Ruby Ann Wallace, professionally known as Ruby Dee (October 27, 1922 – June 11, 2014) was an American actor, activist, and writer. Dee is known for her acting roles in film, television and on stage, first originating the role of Ruth Younger in A Raisin in the Sun and its film adaptation. She also appeared in The Jackie Robinson Story, Do the Right Thing and American Gangster.
In addition to her entertainment career, she was a civil rights activist during throughout the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s. She was married to fellow actor Ossie Davis up until his death in 2005 and had three children.
Partial Filmography
Film
- The Jackie Robinson Story (1950) - Rae Robinson
- Edge Ofthe City (1957) - Lucy
- A Raisin in the Sun (1961) - Ruth Younger
- The Balcony (1963) - Thief
- Purlie Victorious aka Gone Are the Days! (1963) - Lutiebell Gussie Mae Jenkins
- The Incident (1967) - Joan Robinson
- King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis (1970) - Herself, documentary
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1979) - Grandmother Baxter, TV movie
- Cat People (1982) - Female
- Go Tell It on the Mountain (1984) - Mrs. Grimes, TV movie
- Do the Right Thing (1989) - Mother Sister
- Jungle Fever (1991) - Lucinda Purify
- Cop and a Half (1993) - Rachel
- Just Cause (1995) - Evangeline
- A Simple Wish (1997) - Hortense
- Baby Geniuses (1999) - Margo
- Their Eyes Were Watching God (2005) - Nanny, TV movie
- All About Us (2007) - Ms. Ella
- American Gangster (2007) - Mama Lucas
- Steam (2007) - Doris
- A Thousand Words (2012) - Annie McCall
Television
- Guiding Light (1967) - Martha Frazier, cast member
- Peyton Place (1968-1969) - Alma Miles
- Roots: The Next Generation (1979) - Queen Haley
- Middle Ages (1992) - Estelle Williams
- The Stand (1994) - Mother Abagail Freemantle
- Little Bill (1999-2003) - Alice the Great, voice
Partial Theatre Credits
- South Pacific (1943)
- Arsenic and Old Lace (1946)
- A Raisin in the Sun (1946)
- King Lear (1965)
- The Taming of the Shrew (1965)
- The Birds (1966)
- The Oresteia (1966)
- Purlie Victorious (1963)
- The Imaginary Invalid (1971)
- Hamlet (1975)
- The Glass Menagerie (1989)
