John Raitt

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

John Raitt
Pacific Palisades, California, U.S.
Resting placeAnaheim Cemetery , Orange County, California
Occupation(s)Actor, singer
Years active1940–1992
Spouses
Marjorie Haydock
​
​
(m. 1942; div. 1971)​
Rosamond Smith
​
​
(m. 1972; div. 1980)​
Rosemary Kraemer
​
​
(m. 1981)​
Children3; including Bonnie

John Emmet Raitt (/reɪt/;[1] January 29, 1917[2] – February 20, 2005)[3] was an American actor and singer best known for his performances in musical theatre.

Early years

Raitt was born in

Quaker and did not serve in the military.[10][11]

Career

Publicity photo with Rosemary Clooney from the television program The Lux Show featuring Rosemary Clooney (1957-58)

He is best known for his stage roles in the musicals Carousel, Oklahoma!,[12] The Pajama Game, Carnival in Flanders, Three Wishes for Jamie, and A Joyful Noise, and, in 1957, he and Mary Martin starred in the national touring version of Annie Get Your Gun. He set the standard for virile, handsome, strong-voiced leading men during the golden age of the Broadway musical. His only leading film role was in the 1957 movie version of The Pajama Game opposite Doris Day.[11]

On

Bell Telephone Hour. A clip of a television performance of Raitt singing the final section of the song "Soliloquy" from Carousel is included in the documentary film Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There. On September 29, 1953, he joined Jackie Gleason and Phil Foster in an appearance on the CBS panel discussion This Is Show Business. In 1957, he and Mary Martin re-created their starring roles in Annie Get Your Gun on NBC. On January 26, 1961, he appeared in the last season of NBC's The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford
.

Raitt appeared in the 1960 episode, "The Man on the Road", on the

syndicated anthology series, Death Valley Days, hosted by Stanley Andrews. He was cast as Jim Dandy, an itinerant peddler who befriends a boy, Pete Rawson (Kevin Jones), whose father, played by House Peters, Jr., has been jailed falsely for horse theft. The episode also stars Mort Mills as Holt, a leader in the efforts to lynch the suspect. Jim Dandy devises a scheme to find the real horse thief. Raitt also manages to sing one song in this episode.[13]

In addition, Raitt made several studio cast recordings of Broadway musicals, including Oklahoma! (as Curly), The Pajama Game (as Sid), and Show Boat (as Gaylord Ravenal).

In 1945, John Raitt was one of the recipients of the first

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
.

In January 1992, Raitt was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Live Theatre, located at 6126 Hollywood Blvd.

Later years

In 1981, he found out that his high school sweetheart was widowed. Having recently divorced from his second wife, he phoned her. "Having played Zorba, I believe in grabbing at life," he recalled. "So I called her and this sweet voice answered. 'I'm free now,' I told her, 'and I'm coming to dinner.'" They married.

Raitt appeared in a 1996 cameo role in Season 1 (episode 12, "Frozen Dick") of 3rd Rock from the Sun in which he sings a portion of the title song from Oklahoma!

Personal life

From his first marriage, Raitt was the father of singer Bonnie Raitt, and former father-in-law of Michael O'Keefe. He was also the father of David Raitt; and Steve Raitt, who played in bands and then switched to designing high-end home entertainment systems in Eden Prairie in Hennepin County, Minnesota. In 2009, Steve Raitt died of cancer.[14] Raitt's grandson, Bay Raitt, is the creator of Gollum's face for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

Death

Raitt died on February 20, 2005, at his home in Pacific Palisades, California, from complications due to pneumonia, aged 88.[3] He was laid to rest at Anaheim Cemetery in Orange County, California, beside his wife of 23 years, Rosemary.

References

  1. ^ "Say How: R". National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  2. ^ Some sources claim January 19, but Raitt's official website provides January 29, 1917
  3. ^ a b c Weil, Martin (February 21, 2005). "Broadway Mainstay John Raitt Dies at 88". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  4. ISBN 978-0738529400
    .
  5. ^ "John Raitt". Los Angeles Times: Hollywood Star Walk. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  6. ^ "Wall of Fame Inductees". Fullerton Union High School. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  7. ^ "California State Meet Results - 1915 to present". Hank Lawson. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2012.
  8. ^ "Unofficial Athlete of the Meet" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 21, 2013. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  9. ^ John Raitt-Biography (IMDB)
  10. ^ Simonson, Robert (February 20, 2005). "John Raitt, Robust Star of Broadway Musicals, Is Dead at 88". Playbill.
  11. ^ a b Severo, Richard (February 21, 2005). "John Raitt, 88, Star of 'Carousel' and 'Pajama Game,' Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  12. ^ "Career: Broadway". John Raitt: Boradway's Legendary Star. Archived from the original on August 21, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  13. ^ "The Man on the Road on Death Valley Days". IMDb. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  14. ^ Bream, Jon (April 6, 2009). "Musician Steve Raitt, brother of singer Bonnie Raitt, dies". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
Archives at
LocationMusic Division, Library of Congress
SourceJohn Raitt Papers
How to use archival material

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to John Raitt.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Raitt&oldid=1184876808"