Johnson died Friday morning at home in an assisted - living facility in Nyack , New York . His career stretched over six decades and across genres , from war films to musicals . Johnson 's youthful voice earned him nickname the ` ` voiceless Elvis '' in his heyday . The next year , Abbott cast him as a chorus boy and Gene Kelly 's understudy in Rodgers and Hart 's groundbreaking musical `` Pal Joey , '' according to TCM.com . He got top billing in ` ` Two Girls and a Sailor ; '' praised for singing in ` ` La Cage aux Folles ''
Johnson died Friday morning at home in an assisted - living facility in Nyack , New York . His career stretched over six decades and across genres , from war films to musicals . Johnson 's youthful voice earned him nickname the ` ` voiceless Elvis '' in his heyday . He got top billing in ` ` Two Girls and a Sailor ; '' praised for singing in ` ` La Cage aux Folles ''