Ray Bolger | |
|---|---|
 Bolger in 1942 | |
| Born | Raymond Wallace Bolger[1] (1904-01-10)January 10, 1904 Boston,Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | January 15, 1987(1987-01-15) (aged 83) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Holy Cross Cemetery |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1922–1985 |
| Known for |
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| Spouse | |
Raymond Wallace Bolger (/ˈboʊldʒər/;[2] January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987)[3] was an American actor, dancer, singer,vaudevillian, and stage performer (particularly musical theater) who started his movie career in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in the 1930s and beyond. He is best known for his roles in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer movieThe Wizard of Oz (1939) as Hunk and theScarecrow and inWalt Disney's holiday musical fantasyBabes in Toyland in 1961 as the villainous Barnaby.
Bolger was the host ofThe Ray Bolger Show on TV from 1953 to 1955, originally titledWhere's Raymond?[3]
Raymond Wallace Bolger was born at 598 Second St.,South Boston,Massachusetts, into a Catholic family of Irish descent. He was the son of James Edward Bolger and Anne C. (née Wallace).[4][5] His father, James, was a first-generation American of Irish descent, who was born inFall River, Massachusetts. Bolger's mother "Annie" was born into a large Irish-American family inBridgewater, Massachusetts.[6]
Bolger grew up and attended school in theCodman Square section of theDorchester neighborhood ofBoston.[7]
Interviewed in 1940 about his post-high-school years, Bolger reported having worked in Boston for the city's First National Bank, and then trying insurance sales and even door-to-door vacuum selling in New England. He was a student at O'Brien's Dancing Academy and was later a manager-instructor at Russakoff's School of Dance.[8]
His entertainment aspirations evolved from thevaudeville shows of his youth. He began his career in a vaudeville tap show, creating the act "Sanford & Bolger" with his dance partner. In 1926, he danced at New York City's legendaryPalace Theatre, the premier vaudeville theater in the United States. His limber body and improvisational dance movements won him many leading roles on Broadway in the 1930s. Eventually, his career also encompassed film, television, and nightclub work.[9] In 1932 he was elected to the theater clubThe Lambs[10] and performed on opening night atRadio City Music Hall in December 1932.[11]
After starring inRichard Rodgers' first stage production ofOn Your Toes in 1936, in which he played the male lead Junior, as well as the hero of theSlaughter on Tenth Avenue ballet within the musical, Bolger signed his first cinema contract withMGM in 1936, and althoughThe Wizard of Oz was early in his film career, he appeared in other movies of note. His best-known pre-Oz appearance wasThe Great Ziegfeld (1936), in which he portrayed himself. He also appeared inSweethearts (1938), the first MGM film inTechnicolor, starringNelson Eddy andJeanette MacDonald. He also appeared in theEleanor Powell vehicleRosalie (1937), which also starred Eddy and Frank Morgan.
Bolger's MGM contract stipulated that he would play any part the studio chose. However, he was unhappy when he was originally cast as theTin Woodman in the studio's 1939 feature-film adaptation ofThe Wizard of Oz. The role of theScarecrow had already been assigned to another dancing, studio-contract player,Buddy Ebsen. In time, the roles were shuffled around. Bolger's face was permanently lined by wearing the Scarecrow's makeup.[12]
FollowingThe Wizard of Oz, Bolger moved toRKO Pictures. In 1941, he was a featured act at theParamount Theatre in New York, working with theHarry James Band. He would dotap dance routines, sometimes in a mock-challenge dance with the band's pianist,Al Lerner.
On December 7, 1941, the Japaneseattacked Pearl Harbor and Bolger's performance[further explanation needed] was interrupted by PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt's announcement of the news of the attack.[13] Bolger toured inUSO shows in the Pacific Theater duringWorld War II,[14][15] and appeared in theUnited Artists wartime filmStage Door Canteen (1943).[16]
In 1946, he returned to MGM for a featured role inThe Harvey Girls. Also that year, he recorded a children's album,The Churkendoose, featuring the story of a misfit fowl ("part chicken, turkey, duck, and goose"), which teaches children that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it "all depends on how you look at things".
