George Raft
| George Raft | ||
 Trailer for Invisible Stripes (1939) | ||
| Background information | ||
| Born as: | George Ranft | |
| Born | Sep 26, 1901 Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, U.S. | |
| Died | Nov 24, 1980 - age 78 Los Angeles, U.S. | |
| Spouse(s): | Grace Mulrooney (m 1923, died 1970) | |
| Occupation: | Actor, dancer, film producer | |
| Years active: | 1924–1980 | |
George Raft (born George Ranft; ✦September 26, 1901 – †November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is remembered for his gangster roles in Quick Millions (1931) with Spencer Tracy, Scarface (1932) with Paul Muni, Each Dawn I Die (1939) with James Cagney, Invisible Stripes (1939) with Humphrey Bogart, Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot (1959) with Marilyn Monroe and Jack Lemmon, and as a dancer in Bolero (1934) with Carole Lombard and a truck driver in They Drive by Night (1940) with Ann Sheridan, Ida Lupino and Bogart.
Raft said he never regarded himself as an actor. "I wanted to be me," he said.
Early life and career
George Raft was born in Hell's Kitchen, New York City, to a family of German descent, the son of Eva (née Glockner), a German immigrant, and Conrad Ranft, who was born in Massachusetts to German immigrant parents. His parents were married on November 17, 1895 in Manhattan. Raft's older sister Eva, known as Katie, was born on April 18, 1896. Raft's grandfather had emigrated from Germany and worked on merry-go-rounds and prospected for gold. His father worked in carnivals before settling in New York.
Most obituaries cited Raft's year of birth as 1895, which he stated was correct when he appeared on The Mike Douglas Show seven months prior to his death. However, Raft is recorded in the New York City Birth Index as having been born on September 26, 1901 in Manhattan as "George Rauft" (although "Rauft" is likely a mistranscription of "Ranft"). The 1900 census for New York City lists his sister Katie as his parents' only child, with two children born and only one living. In the 1910 census, he is listed as eight years old.
Raft grew up on 41st Street and worked as an errand boy and a fishwrapper after school. His parents sent him to live at his grandparents' house on 164th Street. He left school at the age of 12, and left home at 13. He worked as an apprentice electrician for a year, then boxed professionally for two years beginning at the age of 15. As Dutch Rauft, he fought 14 bouts, with nine victories, three defeats and two draws. Another account says that Raft fought 25 bouts and was knocked out seven times.
Raft played minor-league baseball, reportedly with Springfield of the Eastern League, as a utility outfielder with pitching aspirations. However, his batting was poor, and he was dropped.
"I was just trying to find something that I liked that would make me a living," said Raft later. "I saw guys fighting, so I fought. I saw guys playing ball, so I played ball. Then I saw guys dancing... and getting paid for it!"
Career as a dancer
Raft's mother taught him how to dance, and he danced at outdoor amusement parks and carnivals with his parents. Following his baseball career, he began working as a taxi dancer in the poorer sections of New York. At first, he struggled financially, but then he won a Charleston competition and was launched professionally.
Raft started performing exhibition dances in the afternoon at Healy's, Murray's, Rectors and Churchills in New York. He then started working in New York City nightclubs, often in the same venues as did Rudolph Valentino before Valentino became a film actor. Raft had a notable collaboration with Elsie Pilcer. A May 1924 review in Variety called him "gifted."
"I could have been the first X-rated dancer," he said later. "I was very erotic. I used to caress myself as I danced. I never felt I was a great dancer. I was more of a stylist, unique. I was never a Fred Astaire or a Gene Kelly, but I was sensuous."
Raft went on tour as a dancer and helped popularize the tango in Paris, Vienna, Rome, London and New York. He had a great success as a dancer in London in 1926, and the Duke of Windsor was "an ardent fan and supporter." Fred Astaire, in his autobiography "Steps in Time" (1959), wrote that Raft was a lightning-fast dancer and did "the fastest Charleston I ever saw." A September 1926 edition of Variety spoke of Raft's reputation as "the best Charleston dancer in New York."
