A couple of song and dance men
Worked on radio and TV (including Colgate Comedy Hour and The Hollywood Palace)
Respected by his peers but often overshadowed by other performers
Remembered today, if at all, for only 2 movies
Performed with ambitious first wife; that marriage ended in divorce
Happy second marriage lasted until his death
Played sports and musical instruments
Had brushes with death, including during service in WWII
Attended Sammy Davis, Jr. and Lorry White’s Las Vegas wedding in January, 1958
Worked with Debbie Reynolds, Marcia Mae Jones, Elinor Donahue, Eve Arden, Rosemary DeCamp, Mary Wickes, Doris Day, Shirley Jones, Billy De Wolfe, Olan Soule, James Cagney
Toured the nightclub circuit in “4 Guys 4″ in 1980
Think I’m talking about Donald O’Connor? Not this time, at least not exactly. All of the above that describes Donald so well also applies to Gordon MacRae, another of my favorite old Hollywood entertainers.
Unlike Donald, Gordon {March 12, 1921~January 24, 1986} grew up in a stable home with both parents (Gordon’s father, William, died after Gordon graduated high school). Like Donald, Gordon worked as a child, although he just loafed around until the ripe old age of 7, when he got up at 4 in the morning to peddle milk from a horse-drawn wagon.
[I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I would have loved to see Donald and Gordon in movies together, like a remake of Holiday Inn, for example. They would have been as great a screen team as Crosby/Astaire or Kelly/Sinatra (better, in my humble opinion).]
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