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).
Also recorded as Gordon Mac Rae · Albert Gordon MacRae
Gordon MacRae
NBC Radio · eBay item photo front photo back · Public domain
- Name
- Gordon MacRae
- Birth Name
- Albert Gordon MacRae
- Born
- 12 March 1921
- Occupation
- * Actor
- Birthplace
- East Orange, New Jersey, U.S.
- Died
- 24 January 1986
- Place of death
- Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S.
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- traditional pop
- Education
- Deerfield Academy · Nottingham High School
- Honours
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
- Languages
- English
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
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).
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Gordon MacRae. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q1153004 · wikipedia · Gordon MacRae
In this article
Biography
Biography
Gordon MacRae studied at Deerfield Academy and Nottingham High School. The recorded working language is English. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are traditional pop. Places of work recorded in the authority are United States. Employment is recorded with Warner Bros. Distinctions recorded are star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Jerry Wald, Gordon MacRae, Mel Tormé, Marion Hutton, and Jerry Jerome, Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y.
William P. Gottlieb · http: section=ver01 size=1024 from=
![Marion Hutton, and Jerry Jerome, Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] (LOC).jpg Marion Hutton (10 March 1919, Battle Creek, Michigan - 10 January 1987, Kirkland, Washington) was a United States singer and actress. Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Jerry Wald, Gordon MacRae, Mel Tormé, and Marion Hutton Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 19](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Marion_Hutton_et_al.jpg/500px-Marion_Hutton_et_al.jpg)
Marion Hutton, and Jerry Jerome, Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] (LOC).jpg Marion Hutton (10 March 1919, Battle Creek, Michigan - 10 January 1987, Kirkland, Washington) was a United States singer and actress. Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Jerry Wald, Gordon MacRae, Mel Tormé, and Marion Hutton Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 19
The Library of Congress · [Portrait of Jerry Wald, Gordon MacRae, Mel Tormé, Marion Hutton, and Jerry Jerome, Saturday Teentimers Show, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] (LOC)
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Gordon MacRae • Birth Name — Albert Gordon MacRae • Born — 12 March 1921 • Occupation — * Actor • singer • television and radio show host • Years Active — 1939–1980 • Birthplace — East Orange, New Jersey, U.S. • Died — 24 January 1986 • Place of death — Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. • Resting Place — Wyuka Cemetery, Lincoln, Nebraska • Children — 5, including Heather and Meredith
Early life
Early life
Albert Gordon MacRae was born on March 12, 1921, in East Orange, New Jersey. His father, William LaMont MacRae, was a toolmaker and radio singer. His mother, Helen Violet Sonn, was a concert pianist. 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.
Singer
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.
Broadway
Broadway
He made his Broadway debut in 1942, acquiring his first recording contract soon afterwards. Many of his recordings were made with Jo Stafford.
Radio
Radio
On the radio in 1945, his talents were showcased on the Gordon MacRae Show on the CBS network in collaboration with the conductor Archie Bleyer. 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, which ran for 326 performances.
Television
Television
MacRae was host and singer on The Gordon MacRae Show on NBC in 1956. 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
Later career
MacRae guest starred on McCloud. He had supporting roles in the films Zero to Sixty (1978) and The Pilot (1980).
