George Raft (originally named Ranft; September 26, 1901 – November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer known for playing gangsters in dramatic films from the 1930s and 1940s. He was a popular leading man in many movies. Raft is remembered for his gangster roles in Quick Millions (1931) with Spencer Tracy, Scarface (1932) with Paul Muni, Each Dawn I Die (1939) with James Cagney, Invisible Stripes (1939) with Humphrey Bogart, and Billy Wilder’s comedy Some Like It Hot (1959) with Marilyn Monroe and Jack Lemmon. He also danced in Bolero (1934) with Carole Lombard and played a truck driver in They Drive by Night (1940) with Ann Sheridan, Ida Lupino, and again with Bogart.

Raft’s connections to organized crime figures caused controversy throughout his life. This led to a ban from Great Britain in 1967.

Early life and career

Raft was born on September 26, 1901, at 415 West 41st Street in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City. He was the son of Eva (née Glockner), a German immigrant, and Conrad Ranft, who was born in Massachusetts to German immigrants. His parents married on November 17, 1895, in Manhattan. Raft had a sister named Eva, who was called Katie, and she was born on April 18, 1896. Raft’s grandfather came to the United States from Germany and worked on merry-go-rounds and looked for gold. His father worked in carnivals before moving to New York.

Most obituaries listed Raft’s birth year as 1895, which he confirmed during an appearance on The Mike Douglas Show seven months before his death. However, the New York City Birth Index records his birth as September 26, 1901, in Manhattan, with the name "George Rauft" (likely a spelling mistake for "Ranft"). The 1900 census lists Katie as the only child of Raft’s parents, with two children born and only one living. In the 1910 census, Raft is listed as eight years old.

Raft grew up on 41st Street and worked as an errand boy and a fishwrapper after school. His parents sent him to live with his grandparents at 164th Street. He left school at 12 and left home at 13. He worked as an apprentice electrician for a year, then boxed professionally for two years starting at age 15. As Dutch Rauft, he fought 14 matches, winning nine, losing three, and drawing two. Another account claims he fought 25 matches and was knocked out seven times.

Raft played minor-league baseball with Springfield of the Eastern League as a utility outfielder who wanted to become a pitcher. However, his batting was poor, and he was released.

“I was just trying to find something I liked that would make me a living,” Raft said later. “I saw guys fighting, so I fought. I saw guys playing ball, so I played ball. Then I saw guys dancing… and getting paid for it!”

Raft’s mother taught him to dance, and he performed at outdoor amusement parks and carnivals with his parents. After his baseball career, he worked as a taxi dancer in poorer areas of New York. At first, he struggled financially, but he won a Charleston competition and began performing professionally.

Raft performed exhibition dances in the afternoon at Healy’s, Murray’s, Rectors, and Churchills in New York. Later, he worked in New York City nightclubs, often in the same venues as Rudolph Valentino before Valentino became a film actor. Raft had a notable partnership with Elsie Pilcer. A May 1924 review in Variety called him "gifted."

“I could have been the first X-rated dancer,” Raft said later. “I was very erotic. I used to caress myself as I danced. I never felt I was a great dancer. I was more of a stylist, unique. I was never a Fred Astaire or a Gene Kelly, but I was sensuous.”

Raft toured as a dancer and helped popularize the tango in Paris, Vienna, Rome, London, and New York. He had great success in London in 1926, and the Duke of Windsor was a fan and supporter. Fred Astaire, in his autobiography Steps in Time (1959), wrote that Raft was a fast dancer and did “the fastest Charleston I ever saw.” A September 1926 edition of Variety described Raft as “the best Charleston dancer in New York.”

During this time, Raft befriended gangsters, including Enoch Johnson and Larry Fay, and occasionally drove for Owney Madden. A childhood friend of gangster Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel and later a “wheel man” for the mob, Raft admitted he narrowly avoided a life of crime.

Raft joined the stage act of flamboyant speakeasy and nightclub hostess Texas Guinan at the 300 Club and produced some of her shows. His success led him to Broadway, where he worked as a dancer. His stage performances included The City Chap (October 1925, with music by Jerome Kern), Gay Paree, Madhattan, Palm Beach Nights (also known as No Foolin’), and Padlocks of 1927 (1927). He was called “the fastest Charleston dancer.”

