Editing James McCracken (section)

==Biography==
Born in [[Gary, Indiana]], McCracken's earliest musical experiences were singing in his church choir in childhood. In the [[US Navy]] during [[World War II]], he sang in the Blue Jacket Choir. He studied music at [[Columbia University]], with Elsa Seyfert in [[Konstanz]], Germany, and then with Joyce McLean in New York City until his death.

McCracken made his professional opera debut in 1952 with the [[Central City Opera]] in Colorado as Rodolfo in [[Giacomo Puccini|Puccini]]'s ''La bohème''. He sang minor roles at the [[Metropolitan Opera]] from 1953 to 1957, while still a student. In 1957, he moved to Europe and made his debut at the [[Vienna State Opera]]. He had great success with the [[Zürich]] Opera.

The role of Otello in Verdi's opera, ''[[Otello]]'', was one of his signature roles. Starting in 1963, he became one of the Met's principal dramatic tenors. He replaced an injured [[Mario del Monaco]] at [[The Royal Opera House]] in London on very short notice on 11 April 1964, which won critical acclaim, including by [[Philip Hope-Wallace]] of ''[[The Guardian]]'' who described it as: "[T]he audience know at once that this was the voice for the part: large, inclined to perhaps splay a little, but sonorous, the emanation of the true Otello..."<ref>Hope-Wallace 1981, p. 67</ref>
James McCracken also starred in ''Otello'' and ''Carmen'' in 1972;  in ''Aida'' directed by [[John Dexter]] in 1976; in ''Le prophete'' in 1977; and in ''Tannhauser'' in 1978, his only leading Wagnerian role.

Feeling slighted about being passed over for the September 1978 telecast of ''Otello'' which starred [[Jon Vickers]], McCracken resigned from the Metropolitan Opera, only to return to a rousing ovation in October 1983 for the Centennial Gala, during which he performed Otello's Act 3 soliloquy, "Dio! mi potevi scagliar".  The following season, he took part in a live telecast of Verdi's ''Aida'' on January 5, 1985, which was historic in that it was [[Leontyne Price]]'s farewell to the operatic stage.

McCracken's voice was huge, with a distinctive and somewhat thick texture. Occasionally he was criticized for his less-than-effortless singing technique.  But virtually all critics acknowledged his acting skill, as well as the overwhelming power of his sound and his clarion high notes.

He was married to mezzo-soprano [[Sandra Warfield]], with whom he performed [[Camille Saint-Saëns|Saint-Saëns]]' ''[[Samson and Delilah (opera)|Samson and Delilah]]'' at the Met. He was a member of the Metropolitan Opera's final U.S. tour, where he sang the role of Canio in ''[[Pagliacci]]''.