Kelsey Grammer Explains Why He Felt Guilty for His Sister's Murder
"It's not rational," he said. "But it happens anyway."
— -- Last year, Kelsey Grammer said that he forgave the man who murdered his sister four decades ago.
He's also forgiven himself.
“I know a lot of people who’ve lost their siblings and blame themselves," he said in a new interview with Vanity Fair. "It’s hard to explain. It’s not rational. But it happens anyway."
In 1975, the actor's younger sister Karen, then 18 and living in Colorado, was abducted and killed by Freddie Glenn, who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Grammer, 60, told a Colorado parole board last July his inability to "protect" his younger sister "very nearly destroyed" him. He also added that while he understood that Glenn felt remorse for the crimes, he did not think that he should be released from prison.
"I believe the gift of life and freedom he took from my sister precludes him from ever being allowed to enjoy that gift for himself," he explained to Vanity Fair. "He took her future from her with no regard for her whatsoever. He assumed he had a right to do so. He assumed she was his property, and that the precious gift God gave her was his to take."
The "Frasier" actor, now heading to Broadway for "Finding Neverland," said that while his sister's death is still painful, he has begun to heal. However, he added, the tragedies he endured have helped him appreciate what he has.
“That every one of us is going to experience some terrible loss. I just got a big dose. For every story you hear that’s tragic, there’s another that’s equally tragic or more so. I think you come to look at it as part of life.”