Was Cary Grant gay?
09/08/25 10:09pm
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Cary Grant's sexuality has been the subject of much debate for decades, but his 5 ex-wives and daughter claim he was straight. For his part, he never said explicitly how he identified, so it's best not to speculate. But where did these rumors come from, and why do they persist?
Grant had a history of maintaining long-term living arrangements with other men—most notably fellow actor Randolph Scott, with whom he lived, on and off, for 12 years. The two even posed for magazines in staged photos of "domestic life," and gossip columns speculated that Grant was carrying on secret relationships with men. It's possible he felt he couldn't publicly come out due to Hollywood's severe social codes at the time; Grant's film career spanned the 1930s–1960s.
In any case, Grant had many public relationships with women, including his 5 wives: Virginia Cherrill (whom he was married to from 1934–1935); Barbara Hutton (1942–1945); Betsy Drake (1949–1962); Dyan Cannon (1965–1968; his only child was with Cannon); and Barbara Harris (1981–Grant's death in 1986).
Some fans and biographers believe Grant was gay, while others believe he was bisexual or pansexual. We'll probably never know for sure, but what do you think?
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Grant had a history of maintaining long-term living arrangements with other men—most notably fellow actor Randolph Scott, with whom he lived, on and off, for 12 years. The two even posed for magazines in staged photos of "domestic life," and gossip columns speculated that Grant was carrying on secret relationships with men. It's possible he felt he couldn't publicly come out due to Hollywood's severe social codes at the time; Grant's film career spanned the 1930s–1960s.
In any case, Grant had many public relationships with women, including his 5 wives: Virginia Cherrill (whom he was married to from 1934–1935); Barbara Hutton (1942–1945); Betsy Drake (1949–1962); Dyan Cannon (1965–1968; his only child was with Cannon); and Barbara Harris (1981–Grant's death in 1986).
Some fans and biographers believe Grant was gay, while others believe he was bisexual or pansexual. We'll probably never know for sure, but what do you think?
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