Martha Raye | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Margy Reed (1916-08-27)August 27, 1916 Butte, Montana, U.S. |
| Died | October 19, 1994(1994-10-19) (aged 78) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Main Post Cemetery inFort Bragg, North Carolina |
| Other names | The Big Mouth |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1934–1989 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
Martha Raye (bornMargy Reed; August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994), nicknamedThe Big Mouth, was an American comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including on Broadway.[1]She was honored in 1969 at theAcademy Awards as theJean Hersholt Humanitarian Award recipient for her volunteer efforts and services to the troops.
Raye was born at St. James Hospital in Butte, Montana, as Margy Reed,[2][3] the daughter of Irish immigrant Peter F. Reed Jr., and Maybelle Hazel (Hooper) Reed, who had been raised in Milwaukee and Montana.[4] Her parents were performing in a localvaudeville theatre as Reed and Hooper when their daughter was born.[5]
As a teenager in the early 1930s, Raye began her career as a vocalist with the Paul Ash andBoris Morros orchestras. She made her first film appearance in a band short titledA Nite in the Nite Club (1934). In 1936, she was signed for comic roles byParamount Pictures; her first feature film wasRhythm on the Range withBing Crosby. She made herBroadway debut in theHarry Akst musicalCalling All Stars in 1934, and later returned to Broadway in starring roles inYip Harburg'sHold On to Your Hats (1941),Jerry Herman'sHello, Dolly! (1967), andVincent Youmans'sNo, No, Nanette (1972).
From 1936 to 1939, she was a featured cast member in 39 episodes ofAl Jolson's weekly CBS radio show,The Lifebuoy Program, also calledCafe Trocadero. In addition to comedy, Raye sang both solos and duets with Jolson. Over the next quarter century, she would appear in films with many of the leading comics of her day, includingJoe E. Brown,Bob Hope,W.C. Fields,Abbott and Costello,Charlie Chaplin andJimmy Durante. She joined theUSO in 1942, soon after the US entered World War II.[6][7]
She was known for the size of her mouth, which was large in proportion to her face, earning her the nickname "The Big Mouth". She later referred to this in a series of television commercials forPolident denture cleaner in the 1980s: "So take it from The Big Mouth: new Polident Green gets tough stains clean!" Her large mouth would relegate her motion picture work to supporting comic parts, and was often made up so it appeared even larger. In theDisney cartoonMother Goose Goes Hollywood, she is caricatured while dancing withJoe E. Brown, another actor known for a big mouth. In theWarner Bros. cartoonThe Woods Are Full of Cuckoos (1937), she was caricatured as a jazzy scat-singing donkey named 'Moutha Bray'.[8]
In 1969, she was awarded theJean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in the form of an Oscar at the41st Academy Awards. She was the first woman to receive this award.[9] After her death, the statuette was displayed for many years in a specially constructed lighted niche at the Friars Club in Beverly Hills. On November 2, 1993, she was awarded thePresidential Medal of Freedom by PresidentBill Clinton for her service to her country.[6][7] The citation reads:
A talented performer whose career spans the better part of a century, Martha Raye has delighted audiences and uplifted spirits around the globe. She brought her tremendous comedic and musical skills to her work in film, stage, and television, helping to shape American entertainment. The great courage, kindness, and patriotism she showed in her many tours during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War earned her the nickname Colonel Maggie. The American people honor Martha Raye, a woman who has tirelessly used her gifts to benefit the lives of her fellow Americans.[10]
She was a television star very early in its history. She starred in the short-lived (28 episodes)The Martha Raye Show (1954–1956), opposite retiredmiddleweight boxerRocky Graziano, who played her boyfriend. The writer and producer was futureThe Phil Silvers Show creatorNat Hiken.
Some of the guest stars on the show wereZsa Zsa Gabor,Cesar Romero, and Broadway dancerWayne Lamb. She also appeared on other TV shows in the 1950s, such asWhat's My Line?
