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Kathryn Grayson
Grayson in 1943
Born
Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick

(1922-02-09)February 9, 1922
Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedFebruary 17, 2010(2010-02-17) (aged 88)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actress, singer
Years active1941–1998
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1941; div. 1946)​
​
​
(m. 1947; div. 1951)​
Children1
Websitekathryngrayson.com

Kathryn Grayson (born Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick; February 9, 1922 – February 17, 2010[1]) was an American actress and coloratura soprano.

From the age of 12, Grayson trained as an opera singer. She was under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer by the early 1940s, soon establishing a career principally through her work in musicals. After several supporting roles, she was a lead performer in such films as Thousands Cheer (1943), Anchors Aweigh (1945) with Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly and Show Boat (1951) and Kiss Me Kate (1953), both with Howard Keel.[2]

She also worked in theatre, appearing in Camelot (1962–1964). Later in the decade, she performed in several operas, including La bohème, Madama Butterfly, Orpheus in the Underworld and La traviata.[2]

Early life

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Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick was born on February 9, 1922, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, one of four children of Charles Hedrick, a building contractor-realtor, and Lillian Hedrick (née Grayson).[3]

The Hedrick family later moved to Kirkwood, Missouri, outside St. Louis. At the age of 12, Grayson was discovered singing on the empty stage of the St. Louis Municipal Opera House by a janitor, who introduced her to Frances Marshall of the Chicago Civic Opera, from whom Grayson received voice lessons. Grayson's sister Frances Raeburn (born Mildred Hedrick) was also an actress and singer, appearing along with her in the film Seven Sweethearts.[4] Grayson had two brothers, Clarence "Bud" E. Hedrick,[5] and Harold. The family moved to California when she was 15 years old.

Film career

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1940s

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In 1940, an MGM talent scout saw Grayson performing at a music festival. MGM hoped to find a replacement for Deanna Durbin, who had left the studio for Universal Pictures.[6] For the next 18 months, Grayson took voice, drama and diction lessons and followed a routine of dieting and exercise. Within a year, she had her first screen test. However, studio executives were not satisfied, and she endured a further six months of lessons until she made her first film appearance in 1941's Andy Hardy's Private Secretary as secretary Kathryn Land,[7] participating in three musical numbers.

Two further films were planned for Grayson in 1941: White House Girl,[8] which was later produced in 1948 with Durbin,[9] and Very Warm for May, from the Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein musical of the same name.[10] The film eventually was produced in 1944 as Broadway Rhythm.[citation needed]

Grayson appeared in three films in 1942: The Vanishing Virginian, Rio Rita and Seven Sweethearts. In the first, Grayson plays the teenage daughter, Rebecca, of the eccentric Yancey family from Lynchburg, Virginia.[11] Set in 1913, the film was based on Rebecca Yancey Williams's own family.

Grayson as Billie Van Maaster in Seven Sweethearts.

Grayson co-starred in Rio Rita with Abbott and Costello.[12] Grayson portrayed the title character, Rita Winslow. The film was originally meant to be an adaptation of the 1927 Broadway musical; however, only two songs were retained for the film, the title song, and "The Ranger Song", which was performed by Grayson.[citation needed]

Co-starring Van Heflin, Seven Sweethearts cast Grayson as the youngest of seven daughters from Holland, Michigan, who is hired by reporter-photographer Heflin to serve as a model and secretary while he covers the town's tulip festival, and with whom he falls in love.[13]

In 1943, Grayson appeared in the film Thousands Cheer, (originally titled Private Miss Jones), along with Gene Kelly, Mickey Rooney, Eleanor Powell, June Allyson and others. The film was intended as a morale booster for American troops and their families. Grayson starred as the singing daughter of an Army commander.[citation needed]

It was announced in 1942 that Grayson would appear in An American Symphony with Judy Garland.[14] Garland was replaced by June Allyson, and the film was retitled as "Two Sisters from Boston" and released in 1946.[citation needed]

Grayson did not appear in any films for nearly two years (from 1943 to 1945), but instead worked at entertaining troops during the war and performing on radio programs.[15] Notably, it is reported that she would only perform under the condition that the audience was integrated, as troops were segregated at the time.[16]

She returned to films in Anchors Aweigh, a musical romantic-comedy set in Los Angeles and co-starring Kelly and Frank Sinatra. Anchors Aweigh was the fifth-highest grossing film of 1945, earning over $4.779 million.[17]

