Princess Diana, 1961-1997 // From fairy tale to tragedy

Her adult life was never really her own.

Diana, princess of Wales, was barely past adolescence when sheshouldered the world's fairy-tale dreams, and by the time she died ofinjuries suffered in a car wreck in Paris early this morning, she hadendured years in the media spotlight as the British monarchy eroded.

She was 36.It is possible that on some distant steppe or desert there arepeople who never saw a picture of the world's most photographedwoman. But it was not for lack of trying by the celebrity-fueledpress that has come to girdle the globe. Nor was it for lack ofglamour on the part of Diana Spencer.Her face was instantly recognizable - especially in her …