Gordon MacRae

Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer, and television and radio host. He appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Oklahoma! (1955) and Carousel (1956), and played the leading man opposite Doris Day in On Moonlight Bay (1951) and its sequel, By The Light of the Silvery Moon (1953).

Early life

Albert Gordon MacRae was born on March 12, 1921, in East Orange, New Jersey. His father was descended from Clan MacRae. MacRae attended Nottingham High School in Syracuse, New York, where he was active in the Drama Club. He later attended and graduated in 1940 from Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Massachusetts, and thereafter served as a navigator in IX Troop Carrier Command in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II.

Career

Singer

MacRae was a baritone. Winning a contest enabled him to sing at the 1939 New York World's Fair with the Harry James and Les Brown orchestras. In 1946, his fifteen-minute variety show Skyline Roof also featured emerging musical talent, including the accordionist John Serry Sr. MacRae was also the host and lead actor on The Railroad Hour, a half-hour anthology series made up of condensed versions of hit Broadway musicals. The programs were later released as popular studio cast albums, most of which have been reissued on CD.

In 1946, he was in the revue Three to Make Ready, He appeared frequently on television, on such variety programs as The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford. He also appeared on drama shows such as Lux Video Theatre.

During Christmas 1958, MacRae and Ford performed the Christmas hymn "O Holy Night". Earlier in 1958, MacRae guest-starred on the short-lived NBC variety series The Polly Bergen Show.

He starred in the television musical The Gift of the Magi (1958). Thereafter, MacRae appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom, and The Bell Telephone Hour.

Later career

MacRae guest starred on McCloud. He had supporting roles in the films Zero to Sixty (1978) and The Pilot (1980). They met on the set of a play and it was "love at first sight." The couple were the parents of four children, including actresses Heather and Meredith MacRae. Sheila later married television producer Ronald Wayne. He was buried at the Wyuka Cemetery in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Filmography

thumb|right|250px|MacRae with [[Doris Day in Tea for Two (1950)]]

thumb|right|250px|MacRae with Day in [[Starlift (1951)]]

{| class="wikitable sortable" width=52%

|+Feature films

! width=2%|Year

! width=25%|Title

! width=25%|Role

! width=25%|Notes

| 1948

| The Big Punch

| Johnny Grant

| 1949

| Look for the Silver Lining

| Frank Carter

| 1950

| Backfire

| Bob Corey

| 1950

| '

| Tony Pastor

| 1950

| Return of the Frontiersman

| Logan Barrett

| 1950

| Tea for Two

| Jimmy Smith

| 1950

| '

| Tom Fletcher

| 1951

| On Moonlight Bay

| William Sherman

| 1951

| Starlift

| Himself

| 1952

| About Face

| Tony Williams

| 1953

| By the Light of the Silvery Moon

| William Sherman

| 1953

| '

| El Khobar / Paul Bonnard

| 1953

| Three Sailors and a Girl

| "Choirboy" Jones

| 1955

| Oklahoma!

| Curly McLain

| 1956

| Carousel

| Billy Bigelow

| 1956

| '

| Buddy DeSylva

| 1978

| Zero to Sixty

| Officer Joe

| 1980

| '

| Joe Barnes

|(final film role)

{| class="wikitable sortable" width=52%

|+Short subjects

! width=2%|Year

! width=25%|Title

! width=25%|Role

! width=25%|Notes

| 1951

| The Screen Director

| Himself

| 1952

| Screen Snapshots: Fun in the Sun

| Himself

| 1953

| So You Want a Television Set

| Himself

Stage work

Junior Miss (1942, Broadway, replacement for Walter Collins)
Three to Make Ready (1946, Broadway)
Carousel (1955, Music Hall at Fair Park)
Annie Get Your Gun (1960, Starlight Theatre)
Bells Are Ringing (1961, Columbus, Ohio)
Guys and Dolls (1963, summer stock tour)
Bells Are Ringing (1964, summer stock tour)
Jerome Kern's Theatre (1966, Avery Fisher Hall)
Kismet (1966, Columbus, Ohio)
Oklahoma! (1967, summer stock tour)
I Do! I Do! (1967, Broadway, replacement for Robert Preston)
Golden Rainbow (1969, summer stock tour)
Milk and Honey (1972, Columbus, Ohio)
Paint Your Wagon (1978, Columbus, Ohio)

