Martha Raye

Martha Raye, born Margy Reed on August 27, 1916, at St. James Hospital in Butte, Montana, was an American comic actress and singer whose career extended across six decades of film, theater, and television. She died on October 19, 1994. Her broad comedic style and distinctive wide smile earned her the nickname "The Big Mouth."

Raye was the eldest child of vaudeville performers Maybelle Hazel (née Hooper) and Peter F. Reed Jr., who performed together under the billing "Reed and Hooper." Her father was an Irish immigrant and her mother a native of Great Falls, Montana. A younger brother, Douglas "Buddy" Reed, was born while the family was performing in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a third sibling, Melodye, was born during a period when the family was based in Chicago. Raye began appearing in her parents' touring stage act at age three, and the siblings eventually became regular participants in the act. Because the family relocated frequently, she received little formal schooling, though she did attend the Professional Children's School in New York City for a time. Her father struggled with alcoholism throughout her childhood.

In the early 1930s, Raye launched her professional career as a vocalist with the Paul Ash and Boris Morros orchestras. Her first film appearance came in the band short A Nite in the Nite Club in 1934. That same year, at age eighteen, she made her Broadway debut in the Harry Akst musical revue Calling All Stars. From 1936 to 1939, she was a featured cast member in 39 episodes of Al Jolson's weekly CBS radio program, variously known as The Lifebuoy Program and Cafe Trocadero, performing both comedy and vocal solos and duets with Jolson.

Paramount Pictures signed Raye for comic roles in 1936, and her first feature film for the studio was Rhythm on the Range, opposite Bing Crosby and Frances Farmer. She appeared in an ensemble cast in The Big Broadcast of 1937 alongside Bob Burns, then took a lead role opposite Burns and Crosby in Waikiki Wedding in 1937. That same year she was paired again with Burns in Mountain Music and with Crosby in Double or Nothing. In 1938 she starred opposite Bob Hope and Betty Grable in Give Me a Sailor, and she reteamed with Hope the following year in Never Say Die, directed by Elliott Nugent. In 1940, she starred in the comedy film The Farmer's Daughter and returned to Broadway in a starring role in Yip Harburg's musical Hold On to Your Hats. The following year she appeared opposite Abbott and Costello in Keep 'Em Flying, directed by Arthur Lubin, and alongside Ann Sheridan and Jack Oakie in Navy Blues.

In 1942, shortly after the United States entered World War II, Raye joined the United Service Organizations and became a regular international performer for American troops. She appeared in supporting roles in two 20th Century Fox productions in 1944, Four Jills in a Jeep and Pin Up Girl, and in 1947 was cast in a supporting role in Charlie Chaplin's dark comedy Monsieur Verdoux. In 1969, her volunteer work and service to the troops was recognized at the Academy Awards, where she received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.

Raye was an early figure in television, starring in The Martha Raye Show from 1954 to 1956. The series ran for three seasons and featured retired middleweight boxer Rocky Graziano as her on-screen boyfriend. The show was written and produced by Nat Hiken, who later created The Phil Silvers Show. Guest stars on the series included Zsa Zsa Gabor, Cesar Romero, and Broadway dancer Wayne Lamb. She also appeared on other television programs during the decade, including What's My Line?

In 1962, Raye had a lead role in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical Billy Rose's Jumbo, co-starring with Doris Day, Stephen Boyd, and Jimmy Durante. She returned to Broadway in 1967 in a starring role in Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly!, and later appeared on Broadway in Vincent Youmans's No, No, Nanette in 1971. In 1970, she portrayed Boss Witch in the feature film Pufnstuf for Sid and Marty Krofft, and that same year was cast as the villainess Benita Bizarre in the Krofft-produced television series The Bugaloos.

From the third through the ninth seasons of the sitcom Alice, Raye appeared as Carrie Sharples, Mel's mother, making two or three appearances per season between 1979 and 1984. She made guest appearances on programs including Murder, She Wrote, The Andy Williams Show, McMillan and Wife, and The Love Boat, and appeared in a six-episode run of the retooled series McMillan, taking over the role of Agatha from Nancy Walker. Her final feature film appearance was as an airline passenger in the disaster film The Concorde... Airport '79 in 1979.