Personal life and death
Personal life and death
MacRae was married to Sheila MacRae from 1941 until 1967. 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. MacRae's second marriage was to Elizabeth Lambert Schrafft on September 25, 1967, and together they had one daughter. They remained married until his death. He was an alcoholic for many years, but he overcame the addiction by the late 1970s. MacRae had cancer of the mouth and jaw. He died in 1986 of pneumonia, at a hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska, aged 64. He was buried at the Wyuka Cemetery in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Filmography
Filmography
• Illustration — MacRae with Doris Day in Tea for Two (1950) • Illustration — MacRae with Day in Starlift (1951) Feature films • Year — Title — Role — 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) Short subjects • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1951 — The Screen Director — Himself • 1952 — Screen Snapshots: Fun in the Sun — Himself • 1953 — So You Want a Television Set — Himself
Stage work
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
Radio
• Illustration — 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. He also appeared in programs as shown in the table below. • Program — Episode — Date — Notes • Stars in the Air — Christmas in Connecticut — March 20, 1952 • Lux Radio Theatre — On Moonlight Bay — May 5, 1952
Solo albums
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
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
Singles
• Year — Single — Chart positions • Hot 100 • 1945 — "You Go to My Head" b/w "'A' You're Adorable" — - • "It's Anybody's Spring" b/w "Love Is the Sweetest Thing" — - • 1947 — "I Still Get Jealous" b/w "I Understand" — 25 • "At the Candlelight Cafe" b/w "I Surrender Dear" — 20 • 1948 — "Thoughtless" — 28 • "You Were Meant for Me" — 22 • "That Feathery Feeling" b/w "Matinee" — 27 • "It's Magic" b/w "Spring in December" — 9 • "Steppin' Out with My Baby" b/w "Evelyn" — - • "Hankerin'" b/w "I Went Down to Virginia" — 23 • "Win or Lose" b/w "At Your Command" — - • "Hair of Gold, Eyes of Blue" — 7 • "Rambling Rose" — 27 • "Say Something Sweet to Your Sweetheart" (with Jo Stafford) — 10 • "Bluebird of Happiness" (with Jo Stafford) — 16 • "My Darling, My Darling" b/w "Girls Were Made to Take Care of Boys" Both sides with Jo Stafford and The Starlighters — 1 • 1949 — "Down the Lane" b/w "You Are My Love" Both sides with Jo Stafford and The Jud Conlon Singers — - • "N'Yot N'Yow (The Pussycat Song)" b/w "I'll String Along with You" Both sides with Jo Stafford — 26 • "So in Love" b/w "A Rosewood Spinet" — 20 • "You're Still the Belle of the Ball" b/w "The Melancholy Minstrel" — - • "'A' You're Adorable" (with Jo Stafford) — 4 • "Need You" (with Jo Stafford) — 7 • "Some Enchanted Evening" b/w (B-side by Margaret Whiting: "A Wonderful Guy") — - • "Younger Than Springtime" b/w(B-side by Margaret Whiting: "A Cock-Eyed Optimist) — 30 • "Whispering Hope" b/w "A Thought in My Heart" Both sides with Jo Stafford — 4 • "Thank You" b/w "My One and Only Highland Fling" Both sides with The Starlighters — - • "The Wedding of Lilli Marlene" b/w "Twenty-Four Hours of Sunshine" Both sides with The Starlighters — - • "I Want You to Want Me (to Want You)" b/w "Wonderful One" — - • "Wunderbar" b/w "I'll String Along with You" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Mule Train" — 14 • "Dear Hearts and Gentle People" — 19 • "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" (with Jo Stafford) — 13 • "Echoes" (with Jo Stafford) — 18 • "The Sunshine of Your Smile" b/w "Body and Soul" — - • 1950 — "Adeste Fideles" b/w "Merry Christmas Waltz" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Songs of Christmas" (Part 1) b/w "Songs of