Broadway legend visits the Barclay

Tom Titus

He doesn’t sing anymore, but his presence on stage is enough to

inspire standing ovations.

Orange County’s own John Raitt has a small role in the special

benefit production “Follies” on the stage of the Irvine Barclay

Theater at UC Irvine this weekend. And at the close of Thursday

night’s performance, he was given a happy 87th birthday salute by the

rest of the cast.

So what is a Broadway legend doing at this age in a local theater

production?

“I have always believed so much in the development of young people

and feel it is important for me to be a part of the legacy of

high-quality training of those who aspire for careers in musical

theater,” he said. “It is for this reason that I am announcing the

John and Rosemary Raitt American Musical Theater Awards to offer

encouragement and scholarships to young people pursuing work in the

musical theater.

“Since David Green (director of the California Conservatory of the

Arts) and Paul Gleason (executive director of the American Center for

Musical Theater) are co-producing these awards for me, we thought

this would be the perfect kickoff. And what better place than in my

home town of Orange County.”

Trained as an opera singer, the legendary Broadway performer hit

his stride as Curley in a touring production of Rodgers and

Hammerstein’s “Oklahoma” in the mid-1940s and later starred as Billy

Bigelow in their second production, “Carousel,” circa 1945.

The highlight of this production was Billy’s eight-minute

“Soliloquy” on the prospects of becoming a father. Later, Raitt would

claim this was not as difficult as “pretending to be dead for five

minutes in the second act.”

Despite his success on Broadway and in touring productions such as

“1776,” “Show Boat” and “Man of La Mancha,” Raitt might not be that

well known in his own home town were it not for his reprisal of the

leading role in Broadway’s “The Pajama Game” for the movie screen

back in 1957. He shared top billing with Doris Day in the musical

comedy about workers in a sleepwear factory.

He didn’t pursue a Hollywood career, however, and returned to his

first love, the stage. “Pajama Game” wasn’t his only movie; Raitt

signed an MGM stock player contract in 1940 and appeared in a series

of unmemorable bit roles before hitting stardom in the road company

of “Oklahoma.” He performed in only one other movie after “Pajama

Game” -- “An Old-Fashioned Christmas” with Florence Henderson and

Rosemary Clooney.

Raitt’s last Broadway show was “Jubilee” in 1975, but he has never

stopped working. He has continued a concert career and most recently

appeared on the 2002 Tony Awards show. In 1998, for the 50th

anniversary of “Oklahoma,” he was featured on the stage of the St.

James Theater (where “Oklahoma” played) to sing “Oh, What a Beautiful

Morning.”

Nowadays, the name Raitt would call to mind the blues-rock

singer-guitarist Bonnie, John’s daughter. But the elder Raitt has

plenty of other legacies, such as a star on the Hollywood Walk of

Fame and membership in the Theater Hall of Fame on Broadway. Not to

mention another thoroughfare named in honor of his grandfather --

Raitt Street in Santa Ana.

Raitt’s father worked for the YMCA in Orange County and did a lot

of public speaking. John would take the bus into Los Angeles for

singing lessons -- which obviously paid off.

“I have had many opportunities to mentor aspiring young artists,

and this is another wonderful opportunity,” Raitt said. “I really

love working with these talented kids.

“The only difference between me and them is that I had my turn.

Now it’s their turn.”

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews

appear Fridays.