This was followed by Two Sisters from Boston and guest appearances in Ziegfeld Follies and Till the Clouds Roll By. Her performance in Till the Clouds Roll By included "Make Believe" in a capsule version of the musical Show Boat, which would be remade five years later, with Grayson in the starring role.[citation needed]

MGM re-paired Grayson and Sinatra for two movies in 1947 and 1948, It Happened in Brooklyn and The Kissing Bandit. Both films performed poorly at the box office, and audiences thought the plots absurd.[18] After the setbacks of Brooklyn and Bandit, Grayson was partnered with tenor Mario Lanza in That Midnight Kiss in 1949.[citation needed]

1950s

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with Mario Lanza in The Toast of New Orleans

In 1950, Grayson was once again partnered with Lanza, and portrayed an opera singer in The Toast of New Orleans, and performed the Academy-Award-nominated song "Be My Love". While shooting the Madama Butterfly scene in the film, Lanza kept attempting to french kiss Grayson, which Grayson claimed was made even worse by the fact that Lanza would constantly eat garlic before shooting. Grayson went to costume designer Helen Rose, who sewed pieces of brass into Grayson's gloves. Any time Lanza attempted to french kiss her after that, she hit him with the brass-filled glove.[19]

For the premiere of the film in New Orleans, she was a guest at an auction selling the film's costumes.[20]

Grayson as Magnolia Hawkes.

Grayson replaced June Allyson in the role of Ina Massine in 1951's Grounds for Marriage.[21] She portrayed an opera singer with laryngitis, alongside Van Johnson who played her doctor and love interest. This was also her first non-singing role at MGM. Grayson's musical performances do appear in the film, but in the form of recordings.[citation needed]

Grayson was next cast as Magnolia Hawks in the 1951 remake of the 1927 Hammerstein and Kern musical, Show Boat. Show Boat was the third-highest-grossing film of 1951, earning over $5.533 million.[22]

Grayson teamed again with Keel in the 1952 Technicolor musical Lovely to Look At, a remake of the 1935 Astaire and Rogers film Roberta.[23]

She was released to the Warner Brothers studio in January 1953, with the stipulation that she return to MGM for one more film. She returned to co-star for a third time with Howard Keel in her most acclaimed role, as Lilli Vanessi/Katharina in Kiss Me Kate, released in November 1953. The film was lavishly produced (the only musical other than Those Redheads from Seattle (1953) to be filmed in 3-D), with songs by Cole Porter, choreography by Hermes Pan, and musical direction by André Previn.[citation needed]

Warner Bros

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While on loan to Warner Bros, her first musical release was The Desert Song, May 1953, alongside Gordon MacRae. She was asked to perform La Bohème at the Central City Opera House in Central City, Colorado, but due to her filming obligations for The Desert Song, she had to turn it down.[24] Warner Bros. starred her in a second musical that year, So This Is Love.[citation needed]

Grayson appeared on television occasionally, having guest starred in the CBS anthology series, General Electric Theater in the episode, Shadow on the Heart, with John Ericson, and on Playhouse 90 in the title role of the "Lone Woman", with Raymond Burr and Scott Brady in the historical roles of the brothers Charles and William Bent, respectively. In the 1980s, Grayson guest starred in three episodes as recurring character Ideal Molloy on Murder, She Wrote.

Stage career

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Grayson appeared on stage in numerous productions including Show Boat, Rosalinda, Kiss Me, Kate, Naughty Marietta, and The Merry Widow, for which she was nominated for Chicago's Sarah Siddons Award. In 1953, Grayson optioned the story It's Greek to Me, written by Helen Deutsch, to be accompanied by a score from Cole Porter. The story was a mythical love story about Hercules and Hippolyte, and Grayson hoped to be reunited with Howard Keel and take the show on the road. However, the project fell apart.[25]

Her casting in The Merry Widow led to her replacing Julie Andrews in 1962 as Queen Guinevere in Camelot. She then continued the role for over sixteen months in the national tour of the United States before leaving for health reasons.

Grayson had a lifelong dream of being an opera star, and she appeared in a number of operas in the 1960s, such as La bohème, Madama Butterfly, Orpheus in the Underworld and La traviata. Her dramatic and comedy stage roles included Night Watch, Noises Off, Love Letters and Something's Afoot as Dottie Otterling.