Christmas" (Part 2) Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Love's Old Sweet Song" b/w "Juanita" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Dearie" b/w "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday (I Love You)" Both sides with Jo Stafford — 10 • "Beyond the Sunset" b/w "Near Me" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Where Are You Gonna Be When the Moon Shines" b/w "Driftin' Down the Dreamy Ol' Ohio" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "A Perfect Day" b/w "The Rosary" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "I'm in the Middle of a Riddle" b/w "Tea for Two" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • 1951 — "Love Means Love" (with The Ewing Sisters) b/w "Wait For Me" — - • "Whispering Hope" (Reissue) b/w "I'll String Along with You" — - • "Wunderbar" b/w "Beyond the Sunset" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "Ol' Man River" b/w "On a Sunday at Coney Island" — - • "Down the Old Ox Road" b/w "Cuddle Up a Little Closer" — - • "Cuban Love Song" b/w "Last Night When We Were Young" (with Jo Stafford) — - • "On Rosary Hill" b/w "Lover's Waltz" Both sides with Gisele MacKenzie — - • "Be My Girl" b/w "Laughing at Love" — - • 1952 — "When It's Springtime in the Rockies" b/w "Nights of Splendor" Both sides with Jo Stafford — - • "My Love" b/w "How Close" — - • "Green Acres and Purple Mountains" b/w "Baby Doll" — - • "These Things Shall Pass" b/w "Gentle Hands" — - • "Brotherly Love" b/w "Straight and Narrow" — - • 1953 — "How Do You Speak to an Angel" — 30 • "Congratulations to Someone" — 28 • "C'est Magnifique" b/w "Homin' Time" — 29 • "Stranger in Paradise" b/w "Never in a Million Years" — 29 • "I Don't Want to Walk Without You" b/w "I Still Dream of You" — - • 1954 — "Ramona" b/w "So in Love" — - • "Face to Face" b/w "Backward, Turn Backward" — 30 • "Cara Mia" b/w "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep" — - • "Here's What I'm Here For" b/w "Love Can Change the Stars" — - • 1955 — "You Forgot (to Tell Me That You Love Me)" b/w "Tik-A-Tee Tik-A-Tay" — - • "Follow Your Heart" b/w "Bella Notte" — - • "Why Break the Heart That Loves You" b/w "Jim Bowie" — - • "The Surrey with the Fringe on Top" b/w "People Will Say We're in Love" Both sides with Ray Anthony — - • "A Woman in Love" b/w "Wonderful Christmas" — - • "Never Before and Never Again" b/w "Fate" — - • 1956 — "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" b/w "Who Are We" — 96 • "I Asked the Lord" b/w "One Misty Morning" — - • "Obey" b/w "Without Love" — - • "Endless Love" b/w "When You Kiss Me" — - • 1957 — "Till We Meet Again" b/w "Lonely" — - • "Sayonara" b/w "Never Till Now" — - • 1958 — "If I Forget You" b/w "Now" — - • "The Secret" b/w "A Man Once Said" — 18 • "Fly Little Bluebird" b/w "Little Do You Know" — - • 1959 — "The Stranger" b/w "Palace of Love" — - • "The Sound of Music" b/w "When Did I Fall in Love" — - • 1960 — "You Were There" b/w "Our Love Story" (with Sheila MacRae) — - • "If Ever I Would Leave You" b/w "Dolce Far Niente" — - • 1961 — "Face to Face" b/w "Sail Away" — - • "Ordinary People" b/w "Impossible" — - • 1962 — "The Sweetest Sounds" b/w "Nobody Told Me" — - • "Lovely" b/w "Warmer Than a Whisper" — - • 1966 — "If She Walked into My Life" b/w "I Want to Be with You" — - • "All" b/w "I Don't Think I'm in Love" — - • 1968 — "Only Love" b/w "Knowing When to Leave" — -
Identity and origins
Identity and origins
His recorded language was English. He married Sheila MacRae. One child is recorded: Meredith MacRae.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1921
Gordon MacRae born at East Orange.
1986
Gordon MacRae died at William Jennings Bryan House.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
East Orange.
Birth place
William Jennings Bryan House.
