Walter Cassel

Walter Cassel (May 15, 1910 – July 3, 2000) was a renowned American operatic baritone and actor. He began his career singing on the radio during the mid-1930s and appeared in a couple of Hollywood musical films in the late 1930s. He made his first stage appearances in a handful of Broadway productions during the late 1930s and early 1940s. He began his opera career at the Metropolitan Opera in 1942, and went on to have a long and fruitful association with that house that lasted until his retirement from the stage in 1974. In addition to working with the Met, Cassel was also a regular performer with the New York City Opera between 1948 and 1954 and worked frequently as a freelance artist with important opera companies on the international stage as well as in the United States.

Born John Walter Cassel in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Cassel began his musical education studying the trumpet while at Thomas Jefferson High School. He began taking private voice lessons after joining his high school's glee club during his senior year. In 1933, while studying dentistry at Creighton University, Cassel was provided with the opportunity to sing for renowned baritone Lawrence Tibbett after attending one of Tibbet's recitals in Omaha, Nebraska. Impressed with his performance, Tibbett praised Cassel highly in an interview with the local newspaper and strongly encouraged him to pursue an opera career. Strongly influenced by this encounter, Cassel headed for New York City with just "$40 in his shoe, a pair of coveralls and a briefcase full of music".

Upon reaching New York, Cassel began studying voice with Frank La Forge. Beginning in 1934, he began supporting himself by singing on the radio, including such programs as Air Breaks and Hammerstein's Music Hall. Unable to land work as an opera singer, Cassel tried his luck in Hollywood and managed to land a good sized supporting role in the 1937 film Wine, Women, and Horses which starred Barton MacLane and Ann Sheridan. This was followed by a leading role in the 1938 film Romance Road where his love interest was portrayed by Anne Nagel. Cassel, however, preferred live performance over film work and abandoned his film career after landing a role in the 1938 Broadway play Great Lady. He went on to star in the 1939 musical Stars In Your Eyes and the 1940 musical revue All in Fun. In 1941 he starred in the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera's production of Rio Rita.

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