Biography
A versatile performer equally at home in nightclubs and on the legitimate stage, Martha Raye earned numerous honors while entertaining U.S. troops across three major conflicts: World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Born Margaret Teresa Yvonne O'Reed in Butte, Montana, she absorbed the rhythms of vaudeville from her parents and joined their act at age three. By thirteen she was already singing with a band. Her boisterous comedic style soon steered her toward acting; she made her Broadway bow in 1934 with Calling All Stars and reached the screen the following year in Rhythm on the Range. Minor parts dominated her early film work until 1947, when she portrayed a murder victim in Monsieur Verdoux. That same drive for variety led her to host The Martha Raye Show in 1955. She returned to the stage in 1967, stepping into the role originated by Ginger Rogers in Hello Dolly, and five years later assumed the lead in No, No Nanette.
Beginning in 1942, Raye toured military bases worldwide, earning the nickname “Colonel Maggie.” She performed in standard fatigues—combat boots, tie, and Green Beret—delivering songs and comedy that lifted spirits. Over nine years she shuttled repeatedly to Vietnam, occasionally serving as a nurse in addition to appearing onstage. In the late sixties, while starring in the musical Hello Sucker, she entertained at New Jersey’s McGuire Air Force Base during the Anniversary of Women in the Air Force. Her wartime efforts were recognized with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1969 and, for broader service to the nation, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1993.
Throughout her television career she appeared in numerous commercials and took supporting parts on McMillan and Wife and Alice. In 1991 she sued the producers of For the Boys, alleging the Bette Midler vehicle drew on her own life story, though the case did not succeed. Married seven times, she had one daughter. Martha Raye died in Los Angeles on 19 October 1994 and was interred at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in the military cemetery, honoring more than fifty years of service rendered as “Colonel Maggie.”
Beginning in 1942, Raye toured military bases worldwide, earning the nickname “Colonel Maggie.” She performed in standard fatigues—combat boots, tie, and Green Beret—delivering songs and comedy that lifted spirits. Over nine years she shuttled repeatedly to Vietnam, occasionally serving as a nurse in addition to appearing onstage. In the late sixties, while starring in the musical Hello Sucker, she entertained at New Jersey’s McGuire Air Force Base during the Anniversary of Women in the Air Force. Her wartime efforts were recognized with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1969 and, for broader service to the nation, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1993.
Throughout her television career she appeared in numerous commercials and took supporting parts on McMillan and Wife and Alice. In 1991 she sued the producers of For the Boys, alleging the Bette Midler vehicle drew on her own life story, though the case did not succeed. Married seven times, she had one daughter. Martha Raye died in Los Angeles on 19 October 1994 and was interred at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in the military cemetery, honoring more than fifty years of service rendered as “Colonel Maggie.”
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