Following the demise of her TV variety show, the breakup of her fifth marriage, and a series of other personal and health problems, she attempted suicide by overdosing on sleeping pills on August 14, 1956. Well-wishers gave her aSt. Christopher's medal, aSt. Genesius medal, and aStar of David. After her recovery, she wore these amulets faithfully, but she was neither Catholic nor Jewish. At the conclusion of each episode of her TV shows, she would thank the nuns at the Sisters of St. Francis Hospital in Miami, Florida, where she had recovered. She always said "Goodnight, Sisters" as a sign of appreciation and gratitude.
Later in her career, she made television commercials forPolident denture cleanser, principally during the 1970s and 1980s.
In 1970, she portrayed Boss Witch, the "Queen of all Witchdom", in the feature filmPufnstuf forSid and Marty Krofft. This role led to her being cast as villainess Benita Bizarre inThe Bugaloos (1970), which the Kroffts produced the same year.
She often appeared as a guest on other programs, particularly those which often featured older performers as guest stars, such asThe Love Boat, and on variety programs, including the short-livedThe Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show. She appeared from the third to the ninth seasons as Carrie Sharples, Mel's mother onAlice, making two or three appearances per season. She made guest appearances or did cameos in series such asMurder, She Wrote,The Andy Williams Show, andMcMillan & Wife. She appeared again as Agatha for the six-episode run of the retooledMcMillan, taking over forNancy Walker, who had left the series. Her last film appearance was as an airline passenger in the disaster filmThe Concorde... Airport '79 (1979).
Raye's personal life was complex and emotionally tumultuous.[11] She was married seven times.
Raye was a devoutMethodist. She regularly attended church, she read theBible daily, and she also taught Sunday school.[12] Because her religious views were frequently misconstrued, she said "One paper says I'mCatholic, and the other says I'mJewish. I guess that's fitting because, as a Methodist, I'm meant to be undetermined some of the time".[13]
Her engagement to orchestra leader Johnny Torrence was announced in June 1936.[14] Less than two months later she commented, "They tell me I've gone Hollywood already because I got engaged to Johnny Torrence one day and broke it off the next."[15]
She was married to make-up artistHamilton "Buddy" Westmore from May 30, 1937, until September 1937, filing for divorce on the basis of extreme cruelty; to composer-conductorDavid Rose from October 8, 1938, to May 19, 1941; to Neal Lang from May 25, 1941, to February 3, 1944; to Nick Condos from February 22, 1944, to June 17, 1953; to Edward T. Begley from April 21, 1954, to October 6, 1956; to Robert O'Shea from November 7, 1956, to December 1, 1960; and to Mark Harris from September 25, 1991, until her death in 1994.[16] She had one child, a daughter born in July 1944, with Nick Condos. Melodye Condos was named after Raye's recently deceased younger sister.[17]
Politically, Raye wasconservative, in a 1984 interview, she affirmed: "I believe in the constitution, strength in national defense, limited government, individual freedom, and personal responsibility. They reinforce the resolve that the United States is the greatest country in the world, and we can all be eternally grateful to our founding fathers for the beautiful legacy they left us."[18][19]
Raye died ofpneumonia at the age of 78 on October 19, 1994.[20]
Appreciation of her work with theUSO during World War II and subsequent wars led to her being named both an honorary colonel in the U.S. Marines and an honorary lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, and earned special consideration to be buried inArlington National Cemetery. Upon her death it was instead requested that she be buried with full military honors in theFort Bragg Main Post cemetery[7] at Spring Lake, North Carolina, home of her loving and belovedUnited States Army Special Forces; the Fifth Special Forces Group (Airborne) made her an honorary Green Beret for her USO work in Vietnam,[7] including an unauthorized visit to the Leghorn, a top secretSOG listening post on a spire in Laos.[21]
Raye has two stars on theHollywood Walk of Fame—one for motion pictures at 6251 Hollywood Boulevard and the other for television at 6547 Hollywood Blvd.
The moving image collection of Martha Raye is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of an audio tape and home movies.[22]
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