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Legendary actor
dies at St. Luke's
after canceling Adler show
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Movie idol Cary Grant is wheeled
out of the Blackhawk Hotel about 9:15 p.m. Saturday with
his wife, Barbara Harris, at his side. Paramedics
took the 82-year-old actor to St. Luke's Hospital.
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Cary
Grant died at St. Luke's Hospital at 11:22 p.m. Saturday.
Grant, who was stricken before a scheduled appearance at the Adler
Theatre, was 82.
James
Stuhler, St. Luke's president, said the veteran actor was in a
"comatose condition" when he was admitted to the
hospital about 9:15 p.m.
Dr. James
Gilson said Grant died of a massive stroke.
He said
had Grant been brought to the hospital earlier, nothing could have
been done.
Gilson is
a cardiologist.
"The
only thing unusual about this case was that the man's name was
Cary Grant," Gilson said.
There
will be no autopsy. The body was to be flown out of the
Quad-Cities by private jet early this morning.
Three
physicians - Gilson, Dr. Richard Roski, a neurosurgeon, and Dr.
Dan Johnson, a neurologist - treated Grant during the course of
the evening.
Gilson said a CAT san
was completed almost immediately after Grant arrived at the
hospital.
He said Grant had felt
ill after his rehearsal.
"He basically
felt ill and did not want to cancel because he wanted to continue
the performance," Gilson said.
Gilson had been called
to Grant's room at the Blackhawk Hotel about 9 p.m.
Gilson said Grant
never regained consciousness after he was taken to the
hospital.
When asked if Grant
had previously shown any signs of poor health, Gilson said,
"His heart was not a problem, now or in the past."
A stroke is
"unpredictable and not uncommon in his age group,"
Gilson said.
Asked why there had
been a delay in confirming the death, Gilson said Grant's wife,
Barbara Harris, had requested that some family members be
contacted first.
Lois Jecklin, director
of Visiting Artists, which sponsored Grant's appearance, said the
actor had appeared to feel all right during the 4 p.m. rehearsals.
"He was chipper,
in fact. He made several changes of the microphones, shifted
the stool where he was sitting and made some rearrangements for
the screening of some of his old film clips," Mrs. Jecklin
said.
Grant reportedly was
apologetic for the length of the run-through. Stagehands
applauded the old pro, a veteran of dozens of movies.
But as he was leaving
the stage, Mrs. Jecklin noticed that he asked for support from his
wife, actress Barbara Harris.
"That was my
first indication, but I didn't think anything of it," Mrs.
Jecklin said.
Grant returned to his
room in the Blackhawk Hotel and had developed a cough.
However, it was said that Grant had not requested a doctor.
However, a physician
was called, and about 8 p.m. there was a request for more blankets
because Grant was chilled.
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Through
the years |
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Cary
Grant, whose screen image of half a century has been that
of a debonair hero with impeccable manners and a devilish
sense of fun, is shown in these file photos through the
years. Beginning at left, in 1942, 1957, 1967 and
1980
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A look behind
the legend
-- by
Jennifer Phillips
Cary
Grant, born in Bristol, England, in 1904, came to America with an
English musical comedy troupe when he was 16.
He was
one of Hollywood's biggest stars, appearing in 72 films with
actresses such as Mae West, Katharine Hepburn, Rita Hayworth,
Ingrid Bergman, Shirley Temple, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly and
Doris Day.
His
movie credits include "His Girl Friday," "To Catch
a Thief," "Charade," "Father Goose,"
"Only Angels Have Wings" and "Notorious."
In a
recent interview with the Quad-City Times published as a preview
to his scheduled appearance in Davenport, Grant reflected on his
personal life as well as his career.
When
asked if he ever feels his age, Grant replied:
"Why, of course I do. But I'm not running any race with
George Burns. One day people will read where I've kicked off
and say, 'Well, he was looking pretty old, wasn't he?' "
He
said talking about his age didn't bother him.
"No, why should it? There's nothing anyone can do about
age anyway. When I'm gone, they can pass the cudgel to Jimmy
Stewart; he's getting up here, too. I was in vaudeville with
George Burns and I've emulated him in many was, especially his
impeccable timing."
On a
comment he once made that he would like to have 100 children and
keep them all on a big ranch, Grant said, "Yes, I think I
would have liked to experience that now. I was so
self-concerned for so many years that I didn't think about how
nice a lot of kids would be. My wives didn't seem to want
children either...."
Grant
and actress Dyan Cannon have a daughter, now a 21-year-old college
senior.
Grant
also said men should not envy his trademark good looks, charm and
sophistication.
"Men should go back to having pride in themselves. They
can emulate me, but envy, no, never."
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