During this time, Raft befriended a number of gangsters, including Enoch Johnson and Larry Fay, and he would occasionally drive for Owney Madden. A boyhood friend of gangster Benjamin Siegel, and later a "wheel man" for the mob, Raft acknowledged having narrowly avoided a life of crime.
Broadway
Raft became part of the stage act of flamboyant speakeasy and nightclub hostess Texas Guinan at the 300 Club, and he also produced some of her shows.
His success led him to Broadway, where he again worked as a dancer. His stage performances included The City Chap (October 1925) (with music by Jerome Kern), Gay Paree, Madhattan, Palm Beach Nights (also known as No Foolin') and Padlocks of 1927 (1927). He was called "the fastest Charleston dancer."
Raft later starred in the film Broadway (1942), a fictionalized account of his life when he was working the Paramount-Publix circuit and performing in stage shows that were presented before movies.
Later career
Casinos
In 1955, Raft was offered the chance to buy a 2% share in the Flamingo Hotel for $65,000 if he would act as its entertainment director. Raft agreed but was denied a gaming license because of his alleged associations with underworld figures. He appealed, arguing that although he knew many gangsters, "I never did business with any of them," and the decision was overturned in December 1955. Raft worked at the hotel negotiating its show business deals.
Raft was hired by Santo Trafficante, Jr. to work as a greeter at the Capri Casino in Havana, Cuba, at which he was also a part owner. However, Fidel Castro took command of the country and closed all of its casinos, and Raft was in Havana on the night when the rebels arrived.
Controversies
Links to criminal figures
When James Cagney became president of the Screen Actors Guild in 1942 for a two-year term, he took a role in the guild's fight against the Mafia, which had taken an active interest in the movie industry. Cagney's wife Billie once received a phone call telling her that Cagney was dead. Cagney alleged that having failed to scare him, the mob sent a hitman to kill him by dropping a heavy light on his head. On hearing about the rumor of the hit, George Raft allegedly made a call to have the hit canceled.
- Raft was interviewed by FBI agents in 1938 and 1953. The 1938 interview was about his knowledge of Louis Buchalter and Jacob Shapiro.
- Raft was investigated for tax evasion in 1942.
- In 1944, Raft's name was mentioned in connection with an illegal dice game.
- In 1944, he gave evidence when Bugsy Siegel was on trial for bookmaking.
- In 1946, Raft was sued by an attorney in Australia for assault.
- Raft was present with Bugsy Siegel in 1946 when Siegel was again arrested for bookmaking. Raft attended the opening of the Flamingo Hotel.
- In 1953, Raft vouched for John Capone (brother of Al Capone), who had recently been released from prison.
- In 1957, Mickey Cohen said that he wanted Raft to play him in any film about his life because "the others would portray me as a vicious gangster, but George would not."
- In 1967, Raft was denied entry into the UK, where he had been installed as casino director at the Colony Club, because of his alleged underworld associations.
Personal life
Raft married Grace Mulrooney (1902–1970) in 1923, long before his stardom. The pair separated soon thereafter, but the devoutly Catholic Mulrooney refused to grant a divorce, and Raft officially remained married to her and continued to support her until her death in 1970. A romantic figure in Hollywood, Raft had love affairs with Betty Grable, Marlene Dietrich, Tallulah Bankhead, Carole Lombard and Mae West. He stated publicly that he wanted to marry Norma Shearer, with whom he had a long romance, but his wife's refusal to allow a divorce eventually caused Shearer to end the affair
Death
Raft died from emphysema at the age of 79 in Los Angeles on †November 24, 1980. Raft left behind no will, and his estate consisted of only a $10,000 insurance policy and some furniture. In the last years of his life, he had lived on approximately $800 a month, a combination of social security and his pension. He was interred at the Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. Raft's personal effects and wardrobe were sold through a classified advertisement listing the lot for $800 in Hemmings Motor News in the fall of 1981.
- Wikipedia article: George Raft
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Note: George Raft was a volunteer at the Hollywood Canteen |
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