Actor Red Buttons Dies at 87
Red Buttons, who began his career as a burlesque comedian but went on to win an Academy Award for his dramatic performance in the film Sayonara, died today of vascular disease at his home in Los Angeles. He was 87.
Born Aaron Chwatt on February 5, 1919 on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, he began peforming on the “Borscht Belt” circuit in the 1930s. The name “Red Buttons” was inspired by his bright red hair and by a uniform that he wore while working as a waiter at Dinty Moore’s Tavern in the Bronx. In 1942, he made his Broadway debut under that name in S.M. Herzig’s farce Vickie, which also starred Mildred Dunnock, José Ferrer, Uta Hagen, and George Spelvin.
Buttons joined the U.S Marine Corps and, in 1943, he returned to Broadway in Winged Victory, written and directed by Moss Hart and produced by the U.S. Army Air Forces. He was also in the film version. He subsequently appeared on Broadway in Barefoot Boy With Cheeck (1947), Hold It! (1948), and many years later in the solo show Buttons on Broadway (1995). He played Las Vegas for many years.
In Sayonara (1957), he played Sgt. Joe Kelly, an American soldier stationed in Japan, whose romance with a Japanese woman ends in tragedy; the woman was played by Miyoshi Umeki, who also won an Academy Award for her performance. Among Buttons’ many other films are The Longest Day (1962), Your Cheatin’ Heart (1964), Harlow (1965), Stagecoach (1966), They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), The Poseidon Adventure (1972). In addition, his voice can be heard in the animated features Gay Pur-ree (1962) and Pete’s Dragon (1977).
On television, he starred in The Red Buttons Show (1952-55), which ran on CBS for its first two seasons, then moved to NBC; and in the short-lived sitcom The Double Life of Henry Phyfe (1966), in which he played a bookkeeper who is asked to pose as a secret agent. He was also famous for his participation in Dean Martin’s TV “roasts” of major celebrities and for his guest shots on such series as Love, American Style, Vega$, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Knots Landing, The Cosby Show, and Roseanne. Buttons played Jules ‘Ruby’ Rubadoux in several episodes of ER, making his final appearance in that role in 2005.
Buttons wrote several popular songs, including “The Ho-Ho Song.” He was honored by such organizations as the Friars Club and the City of Hope Hospital for his participation in numerous telethons and charitable events, and he has a star on Hollywood Boulevard. He was married three times and had two children.
