In Hollywood she would marry twice: first to actor John Shelton; secondly to actor/singer Johnnie Johnston. She had one daughter. Throughout the 1950s, she carried on an affair with mogul Howard Hughes, and was briefly engaged to him (although this was not included in the film The Aviator, as the film only profiled Hughes through the late 1940s).
Though she started out as MGM's answer to Deanna Durbin (with films such as Seven Sweethearts and Anchors Aweigh), she proved herself a top star in Thousands Cheer, Anchors Aweigh and Two Sisters From Boston, and in the film versions of the Broadway hits Show Boat (1951) and Kiss Me, Kate (1953). Grayson also appeared in a duo of films with tenor Mario Lanza, and Howard Keel, whom she teamed successfully with in a highly lauded cabaret act in the 1960s.
With the end of MGM's great era of musicals, so ended Miss Grayson's film career. Kathryn was on stage in numerous stage musicals such as Show Boat, Rosalinda, Kiss Me, Kate, Naughty Marietta, and The Merry Widow, for which she was nominated for Chicago's Sarah Siddons Award. This lead to her as a replacement for Julie Andrews on Broadway in 1962 in Camelot, scoring a great success, before going on to star in the National tour for over sixteen months, before leaving the show due to health problems. During her period with the Camelot tour, all box-office records were broken and she gained uniformly excellent notices. She would later play the role of Guenevere during that decade. Grayson had a lifelong dream of being an opera star, and she appeared number of operas in the '60s, such as La Boheme, Madame Butterfly, Orpheus in the Underworld and La Traviata. Her dramatic and comedy stage roles included Night Watch, Noises Off, Love Letters and Something's Afoot as Dottie Otterling.
She also appeared on television occasionally. Her first TV appearances were in the 1950s, and she received an Emmy nomination in 1956 for her performance in the "General Electric Theater" episode "Shadow on the Heart" with John Ericson. Most recently, she appeared in several episodes of Angela Lansbury's long-running series "Murder, She Wrote" in the late 1980s.
Never to be overshadowed these days by other talented or exciting MGM contemporaries such as Jane Powell, Ann Miller, Cyd Charisse, Esther Williams and Ann Blyth, Miss Grayson has gained cult status among a large, and wildly devoted, crowd of fans. Kathryn supervised the Voice and Choral Studies Program at the Idaho State University.
According to her secretary, Grayson died in her sleep at her home in Los Angeles, California on February 17, 2010, aged 88.
Make Believe
Kathryn Grayson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Only make believe that you love me
Others find peace of mind in pretending
Couldn't you? Couldn't I? Couldn't we
Make believe our lips are blending
In a phantom kiss or two or three?
Might as well make believe I love you
The game of just supposing is the sweetest game I know
Our dreams are more romantic than the world we see
And if the things we dream about don't happen to be so
That's just an unimportant technicality
Though the cold and brutal fact is
You and I have never met
We need not mind conventions, P's and Q's
If we put our thoughts in practice
We can banish all regret
Imagining most anything we choose
We could make believe I love you
Only make believe that you love me
Others find peace of mind in pretending
Couldn't you? Couldn't I? Couldn't we
Make believe our lips are blending
In a phantom kiss or two or three?
Might as well make believe I love you
For to tell the truth, I do
The song "Make Believe" by Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel is a beautiful love song that explores the theme of imagining a romantic relationship. The lyrics suggest that both the individuals can pretend to love each other and gain peace of mind in doing so. In the imaginary world, they can share a phantom kiss or two and live the romantic dream that they yearn for. The lyrics suggest that even though the love may not be real, the emotions that they feel are genuine. The song encourages people to dream and indulge in their fantasies, even if they do not come true in reality. The song ends on a hopeful note, with the lyrics stating, "Might as well make believe I love you, for to tell the truth, I do."
The lyrics of "Make Believe" are beautifully written and convey the message of the importance of imagination and fantasies. The song's melody is gentle and soothing, adding to its romantic appeal. The song has become a classic and has been covered by many famous singers over the years. It is a favorite at weddings and remains a popular choice for romantic moments.
Line by Line Meaning
Only make believe I love you
I am pretending that I love you, but I don't actually love you.
Only make believe that you love me
In this game of pretending, you are pretending to love me but you don't actually love me.
Others find peace of mind in pretending
Many others find comfort in pretending, so why can't we?
Couldn't you? Couldn't I? Couldn't we
Why don't we both join in this game of pretending? We both could make believe.
Make believe our lips are blending
Let's pretend that we are kissing and our lips are touching each other's.
In a phantom kiss or two or three?
In our imagination, we could share a few kisses, even though it's not real.
Might as well make believe I love you
We might as well pretend that I love you, as a matter of fact, I really do love you.
For to tell the truth, I do
I have genuine feelings of love for you, so pretending is not difficult.
The game of just supposing is the sweetest game I know
I love playing this game of pretending and imagining romantic scenarios with you, it's delightful.
Our dreams are more romantic than the world we see
Our made-up scenarios and dreams of romantic adventures are more interesting and thrilling than real life.
And if the things we dream about don't happen to be so
Even though our dreams might not come true, it doesn't really matter, it's just a game.
That's just an unimportant technicality
The fact that our dreams might not come true is not something to worry about, it's not important.
Though the cold and brutal fact is
The harsh reality is that we have never actually met.
You and I have never met
We have never had the chance to meet in person, so we can only imagine what it would be like.
We need not mind conventions, P's and Q's
We don't have to worry about societal norms or proper behavior when we are pretending.
If we put our thoughts in practice
If we act on our made-up scenarios and dreams in our imagination, it can be very satisfying.
We can banish all regret
By pretending and imagining, we can forget our regrets in real life and just enjoy the moment.
Imagining most anything we choose
In this game of make-believe, we can imagine anything we want to happen.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jerome Kern, Oscar II Hammerstein
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind