Posted by Kathryn Grayson, aged 88, a musical starlet of the 40’s and 50’s has died this February 17 in her home in Los Angeles. Her secretary Sally Sherman confirmed that Kathryn died due to a natural cause. Sherman said that the former musical star slept and just did not wake up.
Kathryn Grayson was born Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick on February 9, 1922 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her father was a Real estate agent, and so their family was always on the move. Her parents recognized her talent so they arranged an audition at the opera. Her first screen appearance was in Andy Hardy’s Private Secretary in 1941 as Andy Hardy’s secretary.
She became a top star in Anchors Aweigh, Thousand Cheers, Two Sisters from Boston and Kiss Me Kate in the film version of the Broadway on 1953. As the MGM’s great era of musicals ends, her film career also ended. The soprano’s lifelong dream was to become an opera star, so she appeared in operas like La Boheme, Madam Butterfly, La traviata and Orpheus in the Underworld. Her last film was in 1956 which was The Vagabond King.
She was married twice. First to the actor John Shelton and then to actor/singer Johnnie Johnston. Both marriages ended with a divorce. Patricia Kathryn Johnston is her only child, who she got from her second marriage.
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