George Raft was born and grew up in a poor family in "Hell's Kitchen", one of the meanest areas of New York City. In his youth he showed a great interest in, and aptitude for, dancing. That, combined with his dark good looks and always sharp dressing, made him a local favorite at such spots as the El Fey Club with Texas Guinan. In 1928 Raft went to Hollywood to try his luck at acting. His first big role was as the coin-tossing henchman in Scarface. His career was marked by numerous tough-guy roles, often a gangster or convict. The believability with which he played these, together with his lifelong associations with such real-life gangsters as Owney Madden and Bugsy Siegel, added to persistent rumors that he also was a gangster. The slightly shady reputation may have helped his popularity early on, but it made him somewhat undesirable to movie executives later in his career. He somewhat parodied his "gangster" reputation in Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot.


Manpower (1941): $60,000

Interred at Forest Lawn (Hollywood Hills), Los Angeles, California, USA, in the Court of Remembrance. Not much is known about his marriage to Mulrooney except that she was some years his senior. Although separated early, they were never divorced, and he continued to support her faithfully until her death in 1970. Second actor to portray the title role for CBS Radio's "The Adventures of Rocky Jordan" (1951-1953). Appeared with Mae West in both her first (Night After Night (1932)) and last (Sextette (1978)) films. He died two days after West's death. Is portrayed by by Ray Danton in The George Raft Story (1961), Nicholas Mayer in Mae West (1982) (TV) and by Joe Mantegna in Bugsy (1991). As a teenager, he was a bat-boy for the New York Highlanders (Yankees), tried out for semi-pro baseball, boxed at the Polo Athletic Club and hustled pool. A lifelong baseball fan, by 1955 he had attended the World Series for the past 25 years. His father, Conrad Ranft, was of German descent. His mother, Eva Ranft, was of Italian descent.