Kathryn Grayson, Hollywood Golden Age Actress, R.I.P. (1922-2010)

By WSJ Staff

Everett Collection

Kathryn Grayson, an aspiring operatic soprano lured to MGM during the Golden Age of film, has died of natural causes at her Los Angeles home. The actress, who co-starred in the popular 1950s musicals “Show Boat” and “Kiss Me Kate,” both with Howard Keel, was 88.
Signed to MGM by Louis B. Mayer as a teenager, her first film was opposite Mickey Rooney in 1941’s “Andy Hardy’s Private Secretary.” After making a splash in the Gene Kelly/Frank Sinatra musical “Anchors Aweigh,” she graduated to leading status, headlining three musicals with Keel and two with Mario Lanza. Garyson’s popularity, however, declined alongside that of the MGM musical, and she spent the latter half of her career realizing her early operatic dreams, touring with Keel (including gigs in Las Vegas) and starring in one-woman shows.
The actress, who was born Zelma Kathryn Hedrick in Winston-Salem, N.C., is survived by her daughter Patricia Kathryn, her child with second husband Johnny Johnston.
Enjoy a performance of Grayson singing “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” from the musical “Lovely to Look At,” a remake of the Astaire/Rogers musical “Roberta.”
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