A little biography, shall we?

Little Miss Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick was born on February 9, 1922 in Winston Salem, North Carolina. She is the third child of Clarence & Lillian Hedrick. She grew up in Kirkwood, Missouri, where her family moved in 1927. According to Ms. Grayson, all the members of her family had more than four octave ranges, they just weren’t aware that any of them had a good voice. They sang all the time.

Eleven year old Zelma was “discovered” on an empty stage at the St Louis Civic Opera House by Frances Marshall, a Chicago Civic Opera singer. She recognized the little one’s potential and volunteered to give her singing lessons.

In 1939, Zelma attracted some more attention, that of Sam Katz, the executive in charge of musicals at Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Continually looking for a rival to Universal’s popular Deanna Durbin, he pleaded with the young girl to come and sing for the executives at MGM. He was repeatedly denied. Zelma wanted to be in opera, not movies. But, not knowing that RCA was “in cahoots” with MGM, she was finally convinced to go by RCA, because what would it hurt? MGM was formally introduced to Zelma’s amazing vocal abilities (a vocal range of G below middle C to C above high C). By the end of her “audition,” Zelma’s life had taken a new path-to being MGM’s newest Lady of Song.

Not long after signing her contract, she was asked to make her debut in Lucia at the Metropolitan Opera House.  Louis B Mayer insisted that if she were to become an opera star, she would be known as “high brow” and may never achieve world-wide popularity. Whereas, if she was a movie star, she would be more accessible to general audiences, and would become a respected talent world over. Many fights ensued from this little disagreement, but Mr. Mayer got his way, and the world would soon get Kathryn Grayson. (the name coming from her own middle name, and her mother's maiden name.)

Kathryn still didn't want to be a movie star, insisting that she wasn't cut out for it. She finally got a screen test in 1940, had her hair done by Sidney Guilaroff and gown done by Adrian. She didn't know who they were, and frankly didn't care. She sang arias and popular tunes with the orchestra. Afterward, Katharine Hepburn told her that she was the best young actress she had ever seen! So, hearing this Kathryn decided to actually view what she had done, and hated it. She told Mr. Mayer, who was VERY displeased with her. There was a rather nasty fight with a few rather nasty words, which ended in Kathryn walking out! She went home and told her mother, and her mother thought it very disrespectful, and thought Kathryn should be punished. Eventually the strong willed young diva returned, and MGM finally had their gal.

As they had done with many "up-an-comers," MGM put Kathryn in an Andy Hardy movie. Playing the title role of Andy Hardy's Private Secretary, Kathryn captivated audiences, and critics alike. The picture was one of MGM's top box office hits that year, and it proved that Mr. Mayer was, in fact, right in his opinion that Kathryn was just right for the big screen.

Just as her career took a turn, so did Kathryn's personal life. A middle aged executive at MGM had an eye for her, and wouldn't leave her alone. He hounded her until finally she decided that she'd say yes to the next man who asked her to marry him. And she did. Kathryn eloped to Las Vegas on July 11, 1941 at the age of 19. She married 26 year old singer/actor John Shelton. The hasty marriage surprised everyone, including Kathryn's own family and MGM. They both demanded she get an annulment. Metro most of all, because of the smartly manufactured Deanna Durbin-like character they had built her into. But, Kathryn won her battle, and the marriage lasted until 1946.

Despite her rebellious streak, Kathryn was still a very special person to the people at the studio. She was always treated nicely. She said in a recent interview, "...the limo drivers, they'd say, 'You can't walk in the rain with that voice!' They would leave Garbo, Joan Crawford, Greer Garson, etc... in the rain to chauffeur me!" Everyone tried to protect her, even after she was married. Another situation arose while on a bond drive, in New Orleans. The whole group, including Judy Garland, Greer Garson, Dick Powell, and other stars planned on hitting the town one night. Kathryn asked when they were meeting, and after a few looks around the room, she was told a specific time to meet up in the hotel lobby. When she arrived there, however, the only person awaiting her was Greer Garson's mother, Nina. Even being a few months older than Judy, the other stars were a bit hesitant to let her go carousing.

In 1943, Kathryn filmed Thousands Cheer with Gene Kelly, and a whole slew of MGM stars. A cute story about a soldier (Kelly) falling in love with the commander's daughter (Grayson) is sometimes overshadowed by the marvelous all star revue of many popular songs of the time. After the film debuted, Kathryn went on her first personal appearance tour. When she arrived to do appearances at the Capitol Theatre in New York, a purported four show a day, two week run turned into a ten week run, with seven shows a day. Kathryn became the first person to do so. Thus proving her immense popularity once again.

