Actress Betsy Drake, Third Wife of Cary Grant, Dies at 92

Betsy Drake, who famously married actor Cary Grant and starred opposite him in the films Every Girl Should Be Married and Room for One More, has died at the age of 92, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Drake died in her London home on Oct. 27, a friend of the late actress confirmed. She was the third of Grant’s four wives.

The actress met her famous husband in 1949 while aboard the Queen Mary on a trip headed stateside after visiting England. Grant first spotted her years earlier while she was performing in London. Having caught his eye, the actor asked actress Merle Oberon to introduce the two while on the ship.

Drake and Grant were married just months later on Christmas Day in an Arizona farmhouse. She was 26 years old and he was 45.

The two lived a private life together, but took their relationship to Hollywood working together on several projects. They costarred on the radio series Mr. and Mrs. Blanding in 1951 and in the aforementioned comedies. While Grant continued acting, Drake eventually put her Hollywood career aside to focus on writing.

Drake wrote the script for the film Housboat, starring her husband and with the intent for Drake to once again star opposite him. However, when Grant began an affair with actress Sophia Loren while filming The Pride and Passion, the actor arranged for the script top be rewritten with Loren taking Drake’s place in the film.

Grant and Drake separated in 1958 and divorced in 1962, but maintained an amicable relationship until his death in 1986. Drake was famously responsible for introducing Grant to the then-legal LSD therapy. The two did not have any children together.

The actress settled in London shortly after retiring from films following her 1962 divorce from the actor. In 1971, she published her novel Children, You Are Very Little using the name Betsy Drake Grant.

Drake also appeared in films including Dancing in the Dark, The Second Woman and Pretty Baby, Clarence, the Cross-Eyed Lion, among others.

In 1956, Drake and actress Ruth Roman were among the survivors of the sinking of the Italian ship Andrea Doria.

Drake’s last screen appearance was in the documentary Cary Grant: A Class Apart in 2005, in which she reflected on Grant and their relationship.