Rachel Rice Dooley
| Rachel Rice Dooley | |
|---|---|
 Dooley in 1927 | |
| Born |
Rachel Rice Dooley October 30, 1888 Glasgow, Scotland |
| Died |
January 28, 1984 (aged 95) East Hampton, New York |
Rachel Rice Dooley (c. October 30, 1888 – January 28, 1984) was a vaudeville performer under the name Ray Dooley.[1]
Biography
She was born circa October 30, 1888 in Glasgow, Scotland to Robert Rogers Dooley, an Irish-born circus clown.[1][2] Her brothers were Gordon Dooley, and Johnny Dooley.
She made her performing debut in a minstrel show in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She played "babies and brats" in the Ziegfeld Follies after World War I with W. C. Fields, Will Rogers, Leon Carroll and Fannie Brice. From there she moved to musical stage performances.[1]
She eloped with Eddie Dowling when she was 15. They had a daughter, Mary Maxine Downing Clark. From 1919 to 1934 teamed with him for Ziegfeld Follies and in Thumbs Up in 1934, after which she retired. She came out of retirement in 1948 to appear in Hope's the Thing and Home Life of a Buffalo.[1]
She died on January 28, 1984 at her home in East Hampton, New York.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Ray Dooley, 93 (sic), Comedienne; Began Career In Family's Act". New York Times. January 29, 1984. Retrieved 2015-01-06.
- ↑ Her obituary uses 1896 and the age of death as 93 which is inconsistent, her age would be 88. The 1920 US census uses 1894. The Social Security Death Index uses "Rachel Dowling; born 30 October 1888; died January 1984 at 11937 East Hampton, Suffolk, New York, USA". VIAF and IBDB and IMDB use "October 30, 1896". Findagrave uses: "30 October 1888". Her birth and baptism records should be available from Scotland but the Social Security Death Index will be considered the most accurate until then.
External links
- Rachel Rice Dooley at the Internet Broadway Database
- Rachel Rice Dooley at the Internet Movie Database