Memories of My Father, GREGORY PECK

THE ACTOR EMBODIED DIGNITY, KINDNESS AND FAIRNESS BOTH ON AND OFF SCREEN

In the last chapter of his life, Oscar-winning actor Gregory Peck tried to make up for lost time with his family. "We'd go over almost every week and play tennis and have lunch," says son Stephen Peck, who felt gratified that his father built a strong relationship with his grandson Ethan. "I wanted my son to know his grandpa, and he did. They got along really well." Much like the characters he played, Gregory "was always viewed as a gentleman, and he was a gentleman," Stephen, his second eldest of five children, tells Closer.

"He came from a generation that took their careers seriously and took that into their personal life they didn't want to be seen doing anything stupid." Born in San Diego, Gregory discovered acting in college and spent time on the New York stage before heading west to Hollywood. His star rose as a dramatic actor in the 1940s his role in Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound made women swoon- but he also sought out films that were thought-provoking.