Nearly three decades after his death, Gene Kelly remains one of Hollywood's most recognizable stars. With his athletic dancing, easy charm and groundbreaking choreography, the Singin' in the Rain star transformed the movie musical, creating sequences that are still instantly recognizable more than 70 years later.
But away from the cameras, Gene was also a father of three: Kerry Kelly Novick, Timothy Kelly and Bridget Kelly, born across his first two marriages.
His eldest daughter Kerry has perhaps been the most visible custodian of her father's legacy, regularly sharing memories of the Hollywood icon and most recently participating in the 2025 documentary Gene Kelly – Réalt an Rince, which explored his Irish heritage and featured a previously unseen family archive.
His younger children, Timothy and Bridget, have largely remained out of the spotlight, despite growing up with one of the biggest stars of Hollywood's Golden Age. Join HELLO! as we look into the lives of Gene Kelly's three children.
Gene welcomed his first child, daughter Kerry, in October 1942 with his first wife, actress and dancer Betsy Blair.
Kerry was born just months after her father's breakthrough movie role opposite Judy Garland in For Me and My Gal, meaning she witnessed almost his entire ascent from rising performer to Hollywood legend.
Even as a little girl, Kerry reportedly shared her father's love of music. A 1949 Photoplay profile written by her mother described the pair singing together and claimed that, at five, Kerry already knew the words to at least a dozen songs she had learned from Gene.
She was also said to bear a striking resemblance to her famous father, sharing his eyes, mouth and mannerisms. But rather than following Gene into showbusiness, Kerry forged a very different career.
She became a child and adult psychoanalyst and studied under celebrated psychoanalyst Anna Freud. She and her husband, Jack Novick, have worked extensively with children and families and co-authored a number of books together.
Kerry has three children of her own and nine grandchildren, and has frequently spoken about the Gene Kelly the public never saw.
She recalled that her father's interest in children ran through both his personal and professional life, telling Fox News that he supported her decision to pursue her own career rather than pushing her towards entertainment.
Kerry has also helped preserve some of Gene's lesser-known work. In 2014, she collaborated with the National Library of Medicine on its preservation and exploration of Combat Fatigue Irritability, a 1945 U.S. Navy training film directed by and starring Gene that dealt with the psychological effects of war.
More recently, she appeared in the documentary Gene Kelly – Réalt an Rince, offering intimate memories of her father's life and his deep connection to Ireland. The documentary's director, Brian Reddin, described Kerry as having an "encyclopedic knowledge" of Gene's career because she had been there almost from the beginning.
Gene's only son, Timothy, was born in March 1962, two years after the actor married his second wife, dancer and choreographer Jeanne Coyne.
According to Gene's biographer Clive Hirschhorn, Jeanne found a memorable way to tell her husband she was expecting while he was away working on Gigot in Paris.