In "Who Do You Think You Are?" Brooke Shields divulged that her maternal grandmother, Teresa, lost her own mom at a very young age, at which point she stepped up to take care of her siblings. The "Pretty Baby" actor called her grandmother "bitter, sad and afraid," and credited these traits to the difficulties she endured as a child, per the Daily Mail. However, her paternal grandmother had a much more lavish upbringing.
Marina Torlonia di Civitella-Cesi, better known as Princess Marina Torlonia, was the Italian daughter of Marino Torlonia, 4th Prince of Civitella-Cesi. Though her royal lineage is somewhat of a tangled web, the Italian princess certainly came from wealth. She continued living amongst the upper echelons of society when she came to America in the 1930s. Having been born to an American mother, Mary Elsie Moore, Marina easily became well-ensconced in posh circles, attending balls, raising money for charities, and having dalliances with wealthy men.
Eventually, she married Frank Shields in 1940. The top-ranking tennis player and actor is Shields' grandfather. However, he and the heiress divorced 10 years later, in 1950. Marina didn't live out the rest of her life as a princess, at least not in the traditional sense, but the socialite enjoyed plenty of luxury both in Manhattan and abroad.
