Ray Mayer, born Raymond Maher on April 24, 1901, in Lexington, Nebraska, was a prominent figure in the Jazz Age as a comedic pianist and songwriter. The son of Thomas F. Maher and Margaret Kearney Maher, Ray Mayer ran away from home as a child to join the circus, which marked the beginning of his colorful career in entertainment.

Before rising to fame in vaudeville, Mayer played piano in Larry Conley’s bands, performing in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and later in Mexico. His attempts to join the Ben Pollack Orchestra in the 1920s were unsuccessful, but this did not deter his career trajectory. In 1927, he appeared in the Vitaphone sound short "A Night At Coffee Dan’s" alongside William Demarest.

Mayer became widely recognized as part of the vaudeville duo "Evans and Mayer" with Edith Evans, whom he married on September 9, 1933. The duo was celebrated for their comedic piano-and-song performances, which have been revived in modern times through screenings of Vitaphone shorts at the UCLA Film Forum.

Throughout his career, Ray Mayer contributed to the music industry as a pianist, songwriter, and lyricist, with recordings spanning from 1928 to 1949. He collaborated with artists such as Willard Robison and wrote songs performed by notable orchestras, including those of Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey.

Ray Mayer passed away on November 22, 1948, in Salt Lake City, Utah, due to a heart attack while en route to a performance in Billings, Montana. He was interred in Woodlawn Cemetery, Santa Monica, California. His legacy endures through his contributions to the Jazz Age and his enduring influence on the vaudeville genre.