An Accidental Discovery

In the world of genealogy, discoveries are often not only surprising, but accidental. So is the case with my discovery of yet another famous distant relative, actor & activist, Glenn Close.

I was watching a TV show last night called "Finding Your Roots". I've watched the show a few times, and although I don't find it quite as captivating as "Who Do You Think You Are?", I was interested in discovering more about the ancestral pasts of Glenn Close and director John Walters (Hairspray - the original, and other off-beat movies).

While watching the portion of the show about Glenn Close, I recognized 2 names in her family tree as one that I was certain were the same names in my family tree. When I checked my tree and, sure enough they were the same names - Hugh Calkins and Anne Eaton. Hugh and Anne were my 10x paternal Great-Grandparents, and Glenn's 9x maternal Great-Grandparents. When I finished my research and worked my way down to Glenn and her family, it turns out that Glenn's mother AND Glenn's father were both distant cousin's of mine with her mother being closer in distance than her father. Through the magic of relationship calculations, Glenn is my 10th cousin 1x removed (even though though her father she is my 18th cousin).

I will definitely be adding Glenn Close to my website as I have admired her acting abilities for several decades. Having a double familial relationship to Glenn is a bonus that warrants some additional investigation. While I have never met Glenn, nor am I ever likely to meet her, it's still nice to add another distant cousin to the family tree that has accomplished so much in her life - it gives the rest of us incentive to continue to aim as high as we can with our own goals in life.