Ray Bolger
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- January 10, 1904
- Died
- January 15, 1987 (aged 83)
- Birthplace
- Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Biography
Ray Bolger began his career in vaudeville. He was half of a team called "Sanford and Bolger" and also did numerous Broadway shows on his own. He, like Gene Kelly, was a song-and-dance man as well as an actor. He was signed to a contract with MGM in 1936 and his first role was as himself in The Great Ziegfeld (1936). This was soon followed by a role opposite Eleanor Powell in Rosalie (1937). His first dancing and singing role was in Sweethearts (1938), where he did the "wooden shoes" number with red-headed soprano/actress Jeanette MacDonald. This got him noticed by MGM producers and resulted in his being cast in his most famous role, that of the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Surprisingly, even though the film was a success, Bolger's contract with MGM ended. He went to RKO to make Four Jacks and a Jill (1942). After this, Bolger went to Broadway, where he received his greatest satisfaction. In 1953 he turned to television and got his own sitcom, Where's Raymond? (1953), later changed to "The Ray Bolger Show". After his series ended, Bolger made frequent guest appearances on TV and had some small roles in movies. In 1985 he co-hosted That's Dancing! (1985) with Liza Minnelli. Bolger died in 1987 at the age of 83. Interred at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California, USA, in the Mausoleum, Crypt F2, Block 35.
Known For
Filmography
Oz
Movie · as Self / Scarecrow (archive footage)
To Oz! The Making of a Classic
Movie · as Self
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
Judy Garland: By Myself
Movie · as Self - Actor (archive sound)
The Dark Side of the Rainbow
Movie · as 'Hunk' (archive footage)
Vaudeville
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
That's Entertainment! III
Movie · as (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: 50 Years of Magic
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
That's Dancing!
Movie · as Self - Host
The Whimsical World of Oz
Movie · as Self
Peter and the Magic Egg
Movie · as Uncle Amos (voice)
Annie
Movie · as Sound Effects Man at Radio Station (uncredited)
Just You and Me, Kid
Movie · as Tom
The Making of the Wizard of Oz
Movie · as Self
The Runner Stumbles
Movie · as Monsignor Nicholson
Heaven Only Knows
Movie · as Simon
Three on a Date
Movie · as Andrew
Diff'rent Strokes
TV · 1 ep
Battlestar Galactica
TV · as Vector · 1 ep
Fantasy Island
TV · as Spencer Randolph, Gaylord Nelson · 1 ep
The Love Boat
TV · as Horace McDonald, Andy Hopkins · 1 ep
The Entertainer
Movie · as Billy Rice
Donny & Marie
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Captains and the Kings
TV · as R.J. Squibbs · 8 eps
Baretta
TV · 1 ep
That's Entertainment!
Movie · as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Little House on the Prairie
TV · as Toby Noe · 2 eps
Nanny and the Professor
TV · as Uncle Horace · 1 ep
The Partridge Family
TV · as Grandpa Fred Renfrew, Grandpa Walter Renfrew · 2 eps
Omnibus
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Daydreamer
Movie · as The Pieman
The Hollywood Palace
TV · as Self - Host · 2 eps
The Judy Garland Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Merv Griffin Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Babes in Toyland
Movie · as Barnaby
Backstage Party
Movie · as Self
The Mike Douglas Show
TV · as Self, Self - Co-Host · 3 eps
The Bell Telephone Hour
TV · as Self, Self - Host · 1 ep
The All-Star Christmas Show
Movie · as Self
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Tony Awards
TV · as Self - Presenter · 1 ep
Washington Square
TV · as Self - HOst · 1 ep
MGM Parade
TV · 2 eps
A Star Is Born World Premiere
Movie · as Self
The George Gobel Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Wonderful World of Disney
TV · as Self · 1 ep
General Electric Theater
TV · as Alfred Boggs, Stan Maylor · 1 ep
Where's Raymond?
TV · as Raymond Wallace · 60 eps
April in Paris
Movie · as Sam Winthrop Putnam
Where's Charley?
Movie · as Charley Wykeham
The Red Skelton Show
TV · as 'Mayor' Threadbare III · 1 ep
The Colgate Comedy Hour
TV · as Self - Host · 1 ep
What's My Line?
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Bob Hope Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Look for the Silver Lining
Movie · as Jack Donahue
Make Mine Laughs
Movie · as (archive footage)
The Harvey Girls
Movie · as Chris Maule
Stage Door Canteen
Movie · as Ray Bolger
Four Jacks and a Jill
Movie · as Nifty Sullivan, a Jack
Sunny
Movie · as Bunny Billings
The Wizard of Oz
Movie · as Scarecrow / Hunk
Sweethearts
Movie · as Hans
Another Romance of Celluloid: Electrical Power
Movie · as Self (uncredited)
Rosalie
Movie · as Bill Delroy
The Great Ziegfeld
Movie · as Ray Bolger