Musical career

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Grayson trained from the age of twelve as an opera singer.[26] While appearing in her film roles, Grayson also performed on the radio.[27] Grayson performed on concert tours throughout the 1950s. In May 1951, Grayson had to postpone a concert tour due to being unknowingly cast in Lovely to Look At. "My concert bookings were all set. So when I read in New York that I was to do this film, I said 'How silly!', then boom! The next day I got my studio telegram asking me to return for the picture!"[28]

In 1952, Grayson was offered more than $10,000 to perform for a week at the Riviera night club in New Jersey before making The Desert Song.[29] After filming The Desert Song, Grayson created a recording of the musical with Tony Martin.[15]

Grayson gave nightclub and concert tours in Australia a few times. On one of those trips to the Far East, Grayson also gave a concert in Manila, the Philippines, in 1969, where she performed at the New Frontier theater.[citation needed]

Grayson supervised the Voice and Choral Studies Program at Idaho State University.[30][31]

Personal life

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Grayson married twice, first to actor John Shelton and then to the actor/singer Johnnie Johnston. She was a Republican.[32] Grayson adhered to Roman Catholicism.[33][better source needed]

John Shelton

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Shelton and Grayson eloped to Las Vegas, where they were married on July 11, 1941.[34] The two had courted for 18 months, after meeting while making screen tests. In July 1942, Shelton moved out of their Brentwood home and into his own apartment. This came after a month of reconciliation after a judge dismissed their divorce suit. Grayson charged Shelton with mental cruelty.[35] They divorced on June 17, 1946.[36]

Johnnie Johnston

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Grayson wed singer/actor Johnnie Johnston on August 22, 1947, in Carmel, California.[37] On October 7, 1948, Grayson's only child, daughter Patricia "Patty Kate" Kathryn Johnston was born. Patricia married Robert Towers and had two children, Kristin and Jordan. Jordan Towers became the lead singer of the band SomeKindaWonderful.[citation needed]

Grayson and Johnston separated on November 15, 1950. On October 3, 1951, Grayson was granted a divorce from Johnston on the grounds of mental cruelty.[38] Johnston's This Time for Keeps co-star, Esther Williams, claimed in her 1999 autobiography that while making the film, Johnston would read Grayson's intimate letters aloud to the girls in his fan club, including the "all-too-graphic details concerning what she liked about his love-making."[39]

Death

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According to her secretary, Grayson died in her sleep at her home in Los Angeles on February 17, 2010, aged 88.[1]

Honors

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On February 9, 2022, in honor of the 100th anniversary of Grayson's birth, Turner Classic Movies TV network showed five of Grayson's films.

Filmography

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Year Film Role
1941 Andy Hardy's Private Secretary Kathryn Land
1942 The Vanishing Virginian Rebecca Yancey
Rio Rita Rita Winslow
Seven Sweethearts Billie Van Maaster
1943 Thousands Cheer Kathryn Jones
1945 Anchors Aweigh Susan Abbott
1946 Ziegfeld Follies Herself
Two Sisters from Boston Abigail Chandler
Till the Clouds Roll By Magnolia in 'Show Boat'
1947 It Happened in Brooklyn Anne Fielding
1948 The Kissing Bandit Teresa
1949 That Midnight Kiss Prudence Budell
Some of the Best Herself
1950 The Toast of New Orleans Suzette Micheline
1951 Grounds for Marriage Ina Massine
Show Boat Magnolia Hawks
1952 Lovely to Look At Stephanie
1953 The Desert Song Margot Birabeau
So This Is Love Grace Moore
Kiss Me Kate Lilli Vanessi / Kate
1956 The Vagabond King Catherine de Vaucelles
1976 The Amazing World of Psychic Phenomena Psychic Detective
1994 A Century of Cinema Herself
2003 Cole Porter in Hollywood: Too Darn Hot Herself-Kate/Lilli in Kiss Me Kate
2004 The Masters Behind the Musicals Herself

