Martha Raye

 Martha Raye, born Margy Reed (August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994)

Raye was a comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including Broadway. In the early 1930s, Raye was a band vocalist with the Paul Ash and Boris Morros orchestras. She made her first film appearance in 1934 in a band short titled A Nite in the Nite Club. In 1936, she was signed for comic roles by Paramount Pictures, and made her first picture for Paramount. Her first feature film was Rhythm on the Range with crooner Bing Crosby. She made her Broadway debut in the Harry Akst musical Calling All Stars in 1934, and later returned to Broadway in starring roles in Yip Harburg's Hold On to Your Hats (1941, as Marnie), Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! (1967, as Dolly), and Vincent Youmans's No, No, Nanette (1972, as Pauline). From 1936–1939, she was a featured cast member in 39 episodes of Al Jolson's weekly CBS radio show, The Lifebuoy Program, also called Cafe Trocadero. In addition to comedy, Martha sang both solos and duets with Jolson. Over the next quarter century, she would appear with many of the leading comics of her day, including Joe E. Brown, Bob Hope, W. C. Fields, Abbott and Costello (in Keep 'Em Flying), Charlie Chaplin (in Monsieur Verdoux), and Jimmy Durante. She joined the USO in 1942, soon after the US entered World War II.

She was known for the size of her mouth, which was large in proportion to her face, earning her the nickname The Big Mouth. She later referred to this in a series of television commercials for Polident denture cleaner in the 1980s: "So take it from The Big Mouth: new Polident Green gets tough stains clean!" She was honored in 1969 at the Academy Awards as the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award recipient for her volunteer efforts and services to the troops. In addition, on November 2, 1993, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton for her service to her country. Raye's final years were plagued by ill health. She had a history of cardiovascular disease and suffered from Alzheimer's disease, in addition to losing both legs in 1993 due to poor circulation. She was married seven times, and had one child from her fourth marriage. Raye died at age 78 of pneumonia on October 19, 1994. Due to her work with the USO during World War II and subsequent wars, she was both an honorary colonel in the U.S. Marines and an honorary lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, and earned special consideration to be buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Upon her death, it was instead requested that she be buried with full military honors in the Fort Bragg Main Post cemetery at Spring Lake, North Carolina, home of her loving and beloved United States Army Special Forces.