Kiss Me Kate (foaled in 1948 in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

) was an American

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse. She was bred and raced by

Walter M. Jeffords Sr. Walter Morrison Jeffords Sr. (August 8, 1883 – September 28, 1960) was a successful Investment banker and owner/breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses who, in partnership with his wife's uncle, Samuel Riddle, purchased and operated Faraway Farm nea ...

, owner of Faraway Farm in Lexington Kentucky whose wife Sarah was the niece of Faraway Farms previous owner,

Sam Riddle KHJ (930 Hertz, kHz) is a Commercial radio, commercial AM radio, AM radio station that is city of license, licensed to Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. Owned and operated by Relevant Radio, Inc., the station broadcasts Roman Catholic Christi ...

. Kiss Me Kate's sire was the 1943 U.S. Triple Crown Champion, Count Fleet. Her dam was Irish Nora, a daughter of the very good

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

-born sire,

Pharamond II Pharamond (1925–1952) was an English Thoroughbred racehorse who became a successful sire of Champions in the United States where he was registered as Pharamond II. He was a full brother to Sickle, who also stood at stud successfully in the Uni ...

. In a year in which the three-year-old filly won the Acorn Stakes,

Delaware Oaks The Delaware Oaks Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in mid July at Delaware Park Racetrack in Stanton near Wilmington, Delaware. Part of the Del Cap Festival Weekend that features other races over the two days including ...

and

Gazelle Stakes The Gazelle Stakes (formerly Gazelle Handicap until 2004) is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, New York. It is a Grade III event run over a distance of miles on dirt that is open to three-year- ...

, was second or third in three other major races for fillies. She also ran against older males in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, finishing third to

Counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

, the 1951

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to sanction the various awards, "Hor ...

, and Hill Prince, the 1950 American Horse of the Year. Kiss Me Kate was voted the 1951

American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both ...

. Kiss Me Kate continued to race and win at ages four and five after which she was retired to

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

duty. Her issue did not meet with any success in racing.Kiss Me Kate's progeny
/ref>

References

{{reflist 1948 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 16-c Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States American Champion racehorses