Stage Work

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b Thomas, Bob (2010-02-18). "Music legend Kathryn Grayson dies at 88". Associated Press via USA Today. Retrieved 2010-02-18.
  2. ^ a b "Kathryn Grayson: Actress and singer described as 'the most beautiful woman in the history of movies'". Independent. 22 Feb 2010. Retrieved 28 Jan 2019.
  3. ^ Parish & Pitts 2003, p. 361.
  4. ^ "Frances Raeburn". Los Angeles Times. April 29, 1945. p. C1. ProQuest 165587949.
  5. ^ "Kathryn Grayson Denies Actor and her Brother Had a Fight". Los Angeles Times. March 24, 1946. p. 2. ProQuest 165641951.
  6. ^ Hopper, Hedda (February 21, 1941). "Hedda Hopper's Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165188821.
  7. ^ Hopper, Hedda (January 2, 1941). "Hedda Hopper's Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165217594.
  8. ^ Schallert, Edwin (Oct 15, 1941). "Kathryn Grayson Wins Pasternak Film Lead". Los Angeles Times. p. A10. ProQuest 165260714.
  9. ^ "New Comedy Stars Durbin". Los Angeles Times. October 20, 1948. p. 20. ProQuest 165864746.
  10. ^ "Taylor Escapes Romeo Roles Through Comedy". Los Angeles Times. August 28, 1941. p. A10. ProQuest 165223133.
  11. ^ "Young Beauty". Los Angeles Times. January 26, 1942. ProQuest 165289976. Kathryn Grayson enacts the part of Rebecca in 'The Vanishing Virginian,' story of a southern family, to open Thursday at the Four Star Theater.
  12. ^ "'Rio Rita' Comedy Fare". Los Angeles Times. May 21, 1942. p. 8. ProQuest 165325740.
  13. ^ "Drama and the Arts Section". Los Angeles Times. October 11, 1942. p. C1. ProQuest 165377643.
  14. ^ Schallert, Edwin (March 11, 1942). "Garland, Grayson Will Play Musical Sisters". Los Angeles Times. p. A10. ProQuest 354353888.
  15. ^ a b Parish & Pitts 2003, p. 363.
  16. ^ "Frank Liberan interview, American Archives of Television". Emmytvlegends.org. 2017-10-23. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  17. ^ "Box Office Report for 1945". Boxofficereport.com. Archived from the original on 2009-07-13. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  18. ^ Parish & Pitts 2003, p. 364.
  19. ^ Brown, Peter H. (December 23, 1979). "Lights, Cameras, Embrace! The Hollywood Love Scene". Los Angeles Times.
  20. ^ Hedda Hopper (September 18, 1950). "'Sadie Smith' Will Be Betty Hutton Subject". Los Angeles Times.
  21. ^ Davis 2001, p. 140.
  22. ^ "Box Office Report for 1951". Boxofficereport.com. Archived from the original on 2011-01-07. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  23. ^ "Vocal Team Will Repeat". Los Angeles Times. May 13, 1951.
  24. ^ Hedda Hopper (June 3, 1952). "Lizbeth Scott Given Break With Comics". Los Angeles Times. p. 16.
  25. ^ Hedda Hopper (June 20, 1953). "Shelley to Portray Secretary at Metro". Los Angeles Times. p. A6.
  26. ^ Scheuer, Phillip K. (Feb 27, 1941). "Andy Hardy, Dr. Kildare Face Crises". Los Angeles Times. p. 12. ProQuest 165066051.
  27. ^ Fidler, Jamie (Jan 10, 1942). "Fidler in Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. p. 7. ProQuest 165307933.
  28. ^ Hedda, Hopper (May 9, 1951). "Drama". Los Angeles Times. p. B8.
  29. ^ Hopper, Hedda (Mar 27, 1952). "Jane Greet Changing Type in "You For Me"". Los Angeles Times. p. A12.
  30. ^ Idaho State University: The Kathryn Grayson Choral & Vocal Studies Program Archived 2010-05-27 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 2009-12-17.
  31. ^ "Biography at Grayson's official site". Kathryngrayson.com. 1922-02-09. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  32. ^ Critchlow, Donald T. (21 October 2013). When Hollywood Was Right: How Movie Stars, Studio Moguls, and Big Business Remade American Politics. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521199186. Retrieved 18 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  33. ^ Morning News, January 10, 1948, Who Was Who in America (Vol. 2).
  34. ^ "Young Film Pair Elope to Nevada". Los Angeles Times. July 13, 1941. ProQuest 165222321.
  35. ^ Fidler, Jamie (July 21, 1942). "Fidler in Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165341320.
  36. ^ "Singer Grayson Divorces Actor Shelton". Los Angeles Times. June 18, 1946. ProQuest 165671136.
  37. ^ "Kathryn Grayson Sues for Divorce". Los Angeles Times. August 10, 1951. ProQuest 166256687.
  38. ^ "Kathryn Grayson Given Divorce From Johnston". Los Angeles Times. October 4, 1951. ProQuest 166274081.
  39. ^ Williams & Diehl 1999, p. 153.

References

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