1944 brought Kathryn's best role yet. As Susan Abbot, or Aunt Susie, Kathryn was a charming girl who just wanted a chance. When two sailors were brought in to her life by chance, the fun began. It grossed in excess of 4.5 million dollars (quite a large sum for the day!), making it one of the most popular films of the 1940's. Even still, Kathryn insisted that she get better roles. She was tired of being in movies with great music, but not so great plots. Mr. Mayer insisted that the public liked her the way she was, but Kathryn still had underlying animosity about the situation.

Kathryn kept on doing the studio's bidding. In 1946, these small roles proved fortunate for star. While doing Till The Clouds Roll By, she met handsome crooner, Johnny Johnston. Some people close to the couple described their relationship as something of a roller coaster ride, but Kathryn, being a family oriented person, saw things through. Kathryn still had problems with her unwanted MGM executive admirer, however. He saw to it that all of Johnny Johnston's scenes in Till The Clouds Roll By were cut, and only later did Kathryn find out that many stars were told not to ask her out. Even with these goings on, Kathryn married her crooner on August 22, 1947.

Soon after, MGM planned one of the best pairings in Hollywood history. A recent discovery of a truck driver with a beautiful voice prompted MGM to sign him to a small contract, and build him into major star. His name-- Alfred Arnold Cocozza-- better known as Mario Lanza. But, all of these plans were halted when Kathryn announced she was pregnant. Mr. Mayer was quite disappointed, and told Kathryn that in her nine months, she had to get Mario's weight under control, and get him ready for his first picture. All went well, and on October 7, 1948, Kathryn gave birth to Patricia Kathryn Johnston. Her scheduled 2 months rest was cut short after 10 days, however, and filming began on That Midnight Kiss. After filming wrapped, Mario and Kathryn went on tour, and Mario became an overnight sensation.

Due to the immense popularity of Kathryn and Mario as a team, Metro decided to pair the two in another musical-- The Toast of New Orleans. There were many beautiful musical numbers in the picture, but one stood out. The duet, Be My Love became a best seller in record stores, and would forever be associated with Mario. The quick rise to the top proved to be tragic for Mario, however. He had a lack of self control, which caused him to fall as quickly as he rose. Who was to know then that in just 10 short years, Mario would be gone, though his legacy would last for generations to come.

And so came the 1950's, and many changes. Kathryn divorced her husband in 1951, and would never marry again. Also, she got her best roles by far. 1951 brought a charming musical about Mississippi river life, Show Boat. Kathryn played Magnolia Hawks, the naive daughter of a show boat captain, who is swept away by a dashing gambler. The audience follows Magnolia through her experiences, and has a chance to become really attached to her. Kathryn put life into her role, and turned Magnolia from the somewhat pathetic character she had been portrayed as before to a strong young woman. The cast of the movie was brilliant. Howard Keel, Ava Gardner, Joe E Brown, Agnes Moorehead, etc. all performed their characters as they had never been before. Every little detail was tended to, and definitely paid off. The film was a critical and box office triumph, and became the most memorable version of the movie.

As was fashion with MGM, they decided to capitalize on their stars. They teamed Kathryn and Howard Keel again in another Jerome Kern musical, Lovely To Look At, in 1952. The film was a disappointing follow up to Show Boat, but had many attributes. Kathryn's rendition of Smoke Gets In Your Eyes was almost tear jerking, and Red Skelton's comedy was quite amusing. It was Kathryn's 16th film for the studio, and in the same year, Kathryn left MGM.

MGM had been her "home" for 13 years, but she was greatly offended by the forcing out of Louis B Mayer. She was released from her contract to go to Warner Brothers, with the stipulation she come back for one more film. Kathryn did just that, but what she thought would be great prospects, turned to be failures. First was The Desert Song, which one reviewed described as "well worn." Then came So This Is Love, the story of soprano Grace Moore. What Kathryn thought would be a beautiful picture was stripped of much dramatic value when Grace Moore's husband disapproved of it. It was a critical success, but a somewhat lukewarm box office success. Following this, Kathryn left her new home studio, and returned to her old home to make what some call her best film.

