Ray Bolger

Ray Bolger Headshot

Actor • Dancer • Singer • Vaudevillian

Birth Date: January 10, 1904

Death Date: January 15, 1987

Birth Place: Dorchester, Massachusetts

Although he had racked up numerous stage and screen credits, rubber-legged song-and-dance man Ray Bolger will forever be remembered by children of all ages as the Scarecrow who accompanies Dorothy, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion to the Emerald City in search of "The Wizard of Oz" in that 1939 MGM classic.

A tall, slender man whose physical capacities as a dancer often mystified audiences (he was so lithe as to appear double-jointed), the Massachusetts native began his career in vaudeville. Although generations came to know him through his musical roles, Bolger first and foremost considered himself to be a comic actor, skills he first honed with the Bob Ott Musical Comedy Repertory in the early 1920s and later as part of a vaudeville act.

In 1926, he was spotted by Gus Edwards who hired him as a comedian for the Broadway show "A Merry World." Other stage roles followed, most notably as the lead in the Rodgers and Hart classic "On Your Toes" (1936), introducing the now famous "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" number.

Based on the strength of that performance, he was signed to a film contract by MGM. Bolger debuted in features as himself in the Oscar-winning biopic "The Great Ziegfeld" (1936). He got a chance to display his comic abilities supporting Nelson Eddy and Eleanor Powell in "Rosalie" (1937) but was mostly wasted, except for a clog dance with Jeanette MacDonald, in "Sweethearts" (1938).

When MGM originally announced plans to film "The Wizard of Oz," Bolger was assigned the role of the Tin Man. Feeling that he would be constrained in the role--the dancing would be minimal--he somehow managed to get producer Mervyn LeRoy to allow him to switch roles with Buddy Ebsen who had been tapped to play the Scarecrow. (What for Bolger was a triumph proved problematic for Ebsen who developed an allergy to the make-up and had to be replaced.)

Offering an astonishing display of terpsichorean skill (when he dances, he really appears to be made of straw), Bolger etched a truly memorable character. The studio, however, chose not to renew his option. Moving to RKO, Bolger appeared in "Four Jacks and a Jill" and "Sunny" (both 1941) before returning to Broadway in Rodgers and Hart's "By Jupiter" (1942).

Exhausted from the grind of working in live theater, he withdrew early from the show (prompting sniping in the press), but the performer needed the rest before undertaking a USO tour (1943-45).

After WWII, Bolger made a one-shot return to MGM where he was again partnered with Judy Garland in "The Harvey Girls" (1946) but his greatest success was to be on stage in what came to be a signature role, Charlie Wykeham, an Oxford student who dons drag and pretends to be a dowager, in "Where's Charley?" (1948-51), a musical adaptation of "Charley's Aunt".

In the show, he introduced the soft-shoe number "Once in Love With Amy" with which he became closely identified. When Warner Bros. filmed the show in 1952, the studio wisely selected Bolger to recreate his stage triumph.

Bolger later found it difficult to top himself, though. Decent film roles became elusive, particularly as the movie musical's heyday was past. Despite wanting to be viewed as a comedian, Bolger and his image were rooted to song-and-dance.

TV seemingly offered a shot with his own sitcom "Where's Raymond/The Ray Bolger Show" (ABC, 1953-55) but the premise did not take full advantage of his gifts and both versions failed to find an audience.

For the remainder of his life, he struggled to find good parts but returns to Broadway in "All American" (1962) and "Come Summer" (1969) proved disappointing as did film work. Nightclubs provided an outlet and he became one of the more popular attractions on that circuit with an act steeped in nostalgia.

His most notably acting role was in a rare dramatic turn in the NBC remake of "The Entertainer" (1976). As the father of Jack Lemmon's titular character, Bolger drew on his own history to portray an aging vaudevillian and was rewarded with an Emmy nomination for his efforts.

Although he offered a strong turn as a priest in his last film role in "The Runner Stumbles" (1979), the movie itself was a jumble with a miscast Dick Van Dyke in the lead. After undergoing hip surgery, a still agile Bolger served as one of the narrators and hosts of the compilation film "That's Dancing!" (1985).

Two years later, he succumbed to cancer, leaving behind only a handful of films. Yet, as long there are movies, he will forever be remembered traveling the Yellow Brick Road in search of a brain.

Credits

Días de cine clásico

Actor
Show
2018

That's Dancing!

Self
Movie
1985

Just You and Me, Kid

Actor
Tom
Movie
1979

For Heaven's Sake

Actor
Simon
Movie
1979

Diff'rent Strokes

Guest Star
Series
1978

Battlestar GalacticaStream

Guest Star
Vector
Series
1978
43%

Fantasy Island

Guest Star
Series
1978

Three on a Date

Actor
Andrew
Movie
1978

The Entertainer

Actor
Billy Rice
Movie
1975

Little House on the PrairieStream

Guest Star
Toby Noe
Series
1974

The Partridge FamilyStream

Guest Star
Grandpa Fred Renfrew
Series
1970

The Wonderful World of Disney

Host
Barnaby
Series
1969

The Daydreamer

Actor
The Pieman
Movie
1966

The Judy Garland Show

Guest Star
Variety Show
1963

Babes in ToylandStream

Actor
Barnaby
Movie
1961
36%

Give My Regards to Broadway

Actor
guest
Show
1959

The Ginger Rogers Show

Actor
guest
Show
1958

Washington Square

Actor
Show
1956

Max Liebman Presents: Big Time

Actor
Show
1955

I've Got a SecretStream

Guest
Game Show
1952

April in ParisStream

Actor
S. "Sam" Winthrop Putnam
Movie
1952

Where's Charley?

Actor
Charley Wykeham
Movie
1952

What's My Line?Stream

Guest
Game Show
1950

Look for the Silver Lining

Actor
Jack Donahue
Movie
1949

Make Mine Laughs

Actor
Movie
1949

The Harvey GirlsStream

Actor
Chris Maule
Movie
1946

Stage Door Canteen

Self
Movie
1943

Four Jacks and a Jill

Actor
Nifty Sullivan
Movie
1941

Sunny

Actor
Bunny Billings
Movie
1941

The Wizard of OzStream

Actor
Hunk Andrews/Scarecrow
Movie
1939
98%

Novios

Actor
Movie
1938

Sweethearts

Actor
Hans
Movie
1938

RosalieStream

Actor
Bill Delroy
Miniseries
1937

The Great ZiegfeldStream

Self
Movie
1936
72%