George Raft (born George Ranft, 1901-1980) was an American film actor and dancer who grew up in New York's Hell's Kitchen and first made his name as a nightclub and Broadway dancer. His breakthrough came with Howard Hawks' Scarface (1932), which launched him as one of Hollywood's top stars of the 1930s and 1940s. Real-life ties to the criminal underworld - most notably his friendship with mobster Bugsy Siegel - lent his gangster roles an unsettling authenticity, though they also dogged his later career. He is best remembered today as the mob boss Spats Colombo in Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot (1959).
The Vintage News server published an extensive portrait of George Raft recalling his ties to the underworld and career ups and downs in Hollywood's golden era.
The expert website studentsandparents.com published an updated biography of Raft emphasizing his two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and his lasting influence on the portrayal of gangsters in cinematography.
