't come out of this well was never a.lover of him or his films she was too good for him what a beautiful woman she was sad ending to her life
No I know! It’s difficult to pick out his redeeming qualities 😬🤭 Kay was beautiful and talented and I agree such a sad end ❤️🌹 thank you for watching x
What I find so tragic about these videos is seeing there resting place and how it is never looked after but a fascinating biopic
Kay's isn't as bad as some I have to say - it's was cleaned a few years back xx Thank you so much for your kind words and watching the video xx
Fascinating. Thank you so very much...
My pleasure! Thank you for watching ❤️❤️❤️
How could that idiot man call her ugly? She was gorgeous!
She was stunning I agree ❤️🥰🌹
usually means she turned him.down at some point....😂
🤭
Harrison treated her so badly! She should have left him long before.
In the 1950s there was virtually no cure for cancer.The diseased was seldom mentioned by name even amongst families .Thanks for the posting the doc on this beautiful and comic English actress.Losing my mother to the illness at a similar time (1955)and age(40) it was an unexpected emotional experience.
Oh my goodness I’m so sorry to hear you lost your mother - she was incredibly young ❤️ I completely agree with what you’ve said - I’m so glad research and treatments have come on - although still a long way to go I know xx
Thanks for posting this excellent video. Since watching some of her movies as a child, I've always had a soft spot for Kay, and often go back and watch them again. She was a beautiful, and talented actor, who deserves to be fondly remembered.
My pleasure! I’m glad you enjoyed the video ❤️ I love Kay’s films - she was truly fabulous 🥰 thank you for watching xx
I once spoke with a well known actor who I'd better not name, who worked with Rex Harrison and said he an absolute a***hole of the first order.
🤭 yes I’ve heard that too - Stanley Holloway said basically he was unbearable! Xxxx
Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to decieve... especially Rex Harrison, who was clearly a serial womaniser who cared little for the pain he caused to so many women. But there again, it takes two to tango. I know, enough of the cliches...
Thank you for a very lovely tribute with a great expressive narration to a beautiful great lady and talent! I remember when she passed away even though I was only eleven years old! Her beauty always captured this professional artist/former retired NYC fashion illustrator's eye! Gone, but not forgotten, another one who died too young, may she rest in peace~ ♥♥🌹🎭
You're so very welcome - thank you for your lovely comment and kind words - they are very much appreciated - I am so excited to hear that Kay influenced you towards such a fascinating and creative career - I love NYC so much - it was the favorite place of Marilyn Monroe - where her heart was and where she felt most at home xx
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre You're very welcome, thanks again!
12th
Thank you for a very sensitive portrayal of Kay Kendall and her very sad story.
My pleasure ❤️ thank you so much for your comment and for watching xx
Well told . I remember seeing Genevieve as a small boy years ago , loved the scene where Kay played the trumpet , i still watch it on DVD . She was a stunningly beautiful woman with a vivacious zest for life , such a sad and tragic end .
Thank you so much ❤️ Kay was adorable in the trumpet scene! She was both beautiful and talented 🥰 thank you for watching!
Thank you for putting the Rose's at Kay Kendall's grave. That was lovely.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment - apologies for such a ridiculously late response! I am just looking at my channel on the PC - usually I use my phone and for some reason I have missed literally hundreds of comments - massive apology! xxxx
I loved this video. I didn't know who Kay Kendall was, but now I do and I thank you.
Thank you so much Bebe ❤️ I appreciate your comment and thank you for watching! Xx
Who didn't fall in love with her in 'Once More With Feeling'? Sumptuous vivacity!💐
Indeed!!!! ❤️❤️❤️
She was one classy lady🌹👌, far too good for the likes of rex Harrison, apparantly coming from various sources, not a particularly nice person at All!!
She was! Hmmm I’ve not read or heard much positive about Rex it has to be said! I’m sure he had some redeeming features - I just haven’t come across them yet 🤭
I'm glad he didn't get my results when I had leukaemia. I live in hampstead and often. Pop in the graveyard
It is shocking how, in those days, doctors and relatives thought it was acceptable to hide a serious diagnosis from a patient.
