Ruby Dee

Actor

Born: October 27, 1922
Died: June 11, 2014 (age 91)
From: Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Ruby Dee (October 27, 1922 – June 11, 2014) was an American actress, poet, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and civil rights activist. She originated the role of "Ruth Younger" in the stage and film versions of A Raisin in the Sun. Her other notable film roles include The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), Do the Right Thing (1989) and American Gangster (2007).

Filmography (92)

Love in Exile
Love in Exile (2026)
Poitier's Walter Lee (2018)
Self (archive footage)
Life's Essentials with Ruby Dee (2014)
Self
Betty and Coretta (2013)
Narrator
Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal (2013)
Self
A Thousand Words (2012)
Annie McCall
Video Girl (2011)
Valerie
Politics of Love (2011)
The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll (2011)
Miss Candy
A Place Out of Time: The Bordentown School (2009)
Narrator (voice)
America (2009)
Mrs. Harper
Steam (2007)
Doris
American Gangster (2007)
Mama Lucas
All About Us (2007)
Ms. Ella
In the Shadow of Hollywood: Race Movies and the Birth of Black Cinema (2007)
Herself
Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson
Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson (2007)
Self
Discovering William Greaves (2006)
Self
The Way Back Home (2006)
Maude
No. 2 (2006)
Nanna Maria
Their Eyes Were Watching God (2005)
Nanny
Beah: A Black Woman Speaks (2004)
Self
TV in Black: The First Fifty Years (2004)
(archive footage)
Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003)
Theater Talk: 'A Raisin in the Sun' (2002)
Self
Taking Back Our Town (2001)
Emelda West
Feast of All Saints (2001)
Elsie Claviere
Finding Buck McHenry (2000)
Mrs. Henry
A Storm in Summer (2000)
Grandmother
The Unfinished Journey (1999)
Narrator (voice)
Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years (1999)
Annie Elizabeth 'Bessie' Delany