Raft later starred in the film Broadway (1942), a fictionalized account of his life when he worked the Paramount-Publix circuit and performed in stage shows presented before movies.

Los Angeles and early films

Owney Madden told Raft he should try acting in movies. Raft decided to move to Hollywood after being threatened by the husband of a woman he had been dating. In 1927, Raft moved to Hollywood and worked in clubs by dancing to earn money.

In October 1928, Raft appeared in a stage show called Night Club, produced by Texas Guinan. The Los Angeles Times said Raft was a big success. Variety wrote that Raft performed a lively dance routine at the show’s climax, including a famous dance move called the "black bottom," which impressed the audience.

Raft’s first film role was in Queen of the Night Clubs, starring Guinan. Guinan wanted Raft to have a small part, but some of his scenes were cut from the film. A Variety review mentioned Raft’s dance skills as part of his role as a club host. Raft also performed in stage shows to support the film. One reviewer called him a clever dancer. Queen of the Night Clubs is now considered a lost film.

Raft had small roles in Gold Diggers of Broadway and Side Street. His dancing caught the attention of director Rowland Brown, who cast him in a supporting gangster role in Quick Millions (1931), working alongside Spencer Tracy. Raft later appeared in films such as Goldie, Hush Money, and Palmy Days.

In Taxi! (1932), Raft had a small, unpaid role as a dancer competing against James Cagney, who wins the contest. In Dancers in the Dark (1932), Raft was third-billed as a gangster, below Miriam Hopkins and Jack Oakie.

Raft said he never saw himself as an actor. "I wanted to be me," he said.

Raft’s big break came when he was cast as Tony Camonte’s second-in-command, Guino Rinaldo, in Scarface (1932), working alongside Paul Muni. In the film, Guino falls in love with Camonte’s sister and is killed by him. Raft’s habit of flipping a coin became a famous feature in gangster films. Writer W.R. Burnett confirmed Raft invented this mannerism.

Scarface was filmed in September 1931 and released in 1932. It became a hit and made Raft a star. Raft said, "That was the big one. People remembered me. I got a lot of fan mail and learned how to make money from it."

After Scarface, Raft appeared in Night World (1932) and Love Is a Racket (1932), but his scenes were cut. In March 1932, Raft signed a contract with Paramount and appeared in Madame Racketeer (1932). Reports described his performance as "menacing suavity."

When Scarface was released, Raft was offered the lead role in a film based on Louis Bromfeld’s story, originally titled Number 55 and later Night After Night (1932). Raft supported casting Mae West in a supporting role after the studio refused to hire Texas Guinan, a character in the film.

Raft appeared in If I Had a Million (1932), playing a forger who suddenly gets a million dollars. He starred in Under-Cover Man (1932) and was announced for Bodyguard, which was never made. He next appeared in Pick Up (1933). Raft practiced method acting, a style where actors deeply immerse themselves in their roles.

Raft refused to appear in The Story of Temple Drake (1933) with Miriam Hopkins, as he did not want to play a sadist. He was replaced by Jack La Rue, who had originally been cast in Scarface. Raft was suspended in February 1933.

Raft said, "It’s not that I mind being on the wrong side of the law. But I won’t take a role that’s pure heel. The character has to have some warmth or it’s not real."

The Story of Temple Drake did not do well at the box office and may have hurt La Rue’s career. Raft returned to Hollywood in April 1933 and appeared in Midnight Club (1933), set in London.

Raft was borrowed by Twentieth Century Pictures, a new studio started by Darryl F. Zanuck. He appeared in The Bowery (1934), playing Steve Brodie, a man who supposedly jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge and survived. Raft played the second lead to Wallace Beery as a flamboyant saloon owner.

Back at Paramount, Raft appeared in All of Me (1934), supporting Fredric March and Miriam Hopkins. The film was not popular. Zanuck wanted Raft for Blood Money, but Raft was too busy at Paramount.

Raft was meant to appear in It’s a Pleasure to Lose, based on Nick the Greek’s life, but instead starred in Bolero (1934), playing a dancer with Carole Lombard. Raft initially refused the film until it was rewritten. The film became a great success. A New York Times review said Raft was "a vivid and pictorially interesting type" but not a traditional actor.