I agree but I guess there was much less hope back then - treatment wasn’t as advanced as it is now - I think it’s so sad that she went through that and her family were not told - she may have chosen a different way to spend her precious last days x thank you so much for your comment and for watching ❤️
The idea of a doctor conspiring to keep a patient's diagnosis from them is hideous. So glad those days are past. The absurd situation where everyone around her seemed to know but her can be attributed to Rex Harrison; what a disrespectful blabbermouth he must've been.
He was a pretty unpleasant individual. I have no idea how he captivated so many beautiful women. He wasn't even attractive.
I totally agree - it was shocking but it did happen quite a bit back the. - things were so different and in that respect I think we’re so much better off today! ❤️
@@Victoria-wz9ub oh my goodness! That’s what I have never understood 😂 he must have had some amazing charm! I did like him as an actor though x
They treated her like a child and not the intelligent grown up she was. Just a couple of chauvinist smug men who thought they had the right just because one was a doctor and the other her bad character of a husband. And both of them males who believed they knew best.
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre I can think of two examples of men who didn't have traditional good looks but charmed the ladies. One was the often married Mickey Rooney. He knew that any Hollywood glamour gals were intimidating to men and not asked out, so he romanced them and they loved it. He said the part of marriage he enjoyed was the beginning. Another was President Lyndon Johnson. It was said he focused all his attention on a woman and made her feel she was the most important person in the room. His wife believed he was too macho for any one woman but she drew the line at his getting emotionally involved. As long as it was just a forgettable affair, she didn't mind. The weird old days?
I wasn’t aware of her but it’s clear from this fine and respectful video what a talent she was. Such a shame to die so young 😢
Thank you for watching.
Beautifully done. I'd no idea she died so young. She was a gifted and accomplished actress certainly packed a lot into her short life - in every sense.
Thank you so much! Yes she lived life at quite a pace! Thank you so much for watching ❤️🌹
That was a shock to me too. I guess because I was little I have always thought that these people were so much older than I was, and so that thinking never went away. I had no idea that Kay Kendall..who I adore to this day, was only 32 when she died. And Fran Shea was only 23. Mere children.
I know exactly what you mean! They were terribly young xx
What a beautiful tribute. Thank you. I was browsing, too and chanced upon this.
Thank you so much and thank you for watching! It’s very appreciated xx
Great video! The first time I saw a movie with Kay was The Reluctant Debutant. I always wondered why she wasn't in more movies after that and now I know. Thanks for all this wonderful information on her life.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment and for watching the video - it’s very much appreciated! Yes it’s so sad that Kay died so young - I think she would have continued to be an amazing actress and would have stacked up the credits had she if lived x
What a beautiful lady Miss Kendall was....
She was ❤️
Rex, how could you? Thoroughly unforgivable!
Oh, my. I always loved Kay in the movies I saw her in. I had no idea that her time on this Earth was so short. God rest her soul.
❤️❤️❤️
Genevieve was wonderful as she was great, memorable.
❤️🌹
I’ve got to say the research and passion you put into your work is remarkable. Well done.
Thank you so much! ❤️
I agree she had the right to make decisions for herself . I know that doing what Rex did wasn’t that uncommon as hard as it is to imagine now. I don’t think it would be as easy now there is more information on cancer and other diseases now. No matter what it’s still very sad she was very young.
I agree Kellie - it was so terribly sad and we lost a great talent at such an incredibly young age xx
I hope she atleast got to kick the producer in the nads figuratively or literally for his nastyness to her earlier.
Well she did 🤭 they were begging for her to sign up with them again and she got a contract that she dictated the terms and conditions for! ❤️🌹
What a beautiful person so sad she had such a short life may she rest in peace
Very sad 😔🌹 xx
When people say others are ugly it can affect them. Kay was no way ugly , but she was told it in such a painful way , it brainwashed her. I would like to ban all negative descriptions of people .
