Ruby Dee (born Ruby Ann Wallace, October 27, 1922 – died June 11, 2014) was an American actress, poet, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and civil rights, activist. She is perhaps best known for originating the role of "Ruth Younger" in the stage and film versions of A Raisin in the Sun (1961). Her other notable film roles include The Jackie Robinson Story (1950) and Do the Right Thing (1989).
Personal Life[]
Dee was married to Ossie Davis, with whom she frequently performed until he died in 2005.
Career[]
For her performance as Mahalee Lucas in American Gangster (2007), Dee was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Female Actor in a Supporting Role. Dee was a Grammy, Emmy, Obie, and Drama Desk winner. She was also a National Medal of Arts, Kennedy Center Honors, and Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award recipient.
Death[]
Wallace died from natural causes on June 11, 2014. She is survived by her three children.
Trivia[]
One of Wallace's children is a blues musician, Guy Davis.