In March 1934, Raft was suspended again for refusing the male lead in Mae West’s It Ain’t No Sin (later Belle of the Nineties) because his role was secondary to West’s. In May 1934, Raft signed a new contract with Paramount to reflect his star status.

Raft next appeared in The Trumpet Blows (1934), playing a matador. The film was meant to be like Valentino’s Blood and Sand, and Raft was promoted as a "second Valentino." Raft left the film unhappy with his role but returned after rewrites. The film was not a box-office success.

Raft starred in Limehouse Blues (1934) with Anna May Wong. In February 1934, Raft admitted to being involved in three fights during his career, including one where he hit the producer of Bolero. In August 1934, Raft was involved in a brawl at the Hollywood Brown Derby. By the end of 1934, Raft was listed in a survey as one of Paramount’s secondary stars "if properly cast."

In Rumba (1935), Raft was reunited with Carole Lombard. He also starred in Stolen Harmony (1935) and was slated to appear in Gambler’s Maxim, based on a story by James Edward Grant, but the film was not made.

Later career

In 1955, Raft was given the opportunity to buy a 2% share in the Flamingo Hotel for $65,000 if he agreed to work as its entertainment director. Raft accepted, but he was denied a gaming license because of suspected connections to criminal groups. He appealed the decision, stating that while he knew many gangsters, "I never did business with any of them." The decision was reversed in December 1955. Raft worked at the hotel, helping to arrange entertainment deals.

Raft was hired by Santo Trafficante, Jr. to serve as a greeter at the Capri Casino in Havana, Cuba, and he was also a part owner of the casino. However, Fidel Castro took control of the country and shut down all casinos. Raft was in Havana when rebel forces arrived.

In July 1958, Raft was offered a role in his first film in four years, Some Like It Hot (1959), where he played a gangster. Due to Marilyn Monroe’s frequent delays on set, Raft worked for 16 weeks before appearing in Jet Over the Atlantic (1959). Although Some Like It Hot was successful, it did not lead to a major career revival. Raft later appeared as a casino owner in the Rat Pack movie Ocean’s 11 (1960) and in a cameo role as himself in The Ladies Man (1961). In Britain, he starred in Two Guys Abroad (1962), a film meant to test a television series idea, and later had small roles in For Those Who Think Young and The Patsy (both 1964).

In 1965, Raft was found guilty of not paying taxes and was fined $2,500. The next year, he testified before a New York grand jury about financial activities related to organized crime.

Raft received an offer from Andy Neatrour to work as a host and part owner of a gambling club in London called the Colony Club. He moved to London in 1966 and appeared in several films, including a cameo role in the 1967 James Bond parody Casino Royale, the French film The Upper Hand (1966) with Jean Gabin, and Five Golden Dragons (1967). Although the gambling club was successful, after returning to the U.S. in 1967, Raft was banned from reentering the UK and labeled an "undesirable."

Raft’s later films included Skidoo and Madigan’s Millions (both 1968). However, he became ill during the making of Madigan’s Millions and was replaced by Cesar Romero in the lead role. None of Raft’s scenes from the film remain.

In the early 1970s, Raft appeared in a television commercial for Alka-Seltzer as a prison inmate, worked as a goodwill ambassador for the Riviera in Las Vegas, and sold his home to move into an apartment in Century City.

Raft’s final film roles were in Hammersmith Is Out (1972), Sextette (1978), where he reunited with Mae West, and The Man with Bogart’s Face (1980), which honored 1940s detective films. He also cohosted an episode of The Mike Douglas Show in 1980.

Raft was a shareholder in the Parvin-Dohrmann Corporation, a company that owned the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas.

Controversies

In 1942, James Cagney became president of the Screen Actors Guild for a two-year term. During his leadership, he worked with the guild to oppose the Mafia, which had become involved in the movie industry. Billie Cagney, his wife, received a phone call claiming that James had died. James claimed that after failing to scare him, the Mafia sent a hitman to attack him by dropping a heavy object on his head. When news of the planned attack spread, George Raft allegedly called to stop it.

Raft was questioned by FBI agents in 1938 and 1953. The 1938 interview focused on Raft’s knowledge of Louis Buchalter and Jacob Shapiro. In 1942, Raft was investigated for possible tax evasion. In 1944, he provided testimony during a trial involving Bugsy Siegel, who was accused of illegal gambling. In 1946, Raft was sued by an Australian lawyer for assault.

