Hopkinsville native Gant Gaither was a Broadway and Hollywood producer and longtime friend of the princess of Monaco, Grace Kelly.
In 1947, at the age of 30, Gaither became the youngest producer on Broadway with “Craig’s Wife,” a Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by Grace Kelly’s uncle, George Kelly. At least six more Broadway productions by Gaither received critical acclaim, according to Variety magazine.
Then, in 1963, Gaither was executive producer for Paramount Pictures’ “My Six Loves.” It starred Debbie Reynolds.
Gaither’s friendship with Grace Kelly began in 1951, when he cast her in a play at the Albany (New York) Playhouse. When she died in 1982, Prince Rainier III of Monaco asked Gaither to lead efforts to establish the Princess Grace Foundation-USA. It was created to support emerging artists in theater, film and dance.
Gaither grew up on South Main Street in Hopkinsville and was a member of Grace Episcopal Church. His father, Dr. Gant Gaither, was a local surgeon. A 1935 graduate of Hopkinsville High School, the surgeon’s son earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of the South, the Kentucky New Era reported in his obituary.
Gaither died on March 1, 2004, at his home in Palm Springs, California.
