Rachel Rice Dooley

Rachel Rice "Ray" Dooley (1896 – January 28, 1984) was a vaudeville performer.[1]

Rachel Dooley
Born
Rachel Rice Dooley

circa 1896
Glasgow, Scotland
DiedJanuary 28, 1984(1984-01-28) (aged 87–88)
East Hampton, New York
Known forVaudeville
Spouse(s)Eddie Dowling
Children2

Biography

Dooley was born in 1896 in Glasgow, Scotland to Robert Rogers Dooley, an Irish-born circus clown.[1] Her brothers, Gordon, Johnny, and Willie Dooley, were also performers. According to Port of Philadelphia immigration records, Mrs. Mary Doole, aged 29, arrived with her small children, Will (aged four), John (aged two) and Rachel, (11 mos. old), as passengers on board the Manitoban in June 1890. They had sailed from Glasgow, Scotland, and their destination was Pittsburgh. The family name was actually Dool, Dooley being used as their stage name.

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, and Fannie Brice, among others. From there she moved to musical stage performances.[1]

Marriage

She eloped with Eddie Dowling; the couple had two children, a son, Jack,[2] and a daughter, Mary Maxine (later Mrs. Clark).

From 1919–34, Dooley teamed with Dowling 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]

Death

Ray Dooley died on January 28, 1984 at her home in East Hampton, New York.[1]

References
  1. "Ray Dooley, Comedienne who Began Career In Family's Act, is Dead". New York Times. January 29, 1984. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  2. "Candid Close-Ups". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. December 25, 1938. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.