Radio

thumb|[[Marion Hutton, Mel Tormé and MacRae on The Teentimers Club radio show (1947)]]MacRae replaced Frank Sinatra on a radio program in 1943, but he soon had to leave for military service. In 1946, he was the "singing emcee" of The Teentimers Club, a Saturday morning program. From 1945 to 1948 he also hosted and performed on The Gordon MacRae Show for the CBS radio network.

| Lux Radio Theatre || On Moonlight Bay||May 5, 1952||

Discography

Solo albums

Gordon MacRae Sings (1950)
Gordon MacRae Sings with Walter Gross’ Orchestra (1952)
Gordon MacRae Sings Operetta Favorites (1955)
Romantic Ballads (1955)
The Best Things in Life Are Free (1956)
Cowboy's Lament (1957)
Motion Picture Soundstage (1957)
This Is Gordon MacRae (1958)
Gordon MacRae in Concert (1958)
The Seasons of Love (1959)
Songs for an Evening at Home (1959)
Our Love Story (1960)
Hallowed Be Thy Name (1961)
If She Walked Into My Life (1966)
Only Love (1969)

Albums with Jo Stafford

Kiss Me Kate (1949)
Sunday Evening Songs (1950)
Memory Songs (1956)
Whispering Hope (1962)
There's Peace in the Valley (1963)

Singles

{| class="wikitable"

! align="center" rowspan="2"|Year

! align="center" rowspan="2"|Single

! align="center" colspan="1"|Chart positions

!width="40"|Hot 100

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1945

|align="left"|"You Go to My Head" b/w "'A' You're Adorable"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"It's Anybody's Spring" b/w "Love Is the Sweetest Thing"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1947

|align="left"|"I Still Get Jealous" b/w "I Understand"

| align="center"|25

|align="left"|"At the Candlelight Cafe" b/w "I Surrender Dear"

| align="center"|20

| align="center" rowspan="12"|1948

|align="left"|"Thoughtless"

| align="center"|28

|align="left"|"You Were Meant for Me"

| align="center"|22

|align="left"|"That Feathery Feeling" b/w "Matinee"

| align="center"|27

|align="left"|"It's Magic" b/w "Spring in December"

| align="center"|9

|align="left"|"Steppin' Out with My Baby" b/w "Evelyn"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Hankerin'" b/w "I Went Down to Virginia"

| align="center"|23

|align="left"|"Win or Lose" b/w "At Your Command"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Hair of Gold, Eyes of Blue"

| align="center"|7

|align="left"|"Rambling Rose"

| align="center"|27

|align="left"|"Say Something Sweet to Your Sweetheart" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|10

|align="left"|"Bluebird of Happiness" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|16

|align="left"|"My Darling, My Darling" b/w "Girls Were Made to Take Care of Boys" Both sides with Jo Stafford and The Starlighters

| align="center"|1

| align="center" rowspan="18"|1949

|align="left"|"Down the Lane" b/w "You Are My Love" Both sides with Jo Stafford and The Jud Conlon Singers

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"N'Yot N'Yow (The Pussycat Song)" b/w "I'll String Along with You" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|26

|align="left"|"So in Love" b/w "A Rosewood Spinet"

| align="center"|20

|align="left"|"You're Still the Belle of the Ball" b/w "The Melancholy Minstrel"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"'A' You're Adorable" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|4

|align="left"|"Need You" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|7

|align="left"|"Some Enchanted Evening" b/w (B-side by Margaret Whiting: "A Wonderful Guy")

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Younger Than Springtime" b/w(B-side by Margaret Whiting: "A Cock-Eyed Optimist)

| align="center"|30

|align="left"|"Whispering Hope" b/w "A Thought in My Heart" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|4

|align="left"|"Thank You" b/w "My One and Only Highland Fling" Both sides with The Starlighters

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"The Wedding of Lilli Marlene" b/w "Twenty-Four Hours of Sunshine" Both sides with The Starlighters

