MGM singing star Kathryn Grayson dead at 88 (corrected)

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Kathryn Grayson, who became a top MGM box-office attraction in the 1940s and early `50s as the singing star of musicals such as ‘Show Boat’ and ‘Kiss Me Kate,’ has died. She was 88.

Grayson died Wednesday of natural causes at her home in Los Angeles, Sally Sherman, Grayson’s longtime companion and secretary, told the Associated Press.

A coloratura soprano with a heart-shaped face, Grayson made her screen debut in ‘Andy Hardy’s Private Secretary,’ starring Mickey Rooney, in 1941.

She went on to appear opposite Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly in ‘Anchors Aweigh,’ [title corrected] Sinatra in ‘The Kissing Bandit,’ Mario Lanza in ‘The Toast of New Orleans’ and Ava Gardner and Howard Keel in ‘Show Boat,’ among other musicals.

A full obituary will follow at www.latimes.com/obits.

-- Dennis McLellan