Born as
Alfred Capurro in New York City, the son of parents emigrated from
Recco,
Genoa, Drake began his
Broadway career while still a student at
Brooklyn College. He is best known for his leading roles in the original Broadway productions of
Oklahoma! and
Kiss Me, Kate and for playing Marshall Blackstone in the original production of
Babes in Arms, (in which he sang the title song) and Hajj in
Kismet, for which he received the
Tony Award. He was also a prolific Shakespearean, notably starring as Benedick in
Much Ado About Nothing opposite
Katharine Hepburn. Drake was mostly a stage and television actor; he starred in only one film,
Tars and Spars (1946), but played several roles on television, including providing the voice for the Great Ak in the
Rankin-Bass stop-motion animated adaptation of the
L. Frank Baum novel
The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. He appeared in a minor film role as president of the commodities exchange in the classic comedy
Trading Places (1983), with
Eddie Murphy and
Dan Aykroyd. His first musical television appearance was as Captain Dick Warrington in the January 15, 1955
live telecast of the operetta
Naughty Marietta. This followed by his portrayal of
Marco Polo in
Neil Simon's
The Adventures of Marco Polo on
NBC Television's musical anthology series
Max Liebman Presents in 1956. Drake headlined the musical stage version of Jean-Paul Sartre's "Kean" on Broadway in 1961 with a score by Forrest and Wright, although it was a major flop. His 1964 stage performance as Claudius in the
Richard Burton Hamlet was filmed live on the stage of the
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, using a "quickie" process called
Electronovision, and shown in movie theatres in a very limited engagement. It was also recorded on
LP. His final appearance in a Broadway musical was in 1973–74 as Honoré Lachaille in
Lerner and Loewe's Gigi. Two years later he starred in a revival of
The Skin of Our Teeth. As a director he staged the 1974 premiere of
The Royal Rape of Ruari Macasmunde at the
Virginia Museum Theater. He was inducted into the
American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1981. He was also a published author – writing at least a few plays:
Dr. Willy Nilly, an adaptation of
Molière's
The Doctor in Spite of Himself, an adaptation of
Goldoni's
The Liar, and even at least one book on cards (specifically
Gin rummy). Drake was president of
The Players from 1970 to 1978, a social club in New York City for people of the theatre founded by actor
Edwin Booth in 1889. ==Death==