MONTEVIDEO -- An "adventurous spirit" led Phyllis Gates to leave Montevideo for California, where she would eventually meet and marry celebrity Rock Hudson, according to her sister, Marvis Ketelsen of Montevideo.
Although Gates lived much of her adult life in California, she always kept a warm spot in her heart for her hometown of Montevideo, Ketelsen said.
Family members honored the memory of their loved one during a service Tuesday in Montevideo. Gates, 80, of Marina Del Rey, Calif., died Jan. 4 in California.
Ketelsen said it was her sister's wish that she be returned to her hometown for burial, and family and friends were able to honor that wish. The mourners joined under sunny skies to remember her.
"It was a really nice service,'' said Ketelsen.
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She said her sister was a frequent visitor to Montevideo through her adult life. Of course, Ketelsen remembers one of her sister's visits home more than any other. That was the time she brought her famous husband to Montevideo to meet her parents. Ketelsen maintains that she was not envious of her sister at the time, but there is no question that her sister's marriage to Hudson in 1955 made her the envy of many others in the community. Hudson was a 29-year-old star of the silver screen and considered a "heartthrob.''
"He was a very nice fellow, he really was,'' said Ketelsen of the visitor.
Hudson made only one visit to Montevideo during his three-year marriage to Gates. After his visit here, Gates' parents reciprocated by visiting the couple at their home in California, according to Ketelsen. The newlyweds had a house in the hills above Sunset Boulevard.
Gates did not remarry after her three-year marriage to Hudson. She wrote a book in 1987 about her marriage, "My Husband, Rock Hudson.''
Gates came home to Montevideo to sign copies of the book, but outside of the book itself never publicly discussed her marriage with Hudson, according to her sister. Ketelsen said her sister preferred to put it all behind her.
Gates had met Hudson while serving as secretary for Hudson's Hollywood agent, Henry Wilson. Gates had always insisted that she married Hudson out of love and not to cover up his homosexuality, according to a story published Jan. 12 in the Los Angeles Times about her death. Gates is remembered most by her survivors for her talents as an interior decorator and love for art and traveling.