Bolger's Broadway credits includedLife Begins at 8:40 (1934),On Your Toes (1936),By Jupiter (1942),All American (1962) andWhere's Charley? (1948), for which he won theTony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical and in which he introduced "Once in Love with Amy", the song often connected with him. He repeated his stage role in the1952 film version of the musical.[17]
Bolger appeared in his ownABC television sitcom with a variety show theme,Where's Raymond? (1953–1954), renamed the second year asThe Ray Bolger Show (1954–55). He continued to star in several films, including Walt Disney's remake ofBabes in Toyland (1961) and smaller cameos throughout the 1960s and 1970.
Bolger made frequent guest appearances on television, including the episode "Rich Man, Poor Man" of the short-livedThe Jean Arthur Show in 1966. In the 1970s, he had a recurring role as Fred Renfrew, the father of Shirley Partridge (Shirley Jones) onThe Partridge Family, and appeared inLittle House on the Prairie as Toby Noe and also guest-starred on other television series, such asBattlestar Galactica,Fantasy Island, andThe Love Boat. In the late 1970s, Bolger played in a commercial for Safeway Supermarket's "Scotch Buy" brand, in which he popularized the jingle, "Scotch Buy – 'taint fancy, but it shore is good."[18] His last television appearance was onDiff'rent Strokes in 1984, three years before his death.[19]
In 1976 Bolger performed the opening number for the48th Academy Awards ceremony.
In his later years, he danced in aDr Pepper television commercial, and in 1985, he andLiza Minnelli, the daughter of hisOz costarJudy Garland, starred inThat's Dancing!, a film written byJack Haley Jr., the son ofJack Haley, who portrayed the Tin Woodman inThe Wizard of Oz.
In 1998, a Golden Palm Star on thePalm Springs, California,Walk of Stars was dedicated to him.[20]
In 2016, the City of Boston commissioned a mural in Ray Bolger's honor in the Codman Square section of the Dorchester neighborhood.[7]
Bolger was married to Gwendolyn Rickard for more than 57 years. They had no children.[21] He was aRoman Catholic and a member of the Good Shepherd Parish and the Catholic Motion Picture Guild inBeverly Hills, California.[22]
Bolger was a lifelongRepublican who campaigned forBarry Goldwater in the1964 United States presidential election,[23]Richard Nixon in the1968 election,[24] andRonald Reagan in the1980 election.[25]
Bolger had 11 nieces and nephews.
Bolger was diagnosed withbladder cancer in 1986. His health deteriorated and by the end of that year, he left hisBeverly Hills home to live at a nursing home in Los Angeles. He died there on January 15, 1987, five days after his 83rd birthday.[3]
At the time of his death, Bolger was the last surviving main-credited cast member ofThe Wizard of Oz.[26] He andJack Haley (who played the Tin Man) are both buried in the same cemetery. He was the only one of Judy Garland'sOz costars who attended her funeral (Bert Lahr pre-deceased her in 1967), joiningHarold Arlen, the composer of "Over the Rainbow", and his wife,Anya Taranda. They were reported as among the last remaining guests at the conclusion of the service.[27]
Whenever asked whether he had received any residuals from telecasts ofThe Wizard of Oz, Bolger would reply: "No, just immortality. I'll settle for that."[28] Bolger's Scarecrow is ranked among the "most beloved movie characters of all time" by AMC and the American Film Institute.[29][30]
For his contributions to the film industry, Bolger received amotion pictures star on theHollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. It is located at 6788Hollywood Boulevard.[31]
In 2019, the first comprehensive biography of Bolger,More Than a Scarecrow by Holly Van Leuven, was published.[32][33]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | The Great Ziegfeld | Ray Bolger | |
