Grace Patricia Kelly was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she grew up in the East Falls section, the third of four children to John Brendan Kelly, Sr., also known as Jack Kelly, and Margaret Katherine Majer Kelly. Grace's siblings, in order of age, were Peggy, John Jr., and Lizanne. Her father was one of ten children of John Henry Kelly (1847-1897) and Mary Costello in an Irish Catholic family (originally from Kidney Lake, Newport, County Mayo, Ireland). Already a local hero as a triple Olympic-gold-medal-winning sculler when the sport of rowing was most popular, John Kelly's brick business grew to become the largest on the East Coast. The self-made millionaire and his family were introduced to Philadelphia society. Mr. Kelly's large family included two uncles prominent in the arts: Walter Kelly, a vaudevillian, and George Kelly, a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright who, outside of Grace, was looked down upon by the family because of his homosexuality.[1]
In 1935, John Kelly ran for mayor of Philadelphia, losing by the closest margin for any Democrat in Philadelphia. He later served on the Fairmount Park Commission. During World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed him National Director of Physical Fitness, a post that allowed Kelly to use his fame to promote physical fitness.
Grace's mother, born to Lutheran German parents (Carl Maier and Margaretha Berg), converted to Catholicism upon marrying Mr. Kelly. Like her husband, Margaret Kelly was a proponent of health and fitness, studying Physical Education at Temple University, and later becoming the first woman to head the Physical Education Department at the University of Pennsylvania.
John B. Kelly, Jr., Grace’s brother, followed in the family's athletic tradition: his rowing exploits were well chronicled. He won the James E. Sullivan Award in 1947 as the top amateur athlete in the country. As a wedding gift, John, Jr., gave his sister his bronze medal from the 1956 Summer Olympics. Kelly Drive in Philadelphia is named for John, Jr., who was a city councilman there.
While attending the prestigious Ravenhill Academy, Grace modeled fashions at local social events with her mother and sisters. She gained her first acting experience at the age of twelve, when she played a lead role in Don't Feed the Animals, a play produced by the Old Academy Players in East Falls.[1] During high school, she acted and danced, graduating from Stevens School, a small private school in a mansion on Walnut Lane in Germantown, Philadelphia, in May 1947. Her graduation yearbook listed her favorite actress as Ingrid Bergman; her favorite actor, Joseph Cotten; her favorite summer resort, Ocean City; her favorite drink, a black and white chocolate milkshake; her favorite piece of classical music, Debussy's "Clair de Lune"; her favorite orchestra, Benny Goodman; and her favorite female singer, Jo Stafford. Written in the "Stevens' Prophecy" section was, “Miss Grace P. Kelly - a famous star of stage and screen.”