George Raft
Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills
The early life and career of
coin-flipping, tough-guy actor George Raft seems to mirror the stories told
in the gangster films that became his specialty.
He was born in the tough Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York
City, left home at 13, found work as a prizefighter, and counted mobsters and
racketeers among his closest friends. But, rather than follow his pals into
a life of crime, Raft became a dancer, performing in nightclubs and eventually
on Broadway.
Raft came to Hollywood in 1928, and was initially touted as the
next Valentino. He made his screen debut in a small role as a dancer in
"Gold Diggers of Broadway" (1929), and appeared in small roles as a dancer
or gangster in several films before his first big role as Guino Rinaldo,
Raft's success and believability in these films may have been
partially due to his continuing association with real-life mobsters, including
Bugsy Siegel, and his ownership of casinos in London and Havana.
Raft is also known by the roles he turned down. He passed on
the role of "Mad Dog" Earle in "High Sierra" (1941) because the character dies
on screen, and he also turned down the role of Sam Spade in "The Maltese Falcon"
(1941) because he thought it was going to be a low-quality film. Both roles
went to Humphrey Bogart, and both films are now considered classics.
Raft was born George Ranft on Sept. 27, 1895, in New York City,
NY. He died on Nov. 24, 1980, in Los Angeles, CA.
1895 - 1980
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