John Raitt dies at age 88

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- Noted Broadway baritone John Raitt has died at his Los Angeles home at age 88, the New York Times reported Monday.

Raitt, father of blues singer Bonnie Raitt, died Sunday from complications of pneumonia.

He gained fame playing the role of Billy Bigelow in the original production of "Carousel" in 1945 and Sid Sorokin in the comedy "The Pajama Game" in 1954.

In "The Pajama Game," Raitt played the role of a just-hired mill executive smitten with a union activist, played in the original production by Janis Paige, and in subsequent movie by Doris Day.

Raitt, a Quaker, was a conscientious objector during World War II.

In addition to Bonnie, he is survived by two sons, Steven and David, all from his first marriage to Marjorie Haydock. They divorced in 1971. His marriage to Kathleen Smith Landry in 1972 ended in divorce. In 1981 he married Rosemary Kraemer, who also survives him.