Kay Kendall
Justine Kay Kendall McCarthy (21 May 1927 – 6 September 1959) was an English actress and comedienne.[2] She began her film career in the musical film London Town (1946), a financial failure. Kendall worked regularly until her appearance in the comedy film Genevieve (1953) brought her widespread recognition.[3] Prolific in British films, Kendall also achieved some popularity with American audiences, and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her role in the musical-comedy film Les Girls (1957).[4]
Kay Kendall
6 September 1959 (aged 32)
Churchyard of St John-at-Hampstead Church, London[1]
Actress, singer
1944–1959
Cavan Kendall (paternal half-brother)
Marie Kendall (paternal grandmother)
She began a romantic relationship with actor Rex Harrison after they appeared together in the comedy film The Constant Husband (1955) and they were married in 1957. Harrison learned from Kendall's doctor that she had been diagnosed with myeloid leukaemia, a fact that was kept from Kendall, who believed she was suffering from an iron deficiency. The actor cared for Kendall until her death in 1959 at the age of 32.[5]
Early life[edit]
Kendall was born[6] at Stanley House, Hull Road, in Withernsea, a coastal resort in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Kendall's father was Terrence "Terry" McCarthy (a.k.a. Terry Kendall) (1901-1994), the vaudevillian son of music hall star Marie Kendall (1873–1964). Kay's mother was the former Gladys Drewery (1900–1990).[7]
She had two elder siblings, Terrence Justin "Terry" Kendall McCarthy (born 1923) and Patricia Kim "Pat" Kendall McCarthy (a.k.a. Kim Kendall, born 1925).[8] By her father's second marriage to his professional dancing partner, Dora Spencer, she had a younger half-brother, Cavan Spencer Kendall McCarthy (a.k.a. Cavan Kendall) (1942–1999).[9] Young Justine attended various schools, including St Leonard's (Brighton), St Margaret's (near Oban, Scotland), and the Lydia Kyasht Dancing Academy (London).[10]
Personal life[edit]
Early in her career, Kendall had a lengthy romance with actor Sydney Chaplin, the second son of actor Charlie Chaplin by his second wife, actress Lita Grey. She also had affairs with a Swedish prince and grocery heir James Sainsbury and reportedly had a romance with the future Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[19][20]
In 1955, she starred opposite Rex Harrison in The Constant Husband, and they had an affair.[18] Harrison was married to actress Lilli Palmer at the time. However, when he learned from Kendall's doctor that she had been diagnosed with myeloid leukaemia, he and Palmer agreed to divorce so that he could marry Kendall and provide for her care.[21] Kendall married Harrison in 1957.
Kendall never was told of her illness and believed she merely had an iron deficiency.[5] Regarding the divorce, Palmer said she was not upset because she had a lover too. Palmer and Harrison planned to remarry after Kendall's death, but Palmer fell in love with her companion, actor Carlos Thompson, and married him.[22]
Legacy[edit]
Kendall's life is recounted in the 2002 biography The Brief, Madcap Life of Kay Kendall by Eve Golden and Kim Elizabeth Kendall.[24]
Situated near where Kendall once lived, the late 19th-century lighthouse in Withernsea houses a museum that contains exhibits dedicated to local history, including a memorial to Kendall and displays of many artifacts and photographs associated with her life and times.[25][26]
The Kay Kendall Leukaemia Fund supports scientific research into leukaemia.[27]
On 6 September 2014, a blue plaque commemorating Kay Kendall was erected by the Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America and unveiled at her former home in Withernsea to mark the 55th anniversary of her death.[28]