Gene Raymond

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Gene Raymond in military uniform (1945)

Gene Raymond (* 13. August 1908 in New York City , New York as Raymond Guion , † 3. May 1998 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American theater, film and television actor, in films of the 1930s usually embodied the lover or husband of the main character.

life and career

Gene Raymond began his acting career as a child and made his debut on Broadway at the age of twelve . In 1925 he played in the play Cradle Snatchers at the side of the young Humphrey Bogart , the play was a great success and ran for two years on Broadway. The blonde, blue-eyed actor came to Hollywood in 1931 and took on a major role in his first film Personal Maid alongside Nancy Carroll . His ultimate breakthrough came with the film Jungle in the Storm , in which he played the betrayed spouse of Mary Astor . In the coming years he often played the lover or husband of screen divas like Bette Davis , Joan Crawford , Dolores del Rio (where the film " Flying Down to Rio " (1933), the First time as a Supporting Actor Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire participated ), Kay Francis and Loretta Young . Raymond could never achieve their popularity. More famous films of the period include Later Marriage Forbidden , Flying Down to Rio and Sadie McKee . Because of his good voice, Raymond was often used in musicals, where he also had vocal parts.

Away from the camera, he married actress Jeanette MacDonald in 1937 , with whom he appeared in the 1941 film Smilin Through . He was also active as a short story writer. For his career a disadvantage were rumors about his alleged bisexuality, so that from 1938 he could not appear in any film for three years. He has been arrested several times for sexual contact with men. Still, his marriage to MacDonald was considered harmonious.

In 1941 he made a successful comeback with a leading role in Alfred Hitchcock's comedy Mr. and Mrs. Smith alongside Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery . He played Lombard's fiancé, whose wedding to him is sabotaged by Montgomery's character. After another career break due to his war mission as a pilot in World War II , Raymond was no longer able to build on his old successes. A comeback with the film Million Dollar Weekend (1949), in which Raymond acted as director, writer and leading actor all rolled into one, was a financial failure. For the rest of his career he only appeared in television productions or in a few, mostly smaller, films. In total, by 1975 he had a total of almost 100 film and television roles.

Raymond's wife Jeanette MacDonald died in 1965, the last years of her life she had to be cared for by Raymond. In 1974 Raymond married Nel Hees, with whom he remained married until her death in 1995. Gene Raymond died of pneumonia three months before his 90th birthday. He is buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Celebrity Cemetery in Glendale. He was honored with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Commons : Gene Raymond  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://myloveofoldhollywood.blogspot.de/2010/10/gene-raymond-1908-1998.html
  2. ↑ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-gene-raymond-1156524.html
  3. ↑ http://myloveofoldhollywood.blogspot.de/2010/10/gene-raymond-1908-1998.html
  4. ↑ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-gene-raymond-1156524.html
  5. ↑ http://myloveofoldhollywood.blogspot.de/2010/10/gene-raymond-1908-1998.html
personal data
SURNAME Raymond, Gene
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Guion, Raymond (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH August 13, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City , New York
DATE OF DEATH May 3, 1998
Place of death Los Angeles , California