Mark Harris (husband)
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| Mark Harris | |
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| Born | Mark Harris Bleefeld February 1, 1949 Brooklyn, New York |
| Spouse(s) | Martha Raye (1991-1994) |
Mark Harris was the last husband of comedienne Martha Raye. They were married from 1991, until Raye's death in 1994.
Martha was 75 at the time of the marriage, and Mark was 42. Harris occasionally goes on the Howard Stern radio show, and discusses his life with Raye, his homosexual exploits and his many failed attempts at a career in show business.
Harris is enamored of old Hollywood and Broadway shows of the 1940s and 1950s. He has recorded several albums of the music of those eras. He also occasionally sings in a nightclub act. He has also pitched several ideas for television shows. Harris seems undaunted by the commercial failures of all his show business endeavors. Harris has been criticized for not being at the bedside of Martha Raye in the months leading up to her death, (when she was bedridden and rarely conscious) and for not being with her at her passing -- instead traveling around trying to launch his singing career.
Mark Harris received the bulk of his late wife's estate, which included her Bel Air home (which is currently up for sale). Her will also left a sizable amount to PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). Raye's will left nothing to her only daughter, Melodye Condos or to her grandson. Raye and Condos had been estranged for about a year prior to Raye's death, as Condos did not approve of Martha's marriage to Mark Harris. When Martha Raye died on October 17, 1994 at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Melodye had tried to visit her mother just an hour before. She had been barred from visiting her mother due to instructions left by Mark Harris that her daughter not be allowed in. Prior to her mother's death, Melodye Condos successfully petitioned the courts to set up a conservatorship for her mother's estate -- to protect it from Harris.
Harris is a regular guest on the Howard Stern Radio Show. In an appearance on April 23, 2008, Harris appeared heavier and revealed that he had spent virtually all of the money left to him by Martha Raye. He also revealed that he had suffered two recent heart attacks, is now living in New York with one of his daughters, and was planning his funeral on the island of Jamaica.
