Dolores Gray
b. 7 June 1924, Chicago, Illinois, USA. Gray first sang on radio with Milton Berle and Rudy Vallee. Making her Broadway debut in Cole Porter's SEVEN LIVELY ARTS (1944), she went on to play in ARE YOU WITH IT and SWEET BYE AND BYE in 1946, and was then chosen by Richard Rodgersand Oscar Hammerstein IIfor the lead in their London production of Annie Get Your Gun. That historic opening night, on her 21st birthday, she took London by storm with a performance that almost matched Ethel Merman's triumph in the role on Broadway (and with 1,304 performances in London, her run played longer than Merman's 1,147). She was back on Broadway in 1951 in Two On The Aisle, and followed this two years later with CARNIVAL IN FLANDERS, for which she won a coveted Tony Award. MGM signed her for IT'S ALWAYS FAIR WEATHER (1955) in which she shared the spotlight with stars Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse with her vibrant singing of Music Is Better Than Words and Thanks A Lot But No Thanks. She was rewarded with a starring role in Kismet, followed by THE OPPOSITE SEX in 1956, but because musicals were on the wane MGM had only the comedy DESIGNING WOMANTO offer, and she returned to Broadway in Destry Rides Again. Gray worked steadily in television and clubs and made singles for Capitol showing that she was no mere stage belter but a sensitive interpreter of standards. Apart from the splendid WARM BRANDYshe has been heard only on soundtrack and original cast albums. After playing London in Gypsyin 1974 she returned in triumph in 1987 to bring welcome Broadway expertise to an all-British version of Stephen Sondheim's Follies.