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"I Want You to Want Me (to Want You)" b/w "Wonderful One"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Wunderbar" b/w "I'll String Along with You" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Mule Train"

| align="center"|14

|align="left"|"Dear Hearts and Gentle People"

| align="center"|19

|align="left"|"Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|13

|align="left"|"Echoes" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|18

|align="left"|"The Sunshine of Your Smile" b/w "Body and Soul"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="8"|1950

|align="left"|"Adeste Fideles" b/w "Merry Christmas Waltz" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Songs of Christmas" (Part 1) b/w "Songs of Christmas" (Part 2) Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Love's Old Sweet Song" b/w "Juanita" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Dearie" b/w "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday (I Love You)" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|10

|align="left"|"Beyond the Sunset" b/w "Near Me" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Where Are You Gonna Be When the Moon Shines" b/w "Driftin' Down the Dreamy Ol' Ohio" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"A Perfect Day" b/w "The Rosary" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"I'm in the Middle of a Riddle" b/w "Tea for Two" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="8"|1951

|align="left"|"Love Means Love" (with The Ewing Sisters) b/w "Wait For Me"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Whispering Hope" (Reissue) b/w "I'll String Along with You"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Wunderbar" b/w "Beyond the Sunset" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Ol' Man River" b/w "On a Sunday at Coney Island"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Down the Old Ox Road" b/w "Cuddle Up a Little Closer"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Cuban Love Song" b/w "Last Night When We Were Young" (with Jo Stafford)

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"On Rosary Hill" b/w "Lover's Waltz" Both sides with Gisele MacKenzie

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Be My Girl" b/w "Laughing at Love"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="5"|1952

|align="left"|"When It's Springtime in the Rockies" b/w "Nights of Splendor" Both sides with Jo Stafford

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"My Love" b/w "How Close"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Green Acres and Purple Mountains" b/w "Baby Doll"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"These Things Shall Pass" b/w "Gentle Hands"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Brotherly Love" b/w "Straight and Narrow"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="5"|1953

|align="left"|"How Do You Speak to an Angel"

| align="center"|30

|align="left"|"Congratulations to Someone"

| align="center"|28

|align="left"|"C'est Magnifique" b/w "Homin' Time"

| align="center"|29

|align="left"|"Stranger in Paradise" b/w "Never in a Million Years"

| align="center"|29

|align="left"|"I Don't Want to Walk Without You" b/w "I Still Dream of You"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="4"|1954

|align="left"|"Ramona" b/w "So in Love"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Face to Face" b/w "Backward, Turn Backward"

| align="center"|30

|align="left"|"Cara Mia" b/w "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Here's What I'm Here For" b/w "Love Can Change the Stars"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="6"|1955

|align="left"|"You Forgot (to Tell Me That You Love Me)" b/w "Tik-A-Tee Tik-A-Tay"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Follow Your Heart" b/w "Bella Notte"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Why Break the Heart That Loves You" b/w "Jim Bowie"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"The Surrey with the Fringe on Top" b/w "People Will Say We're in Love" Both sides with Ray Anthony

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"A Woman in Love" b/w "Wonderful Christmas"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Never Before and Never Again" b/w "Fate"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="4"|1956

|align="left"|"I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" b/w "Who Are We"

| align="center"|96

|align="left"|"I Asked the Lord" b/w "One Misty Morning"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Obey" b/w "Without Love"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Endless Love" b/w "When You Kiss Me"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1957

|align="left"|"Till We Meet Again" b/w "Lonely"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Sayonara" b/w "Never Till Now"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="3"|1958

|align="left"|"If I Forget You" b/w "Now"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"The Secret" b/w "A Man Once Said"

| align="center"|18

|align="left"|"Fly Little Bluebird" b/w "Little Do You Know"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1959

|align="left"|"The Stranger" b/w "Palace of Love"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"The Sound of Music" b/w "When Did I Fall in Love"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1960

|align="left"|"You Were There" b/w "Our Love Story" (with Sheila MacRae)

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"If Ever I Would Leave You" b/w "Dolce Far Niente"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1961

|align="left"|"Face to Face" b/w "Sail Away"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Ordinary People" b/w "Impossible"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1962

|align="left"|"The Sweetest Sounds" b/w "Nobody Told Me"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"Lovely" b/w "Warmer Than a Whisper"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="2"|1966

|align="left"|"If She Walked into My Life" b/w "I Want to Be with You"

| align="center"|-

|align="left"|"All" b/w "I Don't Think I'm in Love"

| align="center"|-

| align="center" rowspan="1"|1968

|align="left"|"Only Love" b/w "Knowing When to Leave"

| align="center"|-

Early life

Career

Singer

Later career

Filmography

Stage work

Radio

Discography

Solo albums

Albums with Jo Stafford

Singles

References

Further reading

External links