Dyan Cannon - My Life BEFORE & AFTER CARY GRANT

MARRIAGE TO A HOLLYWOOD ICON WAS JUST THE START OF HER INSPIRING STORY

- LOUISE A. BARILE

Growing up in Washing ton state, there was little doubt in Dyan Cannon’s mind that one day she’d be in movies. “At 5, I was writing stories and putting on shows,” she tells Closer. “I knew from a very early age.”

In time, she’d fulfill her childhood ambitions by becoming a Golden Globe winner and three-time Oscar nominee, but many first heard Dyan’s name when she wed Hollywood legend Cary Grant in 1965 at age 28. Their five-year relationship, which was dramatized in the recent limited series Archie (available on Prime Video), helped Dyan, 87, discover her strength and self-reliance and develop a deeper relationship with God. “A man doesn’t make me complete or complete me,” says the twice-divorced star. “Understanding that was the key.”

The start of her romance with Cary played out like a movie. After admiring Dyan, then 25, in an episode of TV’s Malibu Run, the actor invited her to a meeting through their agents. “We met, and it was electric. But my little voice said, ‘Don’t go there, he’s been married several times. Do not go there,’” says Dyan, who wrote about their marriage in her 2012 memoir Dear Cary. Despite a 33-year age gap, Cary was very hard to resist. “I was touring in the show How to Succeed in Business Without Even Trying,” she recalls. “He would show up in every city where I was playing. I finally I thought, ‘Wow. OK. He really cares for me.’

SEEING CLEARLY