Margaret Yvonne Teresa (Reed) Raye (1916 - 1994)

Born 27 Aug 1916 in Butte, Silver Bow, Montana, United States

Ancestors

Wife of George Hamilton Westmore — married 1937 (to 1937) in California, USA

Wife of Edward Thomas Begley — married 21 Apr 1954 (to Oct 1956) in Arlington, Virginia, United States

Died 19 Oct 1994 at age 78 in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States

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Biography

Margaret (Reed) Raye is Notable.

Martha Raye was an American comic actress and standards singer who performed in movies, and later on television.^[1]

Margaret was born August 27, 1916.^[2] (Note: At least one record appears to indicate her birth date was 22 Aug 1916 and that she was a sister of actress Martha Raye - the record showing this incorrect data is indexed incorrectly in the Family Search database.) She is the daughter of Peter Reed and Maybelle Hooper. ^[3] She joined her parents' vaudeville act at age three.

Beginning in 1942, she entertained American troops through World War II, Korea and Viet Nam. For nine years she made trips to Viet Nam, sometimes staying up to six months at a time and often using her training as a nurse to help with the wounded. Martha Raye was an honorary member of the Special Forces and nicknamed "Colonel Maggie" by the troops. She had received her prized Green Beret and the title of Lieutenant Colonel from President Lyndon B. Johnson ^[4] . In 1993 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.^{[5] [6]}

Raye was a devout Methodist who regularly attended church, read the Bible daily, and even taught Sunday school classes. Because her religious views were often misconstrued throughout her life, she was noted for having said, "One paper says I'm Catholic and the other says I'm Jewish. I guess that's fitting because as a Methodist I'm meant to be undetermined some of the time".

Politically, Raye was conservative, affirming her political views by informing an interviewer, "I am a Republican because I believe in the constitution, strength in national defense, limited government, individual freedom, and personal responsibility as the concrete foundation for American government. They reinforce the resolve that the United States is the greatest country in the world and we can all be eternally grateful to our founding fathers for the beautiful legacy they left us today."

She suffered from Alzheimer's disease and had lost both legs in 1993 from poor circulation. While in poor health and resting in the hospital bed that had to be placed in her home, Martha and husband Mark Harris moved into a hotel after their newly updated and remodeled bungalow home was completely destroyed by the 1994 earthquake. Raye died in Los Angeles at 78 of pneumonia on October 19, 1994, after a long history of cardiovascular disease.

In appreciation of her work with the USO during World War II and subsequent wars, special consideration was given to bury her in Arlington National Cemetery on her death, but on her request, she was buried with full military honors in the Fort Bragg, North Carolina, post cemetery as an honorary colonel in the U.S. Marines and an honorary lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. She is the only civilian buried at this location who receives military honors each Veterans Day.

Marriages:

• Hamilton "Buddy" Westmore, make-up artist, May 30, 1937 - September 1937, filing for divorce on the basis of extreme cruelty
• David Rose, composer-conductor, October 8, 1938 - May 19, 1941
• Neal Lang from May 25, 1941 to February 3, 1944
• Nick Condos, February 22, 1944 - June 17, 1953
• Edward T. Begley, April 21, 1954 - October 6, 1956
• Robert O'Shea, November 7, 1956 - December 1, 1960
• Mark Harris, September 25, 1991 until her death in 1994

She had one child, a daughter, Melodye Condos (born July 26, 1944), with fourth husband Condos.

She is buried at Fort Bragg Main Post Cemetery, Fort Bragg, Cumberland County, North Carolina, USA in Row 28, Grave 780-B.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ Wikipedia contributors. "Martha Raye." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 6 Oct. 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.
2. ↑ "Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840-2004," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKNR-77X1 : accessed 14 November 2015), Margy Reed, 27 Aug 1916; citing Birth, Butte, Silver Bow, Montana, United States, various county recorder offices; FHL microfilm 2,311,356.
3. ↑ "Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840-2004," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKNT-WZ63 : accessed 14 November 2015), Mary Y Reed, 22 Aug 1916; citing Birth, Butte, Silver Bow, Montana, United States, various county recorder offices; FHL microfilm 2,388,240.
4. ↑ https://cherrieswriter.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/who-was-colonel-maggie/
5. ↑ http://www.war-veterans.org/Maggie.htm
6. ↑ Martha Raye's awards
7. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2334/martha-raye: accessed 29 January 2024), memorial page for Martha Raye (27 Aug 1916–19 Oct 1994), Find a Grave Memorial ID 2334, citing Fort Liberty Main Post Cemetery, Fort Liberty, Cumberland County, North Carolina, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.

• "United States Census, 1930", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XS59-SCT : 25 November 2015), Margaret Reed in entry for Bertram J Reeves, 1930.
• "California Death Index, 1940-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPF4-6HT : accessed 14 November 2015), Martha Raye, 19 Oct 1994; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.
• "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKWG-SM3J : 16 September 2015), Martha Or Margaret Teresa Yvonne Raye Or Reed, New Jersey, United States, 20 Oct 1994; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing Press of Atlantic City, The, born-digital text.
• "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKW3-MXJB : 16 September 2015), Margaret Teresa Yvonne Reed, Texas, United States, 20 Oct 1994; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing Houston Chronicle, born-digital text.
• "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKW9-B3NQ : 16 September 2015), Martha Or Margaret Teresa Yvonne Raye Or Reed, Texas, United States, 20 Oct 1994; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing Fort Worth Star-Telegram, born-digital text.