Yes I agree - it was such a destructive thing to say to her - but she never let it stop her from getting on with her career ❤️
I know it's not what you mean, but if you ban all negative descriptions of people how would you describe awful people?
Banning something doesn't change reality, not talking about something doesn't make it disappear, it simply means it remains hidden.
How would we tell the world about what happened in Germany during the war if you can't say Hitler and his conspirators were disgusting people?
How do you bring an end to the child abuse in the catholic church without exposing those who were guilty?
Well I woild just say they are awful.. But there looks have nothing to do with it.
@@jaidee9570 I would have been extremely cautious of these things . Speaking as some one who had a ancestors die in Auchwitz on my mothers side there are Russian Jews . And brought up Catholic, my fathers people are Irish . I would be extremely strict with both Nazis and Paedophiles. I just said that I would ban people being called out for their looks . Mmm, isnt that one of the things that the Nazis encouraged? And not all Catholic priests are peados.
Fascinating and very well put together. Thanks you so much for posting.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment and for watching xx
A really interesting video. Thank you. Even in those days actresses took a hard knock. How could anyone tell kay she was ugly ... she was extremely beautiful and what a figure she had too ....
Thank you so much ❤️ I totally agree with you - I never understand when people are so cruel to others - you can only assume they themselves are very unhappy people! Kay was so beautiful ❤️ thank you for watching! ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre will subscribe ... really enjoyed it ...🥰
I appreciate that!!! You’ve made my day - thank you! ❤️
Very well done..almost bitter sweet in a way....so much life and in the end a sweet little grave. Over grown but in a way reminds us all of our fate...RIP
Yes I totally agree with your observations ❤️
when I was going through chemo for breast cancer and didn't know if i would survive, i had a dream.. and in that dream was kay...i wasn't thinking of her, hadn't for years many many years in fact, saw no movies.. and there she was.. in the most beautiful mauve gown ....and she said " your going to be fine" and I was....it was one of he most incredible things ...I am not one crazy lady...no ESP etc....not psychic...none of that, its something I will never forget, so when I saw your video on her I had to watch...thank you.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I hope you’re fully recovered now ❤️ I know from friends and family how devastating it is to have that diagnosis and the battle to get through the treatment ❤️ I absolutely love that you had that dream and I don’t think you’re crazy! It helped you at a difficult time - I believe these things happen - there is so much more to life than we will ever understand ❤️ Thank you for watching 💐
She spoke to you and I believe that totally
Thank you. I love this program
Hello 👋 Shar. Thank you for a brilliant and poignant video 📹 about the life of the actress Kay Kendall. It was especially poignant to me as “Genevieve” was my Parents favourite 🎞 film. How tragic that she died so young at the age of 32... Her final resting place looks idyllic and peaceful. 💐🌻
Hi Alison! Thank you so much ❤️❤️🌹 Genevieve is such a marvellous film - I can watch it over and over! Well you know how I feel about John Gregson 😍🤭 Kay was a real beauty and so full of the joys of life - it’s such a tragedy that she passed away so young 😔 The churchyard is beautiful - it has a real atmosphere about it - it’s a gorgeous part of London ❤️
Very beautiful lady, no problem with her nose, she was great, could not understand why she put those patches on her face in different places, looked so much better without them.
An old theatre person decades ago said that Kay was Jewish, I have no idea why or if true, seemingly from this documentary it was not true.
RIP Kay, what a life and what an actress.
Kay was such an unusual looking actress, the nose she disliked was so distinctive and perfect for her face!
Such a shame her health was a concern for much of her brief life.
Keeping the truth from her was a decision that perhaps I wouldn't agree with but- it seems Rex Harrison chose to withhold it out of love & to 'protect' her, I think it was more commonplace a few decades back to do that.
(My grandmother was not told she had cancer and was dying- in the late 50s.)
Thanks so much for Kay's sad but beautifully told story.
I appreciated including the grave site- the very picture of what my American mind pictured an old English cemetery to look like!
