Ruby Dee
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Oct 27, 1922
- Died
- Jun 11, 2014 (aged 91)
- Place of birth
- Cleveland, Ohio, USA
- Credits
- 123
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).
Known for
American Gangster
2007Movie
Mama Lucas
Do the Right Thing
1989Movie
Mother Sister
A Thousand Words
2012Movie
Annie McCall
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
2000TV
Mary Wilson
Just Cause
1995Movie
Evangeline Ferguson
Cat People
1982Movie
Female
Filmography
Love in Exile
2026Movie
Hollywood Black
2024TV
Self (archive footage)
Poitier's Walter Lee
2018Movie
Self (archive footage)
Life's Essentials with Ruby Dee
2014Movie
Self
Betty and Coretta
2013Movie
Narrator
Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal
2013Movie
Self
A Thousand Words
2012Movie
Annie McCall
Video Girl
2011Movie
Valerie
Politics of Love
2011Movie
The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll
2011Movie
Miss Candy
A Place Out of Time: The Bordentown School
2009Movie
Narrator (voice)
America
2009Movie
Mrs. Harper
Steam
2007Movie
Doris
American Gangster
2007Movie
Mama Lucas
All About Us
2007Movie
Ms. Ella
In the Shadow of Hollywood: Race Movies and the Birth of Black Cinema
2007Movie
Herself
Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson
2007Movie
Self
Discovering William Greaves
2006Movie
Self
The Way Back Home
2006Movie
Maude
No. 2
2006Movie
Nanna Maria
Iconoclasts
2005TV
Self
Their Eyes Were Watching God
2005Movie
Nanny
Beah: A Black Woman Speaks
2004Movie
Self
TV in Black: The First Fifty Years
2004Movie
(archive footage)
Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives
2003Movie
Theater Talk: 'A Raisin in the Sun'
2002Movie
Self
Christianity: The First Two Thousand Years
2002TV
Narrator
Taking Back Our Town
2001Movie
Emelda West
Feast of All Saints
2001Movie
Elsie Claviere
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
2000TV
Mary Wilson
Finding Buck McHenry
2000Movie
Mrs. Henry
A Storm in Summer
2000Movie
Grandmother
The Unfinished Journey
1999Movie
Narrator (voice)
Little Bill
1999TV
Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years
1999Movie
Annie Elizabeth 'Bessie' Delany
Baby Geniuses
1999Movie
Margo
Paul Robeson: Here I Stand
1999Movie
Self
Passing Glory
1999Movie
Mommit Porter
A Time To Dance: The Life and Work of Norma Canner
1998Movie
Narrator
Christianity: The First 1000 Years
1998TV
Herself - Narrator
The Wall
1998Movie
Mrs. Mitchell (segment "The Badge")
Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood
1998Movie
Self
A Simple Wish
1997Movie
Hortence
Sports on the Silver Screen
1997Movie
Self (archive footage)
Captive Heart: The James Mink Story
1996Movie
Indigo
Mr. and Mrs. Loving
1996Movie
Sophia
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
1995TV
Grandma (voice)
Just Cause
1995Movie
Evangeline Ferguson
Tuesday Morning Ride
1995Movie
Jennie
Touched by an Angel
1994TV
LaBelle Springbelt
Whitewash
1994Movie
Grandmother (voice)
The Stand
1994TV
Mother Abagail Freemantle
After Goodbye
1993Movie
Narrator
Cop & ½
1993Movie
Rachel
The Ernest Green Story
1993Movie
Lydia Wilson
Middle Ages
1992TV
Estelle Williams
Color Adjustment
1992Movie
Narrator
Jazztime Tale
1991Movie
Narrator (voice)
Jungle Fever
1991Movie
Lucinda Purify
Decoration Day
1990Movie
Rowena
The Court-Martial of Jackie Robinson
1990Movie
Jackie's Mother
Love at Large
1990Movie
Corrine Dart
Zora is My Name!
1990Movie
Zora Neale Hurston
Making 'Do the Right Thing'
1989Movie
Self
Do the Right Thing
1989Movie
Mother Sister
American Experience
1988TV
Narrator (voice)
China Beach
1988TV
Lincoln
1988TV
Elizabeth Keckley
Spenser: For Hire
1985TV
The Golden Girls
1985TV
Mammy Watkins
The Atlanta Child Murders
1985TV
Faye Williams
Go Tell It on the Mountain
1984Movie
Mrs. Grimes
Reading Rainbow
1983TV
Self - Narrator (voice)
Long Day's Journey Into Night
1982Movie
Mary Tyrone
Cat People
1982Movie
Female
American Playhouse
1982TV
Mrs. Grimes, Zora Neale Hurston
All God's Children
1980Movie
Irene Whitfield
The Torture of Mothers: The Case of the Harlem Six
1980Movie
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
1979Movie
Grandmother Baxter
Roots: The Next Generations
1979TV
Queen Haley
The Kennedy Center Honors
1978TV
Self
Countdown at Kusini
1976Movie
Leah Matanzima
Police Woman
1974TV
Wedding Band
1974Movie
Julia Augustine
It's Good to Be Alive
1974Movie
Ruth Campanella
Chelsea D.H.O.
1973Movie
Dr. Bianca Pearson
Black Girl
1972Movie
Netta's mother
Buck and the Preacher
1972Movie
Ruth
To Be Young, Gifted and Black
1972Movie
Lorraine Hansberry and other assorted characters
On Merit
1972Movie
Narrator (voice)
The Sheriff
1971Movie
Sue Ann Lucas
Great Performances
1971TV
Self
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
1970Movie
Self (archive footage)
Deadlock
1969Movie
Lucinda
Uptight
1968Movie
Laurie
The Dick Cavett Show
1968TV
Self - Guest
The Incident
1967Movie
Joan Robinson
Now is the Time
1967Movie
Self
Neighbours
1966Movie
Vicky Kingsbury
The Great Adventure
1963TV
Harriet Tubman
The Fugitive
1963TV
Laura Smith
Gone Are the Days!
1963Movie
Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins
The Balcony
1963Movie
Thief
The Defenders
1961TV
Catherine Collins
A Raisin in the Sun
1961Movie
Ruth Younger
Take a Giant Step
1959Movie
Christine
Virgin Island
1959Movie
Ruth
St. Louis Blues
1958Movie
Elizabeth
Edge of the City
1957Movie
Lucy Tyler
Armchair Theatre
1956TV
Vicky Kingsbury
Go Man Go
1954Movie
Irma Jackson
The Oscars
1953TV
Self
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951TV
Rowena Finch
The Tall Target
1951Movie
Rachel
No Way Out
1950Movie
Connie Brooks (uncredited)
The Jackie Robinson Story
1950Movie
Rae Robinson
The Fight Never Ends
1948Movie
What a Guy
1948Movie
Easy to Get
1947Movie
Drugstore Girl
Love in Syncopation
1946Movie
That Man of Mine
1946Movie
Joan
Diamonds on the Silver Screen
Movie
Self
The Stand
Movie