In 1957, Mickey Cohen stated that he wanted Raft to portray him in a film about his life, saying, “Others would show me as a dangerous gangster, but George would not.” In 1967, Raft was not allowed to enter the United Kingdom, where he had been named the casino director at the Colony Club, due to concerns about his connections to criminal groups.

Personal life

Raft married Grace Mulrooney (1902–1970) in 1923, before he became famous. The couple separated shortly after their marriage, but Mulrooney, who was deeply religious, refused to allow a divorce. Raft remained legally married to her and continued to support her financially until her death in 1970. Raft was known as a romantic figure in Hollywood and had relationships with several well-known people, including Hilda Ferguson, Betty Grable, Marlene Dietrich, Tallulah Bankhead, Carole Lombard, and Mae West. He publicly expressed a desire to marry Norma Shearer, with whom he had a long romantic relationship. However, his wife’s refusal to grant a divorce led Shearer to end their relationship.

Raft died from emphysema at the age of 79 in Los Angeles on November 24, 1980. He did not leave a will, and his estate included only a $10,000 insurance policy and some furniture. In his final years, he lived on about $800 per month, which came from social security and his pension. He was buried at the Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. Raft’s personal items and clothing were sold through an advertisement in Hemmings Motor News in the fall of 1981, with the collection listed for $800.

Legacy

Raft has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: one for movies located at 6150 Hollywood Boulevard and another for television located at 1500 Vine Street.

In popular culture

Ray Danton portrayed George Raft in the 1961 film The George Raft Story, which also featured Jayne Mansfield. George Raft criticized the movie when it was released because it contained incorrect information. In the 1991 biographical film Bugsy, Joe Mantegna played the role of George Raft.

In season 2, episode 6 of The Sopranos (2000), Corrado "Junior" Soprano tells Tony about another uncle named Ercole, whom he calls "feeble-minded." Junior describes Ercole as "handsome, like George Raft."

In the 1984 film The Cotton Club, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the character Dixie Dwyer seems to be inspired by George Raft. In the movie, Owney Madden (played by Bob Hoskins) sends Dwyer (played by Richard Gere) to Los Angeles to appear in films. The first film they make is called Mob Boss.

Filmography

• Hollywood on Parade Number A-9 (1933)
• Hollywood on Parade Number B-5 (1933)
• Hollywood on Parade Number B-8 (1934)
• The Fashion Side of Hollywood (1935)
• Screen Snapshots Series 18, Number 4 (1938)
• Meet the Stars #6: Stars at Play (1941)
• Hedda Hopper's Hollywood Number 2 (1941)
• Hollywood Park (1946)
• Screen Snapshots: Vacation at Del Mar (1949)

Raft turned down roles in the following films:

Select radio appearances

• Kraft Cheese Program (1936)
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Cheating Cheaters" (August 31, 1936) – featuring June Lang
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Spawn of the North" (September 12, 1938) – featuring Dorothy Lamour and Fred MacMurray
• Bob Hope – "Bob Hope is Remodeling His House" (1939)
• Screen Guild Theatre – "A Mug, a Moll and a Mountaineer" (April 2, 1939)
• Procter and Gamble's Knickerbocker Playhouse – "Bulldog Drummond" (1939)
• Campbell Soup Playhouse – "A Free Soul" (1941)
• Lux Radio Theatre – "They Drive By Night" (June 2, 1941) – featuring Lana Turner
• Screen Guild Theatre – "Torrid Zone" (January 25, 1942)
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Manpower" (March 16, 1942) – featuring Marlene Dietrich and Edward G. Robinson
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Broadway" (November 30, 1942) – featuring Lloyd Nolan
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Each Dawn I Die" (March 22, 1943) – featuring Franchot Tone
• Lux Radio Theatre – Air Force (December 7, 1943)
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Action in the North Atlantic" (May 15, 1944) – featuring Raymond Massey
• The Cases of Mr. Ace (June 4 – September 3, 1947) – regular series
• Lux Radio Theatre – "Intrigue" (October 5, 1948)
• Rocky Jordan (June 27 – August 22, 1951)
• Martin and Lewis Show (October 12, 1951)