Such a sad story, I hope she was very happy with RH, as it seems that was his only motivation and focus after her diagnosis.
Yes I completely agree - Kay was unique and very beautiful - and sometimes it’s the things we consider to be our flaws that set us apart and make us beautiful! ❤️ I also completely understand what you’re saying, especially given your personal experience with your grandmother - a diagnosis like Kay’s back then gave no hope - and it was common for that kind of information to be withheld from the person with the illness - I think in Rex’s case one of the biggest issues in my opinion is that he didn’t discuss it with her family - I believe Rex told the doctor she had no family! Rex is a very interesting subject himself!!! I’m so pleased you enjoyed the video - I love the USA and have also visited Westwood cemetery - there is quite a difference in cemetery style to the U.K. - it’s so interesting! Thank you again for your lovely comment and for watching! ❤️
I lost my first husband to cancer in 2014. The doctors took two months to tell him that he was dying. I was told right after one useless surgery but didn’t have the courage to tell him. Trust me, it’s very hard to tell someone you love they’re dying. I personally think it should be the doctors’ responsibilities. I felt that I could not, would not kill the only thing there was left, hope 💔😔 It was pretty obvious that he was very sick but one always expects some sorts of miracle. I know Rex Harrison had a questionable reputation. Kay loved him though and I admire and respect Kay. He probably should have told her family. I know Kim who is still alive, living in Florida, has not forgiven him and never will.
This amazing girl amazed me when I first saw 'Genevieve'...
What Kay could do with a trumpet!😂
Was unaware of her suffering and gaslighting, wee soul!😢❤
❤️❤️❤️👌 Absolutely was a gorgeous lady. Always thought her very beautiful since the first time I saw her on television,when I was a kid.
How dare that stupid man thought her not good looking!
Thank you Shar, hope you and your chihuahuas are doing great.
My mum loved Geniève as did I. Kay could actually play trumpet which is why it is even more fun. Again a great piece of history of some of our iconic and wonderful actresses and actors. Thank you for the dedication to create such valuable social history especially in a world that doesn’t understand that flawed characters have more depth. You are treasure.
Everybody should have a right to live their last moments to the fullest and do what they wish to before their passing. They robbed her from the ability to do so. Horrible.
I do agree! Xx
By the way, Kay was gorgeous! How dare people say she wasn't good looking enough. There was nothing long with her nose!
Loved her in Les Girls. Fabulous looks. Fabulous voice. I used to live in Belsize Park in in wanderings , came across the cemetery and saw her grave which was quite prominent near the entrance. Kay Kendall Harrison. Incidentally, this is also the final resting place of “The Lost Boys” and family, the Llewellyn Davies , friends of J.M. Barrie and one of them the inspiration for Peter Pan.
Yes!!!! Just in front of Kay I think - I follow @thosehappydays and I think they visited the ‘Lost Boys’ just before I was there - it’s such an interesting cemetery ❤️
In those days, doctors would encourage spouses and friends not to tell the terminally ill person that they were terminally ill. I don’t know the reason for it, it could have been just to let them try enjoy the remainder of their lives stress free, or that hopefully the body would somehow get better, but that was very common for doctors to say back then.
That’s very true but I think part of the problem was that he wasn’t her spouse at the time - he was Lili Palmers - and he didn’t tell her family he just took control of the situation - very difficult but I do agree with you that was how it was back then ❤️
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre Eesh! I didn’t know he was married at the time! What’s wrong with men.
Well Rex had a few issues - very interesting though I can’t deny! ❤️
Once again Well Done! Superbly narrated. These videos really should be on main stream TV, so well made and interesting. Kay Kendall truly beautiful with a tragic but very sucsseful life RIP!
That's so very kind of you! Thank you so much - I'm glad you enjoyed the video - you've given me a great boost - it's very appreciated xx
As always, thoughtful, reverent & charming. Thank you yet again for a beautiful tribute.
Thank you Phil ❤️ and thank you so much for watching! 🌹
A lovely tribute to a lovely lady.
