| ActorDirectory.Com/georgeraft Actor George Raft |
George Raft was born and grew up in a poor family in Hell's Kitchen, at the time, one of the roughest, meanest areas of New York City. In his youth he showed a great interest in, and aptitude for, dancing. That, combined with his dark good looks and sharp dressing, made him a local favorite at such spots as the El Fey Club with Texas Guinan. In 1928, Raft went to Hollywood to try his luck at acting. His first big role was as the coin-tossing henchman in Scarface (1932). His career was marked by numerous tough-guy roles, often a gangster or convict. The believability with which he played these, together with his lifelong associations with such real-life gangsters as Owney Madden and Bugsy Siegel, added to persistent rumors that he also was a gangster. The slightly shady reputation may have helped his popularity early on, but it made him somewhat undesirable to movie executives later in his career. He somewhat parodied his gangster reputation in Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot (1959). Spouse Grayce Mulrooney (1923 - 1970) (her death) Trivia Interred at Forest Lawn (Hollywood Hills), Los Angeles, California, USA, in the Court of Remembrance. He turned down High Sierra (1941), The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942) and Double Indemnity (1944). Not much is known about his marriage to Grace Mulrooney except that she was some years his senior. Although seperated early, they were never divorced, and he continued to support her faithfully until her death in 1970. Was a close friend of notorious gangster Benjamin Bugsy Siegel since their childhood in New York. Siegel actually lived at Raft's home in Hollywood for a time while trying to make inroads for organized crime within the movie colony. Second actor to portray the title role for CBS Radio's "The Adventures of Rocky Jordan" (1951-1953). Banned from entering Britain in 1966 because of his alleged Mafia connections. Appeared with Mae West in both her first (Night After Night (1932)) and last (Sextette (1978)) films. He died two days after West's death. According to James Cagney's autobiography Cagney By Cagney, (Published by Doubleday and Company Inc 1976), a Mafia plan to murder Cagney by dropping a several hundred pound klieg light on top of him was stopped at the insistence of George Raft. Cagney at that time was President of the Screen Actors Guild and was determined not to let the mob infiltrate the industry. Raft used his 'many' mob connections to cancel the hit. Is portrayed by by Ray Danton in The George Raft Story (1961), Nicholas Mayer in Mae West (1982) (TV) and by Joe Mantegna in Bugsy (1991). July 1939: Signed a long-term contract with Warner Bros. Studios. As a teenager, he was a bat-boy for the New York Highlanders (Yankees), tried out for semi-pro baseball, boxed at the Polo Athletic Club and hustled pool. Featured in "Bad Boys: The Actors of Film Noir" by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry (McFarland, 2003). A lifelong baseball fan, by 1955 Raft had attended the World Series for the past 25 years. Personal Quotes [On his acting] I'm afraid to look, because I'm probably awful. I must have gone through $10 million during my career. Part of the loot went for gambling, part for horses and part for women. The rest I spent foolishly. [On acting] You see, I found it tough work. What I would do would be to think over the scene in my mind and try to become whoever I was playing. I would try to feel like the person in that particular scene. Sometimes my words would be different from the script. Salary Manpower (1941) $60,000 |
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