The New York Times reports the death of one of the last of the great Hollywood musical stars of the 1940s and 50s, Kathryn Grayson. Though her career was never as prolific or as popular as other MGM stars, her performances in the film versions of Show Boat and Kiss Me Kate, and in Anchors Aweigh earned her a spot in the pantheon of musical stars.
I loved her in “Kiss Me Kate” as Lilli, the ex-wife of Broadway producer Fred Graham (played by Howard Keel), who blackmails her into playing opposite him in a musical version of “The Taming Of The Shrew”, only to rekindle the passion of their relationship through the play. That particular film also features a young Bob Fosse in a legendary dance number, and the equally legendary hoofer Ann Miller. Coming close to the end of the era of Hollywood musicals, it’s a little overlooked as a film, but it’s a lot of fun.
Sadly, YouTube doesn’t seem to have any clips from “Kiss Me Kate” or “Show Boat” to share some of Kathryn Grayson’s musical talents with you, but they do have this clip from a much earlier film with Frank Sinatra (back in his skinny-kid-from-Hoboken days) and Peter Lawford (back in his before-he-swung-with-JFK days), singing a lovely tune called “Time After Time” (which you may recognize as also being featured in last year’s “Julie and Julia”, sung by Margaret Whiting):
