#long time companion
I came across a post that stated actress Corby was a lesbian. Corby was best known for playing Grandma Walton, first in the TV movie The Homecoming: A Christmas Story (1971), and for 6 seasons of the TV series… plus various followup TV movies. A real life stroke could keep her down - after she recovered she was back on the show.
I was curious, so I decided to do a little research on the web. My first source was Wikipedia. While not necessarily accurate on all topics, it usual sites source if something was published in an article, book, or public statement. But I didn’t find anything about Corby being a lesbian.
A vague reference came in a paragraph about Corby’s marriage in 1934 to Francis Corby, a film director. He was 20 years older than her and they divorced in 1944 without having children. Curiously it add “In 1954, Corby met Stella Luchetta”. The source is from the LA Times that provides the added detail, “She is survived by her friend of 45 years, Stella Luchetta.”
“Survived by” comments are usually reserved for relatives and in Hollywood “friend” can be code for partner or lover.
I searched further. A couple blogs mentioned Corby swore like a sailor and smoked off camera. Most made said she and Luchetta were lovers. Some added Corby’s last words were “love you” to Luchetta. No references, no news article, no biography.
One blog allowed readers comments and many were incredible homophobic.
- “I feel like my childhood has been a big ole lie”
- “She was a clean decent woman NOT a Fag!”
- “They were Not Queers. None of them! They were the decent people you saw on screen.”
So here are the “facts” as I’ve been able to find them:
- Corby married an older man in 1934 and divorced him in 1944. (One source said they separated shortly after the marriage but waited to divorce.)
- She met Stella Luchetta in 1954. But most accounts they soon moved in together as “friends”.
- Corby suffered a stroke in 1976.
- At this point Luchetta was referenced as a “caregiver”.
That’s not much to go on. Nearly all gay actors of her generation couldn’t come out due to the homophobia and impact on their careers. Those that did, didn’t come out until their senior years. So it’s no surprise that if Corby was a lesbian, she would have stayed in the closet.
My personal opinion is that yes, Ellen Corby was probably a lesbian. Unlike her homophobic “fans” I hope that Ellen found love with Stella.
