Kathryn Grayson

Kathryn Grayson (February 9, 1922 – February 17, 2010) was an American actress and operatic soprano singer. From the age of twelve, Grayson trained as an opera singer. She was under contract to MGM by the early 1940s, soon establishing a career principally through her work in musicals. After several supporting roles, she was a lead performer in such films as Anchors Aweigh (1945) with Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, and Show Boat (1951) and Kiss Me Kate (1953) (both with Howard Keel). When film musical production declined, she worked in theatre, appearing in Camelot (1962–1964). Later in the decade, she performed in several operas, including La bohème, Madama Butterfly, Orpheus in the Underworld and La traviata. She was born Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the daughter of Charles E. Hedrick and Lillian Grayson Hedrick (1897–1955). Charles was a building contractor-realtor. The Hedrick family later moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where she was discovered