Raitt, John Emmet

▪ 2006

      American actor-singer (b. Jan. 29, 1917, Santa Ana, Calif.—d. Feb. 20, 2005, Pacific Palisades, Calif.), employed his lyrical baritone voice and strong good looks to create a powerful presence in leading roles on the musical stage. His success in the role of Curly in the road company of Oklahoma! led to his being cast as Billy Bigelow in the Broadway production of Carousel (1945); that show's seven-minute-long “Soliloquy” was written especially for him. Another notable lead role was Sid Sorokin in the stage (1954) and film (1957) versions of The Pajama Game, and in later years he frequently collaborated with his daughter, singer Bonnie Raitt.

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