Gordon MacRae(1921-1986)
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Albert Gordon MacRae was born on March 12, 1921, in East Orange, NJ.
During his early years, he resided in Syracuse, NY, and, while in high
school, spent much of his time singing and acting in the Drama Club. It
was also during this time that he learned to play the piano, clarinet
and the saxophone. At 19, he entered a singing contest and won a
two-week engagement at The World's Fair in New York, performing with
the Harry James and
Les Brown bands. In 1940, while
working in New York City as a page, he was "discovered" and hired to
sing for the Horace Heidt Band. After a
two-year stint, he joined the Army Air Corps and worked as a navigator
for the next two years. He made his Broadway debut in a show called
"Junior Miss", as a replacement in the role of "Tommy Arbuckle". Next,
he appeared, again on Broadway, in
Ray Bolger's 1946 revue, "Three To Make
Ready". It was here that he was spotted by Capitol Records and signed
to a long-term recording contract in 1947. He stayed with the label for
more than 20 years. In October 1948, on ABC, he starred on the radio
show "The Railroad Hour". The show moved to NBC in October 1949 and
continued until June of 1954. It presented operettas and musical
dramatizations, all starring Gordon and many different leading ladies.
Also in 1948, he was signed to a seven-year contract with Warner
Brothers Pictures and, soon after, made his film debut in the
non-musical, The Big Punch (1948),
opposite Lois Maxwell (well-known later as
"Miss Moneypenny" in the James Bond films). What followed was a string
of hit musicals, starting with
Look for the Silver Lining (1949),
in which MacRae had a featured role opposite
June Haver and
Ray Bolger, and five fondly remembered films
with Doris Day, beginning with
Tea for Two (1950). Perhaps his two
best and well-known films were two of his last:
Oklahoma! (1955) and
Carousel (1956), both written by
Richard Rodgers and
Oscar Hammerstein II and both
opposite screen newcomer
Shirley Jones. MacRae began to
suffer, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, from bouts of heavy drinking
and, by his own admission, developed into an alcoholic. He revealed
that he had been "picked up for drunk driving" during the filming of
"Carousel". He conquered the disease in the 1970s and went on to
counsel other alcoholics. He continued recording and performing on
dozens of television shows. He and his wife,
Sheila MacRae, appeared together
frequently and even released an album together. His daughters,
Meredith MacRae and
Heather MacRae, acted in films and on TV.
On September 22, 1974, he appeared as a sheriff on an episode of
McCloud (1970), starring
Dennis Weaver, entitled "The
Barefoot Girls of Bleeker Street". His final film came in 1979, a fine
dramatic role in The Pilot (1980),
which starred Cliff Robertson.
He suffered a stroke in 1982. He continued on with the support of his
second wife, Elizabeth, and his five children. This brilliant performer
continued to tour, when his health would permit, allowing audiences to
relive some of his biggest film hits. On January 24, 1986, Gordon
MacRae died at the age of 64, at his home in Lincoln, NE, of pneumonia,
the result of complications from cancer of the mouth and jaw.