| 1937 | Rosalie | Bill Delroy | |
| 1938 | The Girl of the Golden West | Happy Moore | (scenes deleted) |
| 1938 | Sweethearts | Hans | |
| 1939 | The Wizard of Oz | Hunk / The Scarecrow | |
| 1941 | Sunny | Bunny Billings | |
| 1942 | Four Jacks and a Jill | Nifty Sullivan | |
| 1943 | Forever and a Day | Sentry | (scenes deleted) |
| 1943 | Stage Door Canteen | Ray Bolger | |
| 1946 | The Harvey Girls | Chris Maule | |
| 1949 | Look for the Silver Lining | Jack Donahue | |
| 1952 | Where's Charley? | Charley Wykeham | |
| 1952 | April in Paris | S. Winthrop Putnam | |
| 1961 | Babes in Toyland | Barnaby | |
| 1966 | The Daydreamer | The Pieman | |
| 1979 | Just You and Me, Kid | Tom | |
| 1979 | The Runner Stumbles | Monsignor Nicholson | |
| 1982 | Annie | Sound Effects Man | Uncredited |
| 1985 | That's Dancing! | Himself – Host | Documentary film |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953–1955 | Where's Raymond? | Raymond 'Ray' Wallace | Lead role (61 episodes) |
| 1956–1957 | Washington Square | Host | |
| 1958–1959 | General Electric Theater | Stan Maylor / Alfred Boggs | 2 episodes |
| 1962 | The Red Skelton Show | Mayor Threadbare III | Episode: "The Mayor of Central Park" |
| 1962 | The Little Sweep | Storyteller | Television film |
| 1963 | The Judy Garland Show | guest star | Garland's weekly tv series |
| 1966 | The Jean Arthur Show | Wealthy Man | Episode: "Rich Man, Poor Man" |
| 1970–1972 | The Partridge Family | Grandpa Renfrew | Recurring role (3 episodes) |
| 1971 | Nanny and the Professor | Uncle Horace | Episode: "South Sea Island Sweetheart" |
| 1976 | The Entertainer | Billy Rice | Television film |
| 1976 | Captains and the Kings | R.J. Squibbs | Television miniseries (Chapter I) |
| 1977–1979 | The Love Boat | Andy Hopkins / Horace McDonald | 2 episodes |
| 1978 | Baretta | Episode: "Just for Laughs" | |
| 1978 | Three on a Date | Andrew | Television film |
| 1978–1982 | Fantasy Island | Gaylord Nelson / Spencer Randolph | 2 episodes |
| 1978–1979 | Little House on the Prairie | Toby Noe | 2 episodes |
| 1979 | Heaven Only Knows | Simon | Television pilot |
| 1979 | Battlestar Galactica | Vector | Episode: "Greetings from Earth" |
| 1981 | Aloha Paradise | Harry Carr | Episode: "Best of Friends/Success/Nine Karats" |
| 1981 | Peter and the Wolf | Narrator | Television film |
| 1983 | Peter and the Magic Egg | Uncle Amos | Voice, Television special |
| 1984 | Diff'rent Strokes | Clarence Markwell | Episode: "A Haunting We Will Go", (final appearance) |
| Year | Title | Role | Theatre |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | The Merry World | Performer | Imperial Theatre |
| 1926 | A Night in Paris | Performer | 44th Street Theatre |
| 1929 | Heads Up | Georgie | Alvin Theatre |
| 1931 | George White's Scandals of 1931 | Performer | Apollo Theatre |
| 1934 | Life Begins at 8:40 | Performer | Winter Garden Theatre |
| 1936 | On Your Toes | Phil Dolan III, Hoofer | Imperial Theatre |
| 1940 | Keep Off the Grass | Performer | Broadhurst Theatre |
| 1942 | By Jupiter | Sapiens | Shubert Theatre |
| 1946 | Three to Make Ready | Performer | Adelphi Theatre |
| 1948 | Where's Charley? | Charley Wykeham | St. James Theatre |
| 1951 | Where's Charley? (revival) | Charley Wykeham | Broadway Theatre |
| 1962 | All-American | Professor Fodorski | Winter Garden Theatre |
| 1969 | Come Summer | Phineas Sharp | Lunt-Fontanne Theatre |
| Year | Title | Role | Theatre | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | Radio City Music Hall Inaugural Program | performer | Radio City Music Hall | [34] |
| 1969 | Come Summer | Phineas Sharp | O'Keefe Centre | [35] |
| 1969 | The Happy Time | performer | Starlight Musicals | [36] |
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