Thank you so much ❤️
what a lovely video of a beautiful lady,so young but she fitted so much into her life,RIP Kay
Thank you so much for your lovely comment and for watching the video ❤️
How awful that they thought it was a good idea not to tell her how sick she was.
Very! As someone else said - he deprived her of the possibility of doing or saying something she of done had she known x
@@BeautifulBadandBizarrePlease remember that in the 1950s there were no cures for cancer. When someone got that diagnosis, the only question they had was, "How long do I have, Doc?" It's very different today, when many cancers are curable and some aggressive cancers can be tamed.
Yes I understand - I have family experience of a similar situation in the 1970s but her family were devastated and angry that they weren’t told - it’s a complicated issue - and a very emotional one too.
Another brilliant post, thank you, I am a new sub and look forward to watching more of your videos. That said I find it very sad to see the poor condition of this cemetery. Cemeteries to my mind are a place of history and memories and love the for the most part of the people therein interred, and by any means should be kept up to scratch in honour of its occupants.
Is it wicked of me to think that he married her as he knew she was dying so he would inherit her money
I’m not entirely sure about her money but I know he gave all of Kay’s personal belongings to be sold for leukaemia research - I’m still trying to figure out Rex’s motivation - I’m not convinced it was soul mate true love - as he had part of his ashes scattered on Lili Palmers grave the other part in Italy - as far as I know he wasn’t scattered on Kay’s grave xx
At 80 I recall some of Kay's films and found this such a brilliant and compulsive story telling. You have given me many more to enjoy. Thank you - again.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment - you have made my day! I'm so glad you enjoyed the video xxxx thank you for watching xxxx
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre You've made me happy by giving up your valuable time to write to me. You've made me feel so good. Thank you dear
My pleasure! I haven't been online recently - so to come back to such a lovely comment was a real boost! xxxx
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre I hope your absence is not due to health reasons but welcome back. I cam see you are very busy with your excellent window onto the back door of our lives - with memories of happier times for our country and the world: who doesn't love that! Stay well...
It has been partly, it's been a very bumpy start to the New Year but I guess that is life! Thank you so much for your lovely reply - it's certainly made my smile! Hope you are having a wonderful week xxxx
Found this one really sad, bit before my time but a really talented lady, and beautiful with it 32 years old, life just isn't fair to some people and they nearly always end up being lovely people. The decision to not tell her was a really bad one, there might have been things she might have wanted to fulfil and say if she had known the truth, but then again surely she could have insisted on the truth from her doctor i would have thought it would have been illegal not telling her. there was a lot of underhand goings on here because they have to tell you now not leave it to a family member, probably because of the risk of this happening. Rex Harrison sounds a very shady character, i think there was a lot more going on that we dont no about. thanks for this as usual put together expertly and with care and compassion. X Jim
Hi Jim - I agree with everything you’ve said! Especially about Kay having things she may have wanted to do - that’s so true - Rex was quite a character and he had form as they say! After Kay he married Rachel Roberts and we know how that ended!!! Badly!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to watch - it’s very appreciated! ❤️
My grandfather died from lung cancer in 1961.
He wasn`t told he had cancer either.
That`s how it was back in those days, doctors and families believed it was in the patience`s best interests not to tell them.
I’m sorry to hear that - I totally understand it was quite common practice not to tell the patient in certain cases - but in Kay’s case he didn’t tell her family either - and they were naturally angry about it x
Wow...not telling her what her illness really was! She was a beauty, those eyes, alone.
I know! It’s unthinkable really x and I agree stunning eyes 🌹a true beauty x thank you so much for watching ❤️
wasn't Rex Harrison supposed to be a monster who badly mistreated women? I thought she was a great beauty and I loved her pert nose. The theme tune to Genevieve by Larry Adler makes me feel so nostalgic.
Oh yes! Rex has certainly got a reputation 🤭 and it’s not a positive one - he had a very complicated love life! And few of his colleagues/fellow actors found him tolerable - and yet he made som great films and had huge success! Kay was so lovely and Genevieve is one of my favourite Sunday afternoon films! ❤️🌹
Wonderfull tribute to Kay. I was born in her home town and remember her mother well.
