George Raft was born in Hell's Kitchen, New York City, to a family of German descent, the son of Eva ("née" Glockner), a German immigrant, and Conrad Ranft, who was born in Massachusetts to German immigrant parents. His parents were married on November 17, 1895, in Manhattan. George's elder sister, Eva, known as "Katie", was born on April 18, 1896. Raft's grandfather had emigrated from Germany, and worked on merry-go-rounds and prospected for gold; his father worked in carnivals before settling in New York.