Death place
Film
MacRae signed a contract with Warner Bros. in 1947. In 1948, he appeared in his first film, The Big Punch, a drama about boxing. He followed this with a film noir with Virginia Mayo, Backfire (made in 1948, released 1950). MacRae's first on-screen musical was Look for the Silver Lining (1949), a biopic of Marilyn Miller (June Haver), where MacRae played Frank Carter. David Butler directed. MacRae was reunited with Haver and Butler in The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady (1950). Warners put him in a Western, Return of the Frontiersman (1950). Then he starred with Doris Day in Tea for Two (1950), a reworking of No, No, Nanette, also for Butler. Public response was enthusiastic. MacRae and Day were teamed again in The West Point Story (1950) starring James Cagney and Mayo, On Moonlight Bay (1951), and the all-star Korean War tribute, Starlift (1951). MacRae was in a military school musical, About Face (1952) with Eddie Bracken, then he and Day did a sequel to On Moonlight Bay, By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953). That same year, he starred opposite Kathryn Grayson in the third film version of The Desert Song and teamed with Jane Powell in Three Sailors and a Girl (1953). MacRae's best known film role was Curly in the big screen adaptation of Oklahoma! (1955) alongside Shirley Jones. He and Jones were used on another Rodgers and Hammerstein adaptation, Carousel (1956), at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios). MacRae played Buddy De Sylva in The Best Things in Life Are Free (1956) for 20th Century-Fox.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Folkart, Burt A. Gordon MacRae, Star of 'Oklahoma,' Dies at 64. Los Angeles Times. January 24, 1986.
- 2.Colin Larkin. The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music. Virgin Books. 268/9. 2002. 1-85227-937-0.
- 3.Flint, Peter B. Gordon MacRae Dies: Star of Movie Musicals. The New York Times. January 25, 1986.
- 4.The Hollywood Salon. The Nebraska Coast Connection. December 29, 2013.
- 5.Gordon MacRae Show, the.
- 6.[https://www.esm.rochester.edu/sibley/files/John-J-Serry-Sr-Collection.pdf Eastman School of Music - University of Rochester - Sibley Music Library: John J. Serry Sr. Collection Series 4 Recordings: Item 8 audio disc "John Serry guest on the Gordon Macrea Show as "outstanding accordionist of the year" p. 18 in The John J. Serry Sr. Collection archived at the University of Rochester Eastman School of Music]
- 7.Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalogue of Over 1800 Shows. Terrace, Vincent. McFarland 1999 p. 306 Gordon MacRae Skyline Roof on Google Books ISBN 9780786403516
- 8.[https://www.esm.rochester.edu/sibley/specialcollections/ Eastman School of Music: Sibley Music Library: Ruth T. Watanabe Special Collections Dept.- "The John Serry Sr. Collection" - Items donated to the library include an audio recording of John Serry who is named in the recording of the August 22, 1946 show as the featured accordionist by Gordon MacRae on his live broadcast and performs with Archie Bleyer's Orchestra on the show, www.esm.rochester.edu]
- 9.Railroad Hour . episodic log. Otrsite.com.
- 10.Gordon MacRae Discography. Castalbums.org.
- 11.McNeil, Alex. Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present. Penguin Books USA, Inc. 338. 1996. 0-14-02-4916-8.
- 12."O Holy Night," Tennessee Ernie Ford and Gordon MacRae. Clevelandclassicmedia.blogspot.com. December 22, 2007.
- 13.Milestones: August 4, 1967 from Time magazine
- 14.Sheila projects aura of strength. The Salina Journal. 15. 14 July 1974.
- 15.Flint, Peter B. Gordon Macrae Dies: Star of Movie Musicals. The New York Times. January 25, 1986.
- 16.From Page Boy To Emcee. Radio-Vision. 6. November 30, 1946.
- 17.Kirby, Walter. Better Radio Programs for the Week. The Decatur Daily Review. 44. March 16, 1952.
- 18.Kirby, Walter. Better Radio Programs for the Week. The Decatur Daily Review. 50. May 4, 1952.
- 19.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 20.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 21.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 22.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 23.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 24.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 25.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
- 26.Cast Albums. castalbums.org.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 2
- Hollywood Mother of the Year – Sheila MacRae's Own Story, by Sheila MacRae & H. Paul Jeffreys. (Birch Lane Press, 1992)
- Gordon MacRae: A Bio-Bibliography by Bruce B. Leiby. (Greenwood Press, 1991)
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 15 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Film memorabilia
37,408 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Gordon HollingsheadPerson
- Gordon JonesPerson
- Gordon JumpPerson
- Gordon LiuPerson
- Gordon MitchellPerson
- Gordon PinsentPerson
- Gordon ScottPerson
- Gordon TootoosisPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Gordon MacRae?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.