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People named John Raitt
Below are 12 people with the first name John and the last name Raitt. Try the Raitt Family page if you can't find a particular Collaborative Biography in your family tree.
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12 John Raitt Biographies
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John H Raitt of Cincinnati, Hamilton County, OH was born on October 17, 1914, and died at age 78 years old on September 23, 1993.

John E Raitt of Delhi, Delaware County, NY was born on December 3, 1912, and died at age 91 years old on October 31, 2004.


John Raitt
Born John Emmet Raitt
January 29, 1917
Santa Ana, California
Died February 20, 2005 (aged 88)
Pacific Palisades, California
Occupation Stage, film, television actor
Children Bonnie Raitt, Steve Raitt, and David Raitt
John Emmet Raitt (January 29, 1917[1] – February 20, 2005) was an American actor and singer best known for his performances in musical theater.
Early years
Raitt was born in Santa Ana, California. He got his start in theatre as a high school student at Fullerton Union High School in Fullerton, California.[2] While there, he played in several drama productions in Plummer Auditorium. Raitt sang in the chorus of The Desert Song. (A few years before he died, Raitt again came back to the Plummer to see a rehearsal, visit students and recollect his beginnings.) He is on the school's "Wall of Fame" for his accomplishments. In 1935, Raitt won the "football throw" at the California State High School Track and Field Championship; his mark of 220 feet remains the state record in that short-lived event. He was named "Athlete of the Meet" after that accomplishment. He graduated from the University of Redlands in 1939. After graduating, he was initially inclined toward a classical concert career as a lyric baritone, using as his model Thomas L. Thomas, the elegant Welsh baritone. But after a consultation with Romano Romani, the composer, conductor, and coach who had shaped the career of soprano Rosa Ponselle, Raitt accepted that the timbre (or tone quality) of his voice was that of a tenor rather than a lyric baritone, but without the high notes of a concert tenor. As a result, he decided upon a career in popular music.
He is best known for his stage roles in the musicals Carousel, Oklahoma!, The Pajama Game, Carnival in Flanders, Three Wishes for Jamie, and A Joyful Noise, in which he set the standard for virile, handsome, strong-voiced leading men during the golden age of the Broadway musical. His only leading film role was in the 1957 movie version of The Pajama Game opposite Doris Day.
On television, he was seen many times on the Bell Telephone Hour. A clip of a television performance of Raitt singing the final section of the song "Soliloquy" from Carousel is included in the documentary film Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There. In 1957, also for television, he and Mary Martin re-created their starring roles in the national touring version of Annie Get Your Gun. On September 29, 1953, he joined Jackie Gleason and Phil Foster in an appearance on the CBS panel discussion This Is Show Business. On January 26, 1961, he appeared in the last season of NBC's The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford.
In addition, Raitt made several studio cast recordings of Broadway musicals, including Oklahoma! (as Curly) and Show Boat (as Gaylord Ravenal).
In 1945, John Raitt was one of the recipients of the first Theatre World Award for his debut performance in Carousel. In 1965, he starred in the twentieth-anniversary production of the show at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
In January 1992, Raitt was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Live Theatre, located at 6126 Hollywood Blvd.
Later years
In 1981, he found out that his high school sweetheart was widowed. Having recently divorced from his second wife, he phoned her. "Having played Zorba, I believe in grabbing at life," he recalled. "So I called her and this sweet voice answered. 'I'm free now,' I told her, 'and I'm coming to dinner.'" They married.
Raitt appeared in a 1996 cameo role in Season 1 (episode 12, "Frozen Dick") of 3rd Rock from the Sun in which he sings a portion of the title song from Oklahoma!
He died on February 20, 2005, at his home in Pacific Palisades, California, from complications due to pneumonia, aged 88. Raitt was laid to rest at Anaheim Cemetery in Orange County, CA., beside his beloved wife of 23 years Rosemary.
He is the father of singer Bonnie Raitt, and former father-in-law of Michael O'Keefe. He was also the father of Steve Raitt, Bonnie's brother, who died of cancer several years ago in Minnesota, and David Raitt (all with his first wife). Steve also played in bands and then switched to designing high end home entertainment systems in Eden Prairie, MN. His grandson is Bay Raitt, the creator of Gollum's face for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

John Raitt of Altoona, Polk County, Iowa was born on March 29, 1908, and died at age 71 years old in July 1979.

John Raitt of Altadena, Los Angeles County, California was born on December 9, 1905, and died at age 64 years old in March 1970.

John Raitt of Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles County, CA was born on January 29, 1917, and died at age 88 years old on February 20, 2005.

John Raitt of Vinton, Benton County, Iowa was born on January 29, 1893, and died at age 86 years old in December 1979.

John W Raitt of Arlington Heights, Cook County, IL was born on October 17, 1923, and died at age 86 years old on July 7, 2010.

John Raitt of Patchogue, Suffolk County, NY was born on June 12, 1900, and died at age 83 years old in September 1983.

John Raitt of Trenton, Wayne County, MI was born on April 16, 1921, and died at age 65 years old in June 1986.

John E Raitt of Lawrence, Essex County, MA was born on May 19, 1935, and died at age 69 years old on October 3, 2004.
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Similar Raitt names
Raitt biographies alphabetically beginning with Jack and ending with Margaret Raitt.
Jack Raitt
James Raitt
Jean Raitt (Jul 14, 1929 - Mar 1, 2000)
Jeanette Raitt (Sep 27, 1938 - Feb 21, 2000)
Jerry Raitt (Aug 13, 1920 - Feb 7, 2006)
Jessie Raitt (Sep 15, 1891 - Nov 1983)
Joel Raitt (Nov 17, 1940 - Oct 23, 2002)
John Raitt
Kathleen Raitt (Feb 3, 1905 - Mar 1977)
Kathrine Raitt (Apr 14, 2001 - Aug 26, 2001)
Lee Raitt (Apr 23, 1905 - Apr 1978)
Leona Raitt (Jun 1, 1909 - Dec 24, 1996)
Leroy Raitt (Apr 20, 1907 - Aug 19, 1989)
Leslie Raitt (May 2, 1905 - Feb 4, 1993)
Loretta Raitt (Aug 16, 1909 - Mar 1977)
Louis Raitt (Apr 3, 1913 - Jan 8, 1998)
Louisa Raitt (Oct 8, 1896 - Jun 10, 1988)
Loula Raitt (Nov 17, 1906 - Dec 19, 1988)
Lucille Raitt (Jul 28, 1918 - Apr 1980)
Mae Raitt
Marcia Raitt (Jun 7, 1944 - Dec 26, 2005)
Margaret Raitt
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