Kiss Me Kate, with music by Cole Porter, is considered to be MGM's best adaptation of a Broadway show. Teamed again with Howard Keel and Ann Miller (who was in Lovely To Look At), this tale of an actor/director who tries to hire his ex wife to star in a musical production of Shakespeare's Taming Of The Shrew is absolutely classic MGM style. Originally filmed in 3-D (the first and last musical to be done so), there is nothing to rival it. With choreography by Hermes Pan, musical direction by Andre Previn, and direction by George Sidney, no expenses were spared. Many people were given their chance to shine in the picture, including a young Bob Fosse. Kathryn's performance as Lilli Vanessi/Kate is positively feisty and fiery, and loving all at the same time. Kathryn and Howard always had a wonderful on-screen chemistry, most likely due to their off screen friendship, as well. They joked with each other, and in the scene that Kathryn got to slap him so many times, Howard vowed revenge... well, when he got to spank her, boy did he hit hard! Too bad the costume designer put a board under her dress, causing Howard more pain than Kathryn. The film turned out to be another critical and box office success, and Kathryn was at the peak of her film career. So what to do now? Rest.

Or so maybe rest wasn't the word for it. While taking care of family first, Kathryn re-signed with RCA Records and recorded four songs with now ex-husband Johnny Johnston. In the next year she made her night club debut at the Sahara in Las Vegas. She teamed with Howard Keel for a number of sold out concerts, and in the Fall of 1955, earned an Emmy nomination for playing a blind girl in a CBS General Electric Theater presentation of Shadow On The Heart. Kathryn was still at the top, obviously.

1955 would bring a new movie to Kathryn. Paramount's lavish remake of The Vagabond King, which, unfortunate to her fans everywhere, would be Kathryn's last movie. She started off in a sad personal state. Her mother died just before they began filming. The director, Michael Curtiz, wanted to give her a few weeks off to recover, but someone from Paramount called her and told her to begin working right after the funeral. Her co-star, Oreste Kirkop had been brought from Europe by the wife of Paramount's president, and he couldn't speak a word of English. They finally had to dub his talking. Being horribly over schedule, and very poorly edited, the film debuted in 1956. Curtiz called it "the biggest flop I ever had," and thus came the Kathryn's final film exit.

Even without the films, Kathryn would stay very busy. She made many television appearances, and in 1960, she fulfilled her lifelong ambition. She finally made her opera debut in Madame Butterfly, then La Traviata, and La Boheme in summer theatre productions throughout the country. She next toured in productions of The Merry Widow and Naughty Marietta in 1961. 1963 would bring another critical success as Kathryn took over the role of Queen Guinevere in the national touring production of Lerner and Loewe's lovely musical, Camelot. Kathryn did, however, suffer from her success. Her Camelot co-star, Louis Hayward, wasn't a very strong man, and when he had to jump out of a tree in the play, he had to hold on to Kathryn! In addition to this, she already had walking pneumonia, and when she got home, she realized that her right hip was two inches higher than her left, because the choreographer had dropped her from above her (the choreographer's) head.

In 1965, after making headlines with bouts of pneumonia and bronchitis, Kathryn did a four week tour of South Africa, and three years later joined Howard Keel once again for several highly successful night club appearances  in Las Vegas, and in 1969, appeared at the famed Coconut Grove in Los Angeles.

It wasn't until 1974 that MGM musicals gained much popularity again. The release of That's Entertainment! revived many Hollywood careers. It reminded audiences of what movie magic really is. The MGM musicals may be dismissed as somewhat corny, but they're also what many people dream of having in life. With "new" publicity, so to speak, Kathryn was more in demand than ever.

For anyone who thought that this Queen was ready to abdicate, they were sadly mistaken. At 60 years young in 1982, Kathryn made her non-singing stage debut in Lucille Fletcher's melodramatic thriller, Night Watch. Incredible reviews gave inspiration for Kathryn to take the play on the road, and again remind audiences of her very underused serious acting ability. She then appeared as Miss Tweed (a Miss Marple-like character) in a Chicago production of Something's Afoot, then Orpheus of the Underworld with Sarah Caldwell's Boston Opera. In 1984 she toured both London and Australia. She did the British farce, Noises Off in 1987, and began her one woman show, An Evening With Kathryn Grayson. These shows included arias, popular songs, and clips from her own magical films. The shows would go on until 1997.  During the 1990's, Kathryn remained rather busy, appearing with Van Johnson in Love Letters in 1994, and Red Sox and Roses in 1997. One project most recently rejected was the film Mother. Kathryn said she couldn't possibly do the part, because the woman is brain dead! Debbie Reynolds eventually played the title role.

Kathryn has one of the most fiercely loyal fan bases around, thanks to her great talent, and to her incredible generosity to her fans. She occasionally appears at autograph shows, always with a smile for anyone who approaches her. She's one great lady, emphasis on the word “lady.”