That’s so lovely! I want to visit Withernsea an Kay’s birthplace - I’d also love to visit the museum about Kay ❤️
Always thought Harrison was a creep and now I know he really was. How very cruel to not inform her of her illness and impending death, thereby cheating her out of facing truth and making peace with her existence.
Rex Harrison was quite a character that’s for sure - In fact the next person I’m uploading worked with Rex and like everyone else found it rather difficult to have a good word to say about him! I’m currently immersing myself in his bio when I have a spare moment and it’s quite jaw dropping! 🤭
How terribly sad that she passed away so young, thankyou for a lovely tribute to a beautiful young lady x
Thank you so much for your lovely comment - I agree Kay was tragically young when she passed away 💔 thank you for watching xxxx
I was so lucky that when I was 10 my Dad was terminally ill, and my Mum very ill with Leukamia and had Chemotherapy. It was about 1974 and drugs were a bit more advanced, thankfully she pulled through and lived until she was 81. I've been walking up the hill to visit dad's grave for 40 odd years and mum's been with him since 2002. Opposite are a lot of children's graves so I always try and leave some extra fowers on one of their graves. It's almost like meditation going up there, so relaxing xxxx
I’m so sorry to hear about your dad - that must have been such a difficult time and then your mum too! But so wonderful that medicine had advanced by then and that you had so much more time with your mum ❤️ I know exactly what you mean about the peace and relaxation you can eventually find when you visit loved ones at that their resting place - I always find it very calming to visit my grandparents grave - and making these videos I’ve been to so many beautiful churchyards ❤️
Genevieve is a good film, i like it when she plays trumpet
Beautifully told - watched Genevieve as a small boy and was totally captivated by Kay - such a sad story, but she made such an impact in such a short time and will always be remembers.
PS- love it when she played the trumpet
Thank you so much! I watched Genevieve as a child too! It really stuck with me - I adored Kay and Dinah! I love Kenneth More and I’m crazy about John Gregson so it works out nicely for me 🤭
Ditto 👍🙂 great comment, Genevieve has good memories for myself and the young boy, I was, who watched it, back in the day.
@@seansabhaois ❤️😍🌹
Another cracking video about a great actor and one of her many movies.
Genevieve always resonates with me, as I first watched it as a 10 year old boy, in my school's hall on 16mm. It was an end of the school year treat for all of the kids, at the school I attended in the mid sixties, near Jo'burg.
My late brother and I 'borrowed' a line from Kay's character in the movie: "I wanna play the plumpet...!"
We worked this line into our conversations and fell about laughing.
No one, including ourselves could figure out why a pair of silly school boys, thought it was so funny!
The black & white still at the start of your video, with a very young Kay and her siblings, on some high street, could have come straight off the dust cover, of some Enid Blyton adventure.
The Rank producer's comments about Kay's looks & talents, sounded like sour grapes? Maybe he was becoming a bit too friendly and she brushed him off?
Think of all the acting potential she still had, but was taken at such a young age.
Thank you so much! I love Genevieve too! Haha - I can imagine it was a treat and picking up that line 🤣 I can’t even remember my age when I first watched it - so long ago 😬 but have watched it numerous times since! And yes!!! Very Enid Blyton! I agree too - and a terrible way for someone to speak to another - just horrible! It’s always so sad when a young life is cut so short - all that potential just gone ❤️ thank you as always for your lovely comment and for watching ❤️🌹
@@BeautifulBadandBizarre Many thanks for taking time to comment and reply👍🙂 A very rare thing on YT. Your channel is my favourite, showing the lives & times of entertainers who I knew from stage, screen and steam radio 👍
I don’t always see comments - I sometimes lose track although I try not to- but when I do see them I thoroughly enjoy reading them and I love a good discussion! I am grateful when people watch the videos, enjoy them and leave a comment like yours - it makes my day! ❤