Ruby Dee
Ruby Ann Dee (née Wallace; October 27, 1922 – June 11, 2014) was an American actress, poet, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and civil rights activist whose career spanned over six decades in theater, film, and television.[1][2] Born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in Harlem, she attended Hunter College and began performing in the 1940s, emerging as a trailblazing Black performer who challenged racial barriers in the arts.[1][3] Dee achieved acclaim for roles that highlighted African American experiences, including Ruth Younger in the Broadway production of A Raisin in the Sun (1959), which she reprised in the 1961 film adaptation, and Rachel in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), portraying the baseball legend's wife.[4][5] Her later work included an Academy Award-nominated performance as Mama Lucas in American Gangster (2007), alongside honors such as Emmy, Grammy, Obie, and Drama Desk Awards, the National Medal of Arts, and Kennedy Center Honors.[5] Married to actor Ossie Davis from 1948 until his death in 2005, she collaborated with him professionally and personally, co-authoring screenplays and performing together in productions like Purlie Victorious.[1][4] Beyond acting, Dee was a committed civil rights advocate, participating in the March on Washington in 1963 and supporting organizations like the NAACP and Congress of Racial Equality, often facing professional repercussions such as FBI surveillance and temporary blacklisting for her associations and public stances against segregation.[3][4] She also contributed to literature with poetry collections and children's books, and broke ground as the first African American actress in a leading role on prime-time television in Peyton Place (1968–1969).[1][5] Her legacy endures as a multifaceted artist who integrated her activism into her craft, prioritizing authentic representations over commercial conformity.[3][4]
Early Life and Education
Birth and Family Background
Ruby Dee was born Ruby Ann Wallace on October 27, 1922, in Cleveland, Ohio, as the youngest of three children to teenage parents Marshall Edward Nathaniel Wallace, a cook, waiter, and porter on the Pennsylvania Railroad, and Gladys Hightower.[2][1][3] Her biological mother died shortly after her birth, reportedly after naming the infant Ruby.[6] Following this loss, Dee's father relocated the family, including her two older siblings, to Harlem in New York City, where he remarried Emma Amelia Benson, who became Dee's stepmother and helped raise her amid the vibrant cultural milieu of the Harlem Renaissance era.[7][8] The Wallace household emphasized resilience and education, with Dee later recalling her stepmother's influence in fostering a sense of discipline and community involvement in their working-class environment.[9]Formal Education and Early Influences
Ruby Dee attended Hunter College High School in New York City, graduating in 1940.[8] She subsequently enrolled at Hunter College, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in French and Spanish in 1945.[9] [8] While at Hunter College, Dee cultivated a strong interest in theater, drawn by her expressive nature and literary aptitude.[9] She participated in small Shakespearean productions and began formal acting studies with the American Negro Theatre (ANT), adopting the stage name Ruby Dee during this period.[10] [1] These experiences marked her initial foray into professional performance, including her Broadway debut in South Pacific in 1943.[9] Raised in Harlem amid its cultural zenith, Dee absorbed influences from the neighborhood's rich tapestry of Black artistic expression and intellectual discourse, which shaped her early worldview and artistic inclinations.[9] This environment, combined with her theater training, fostered a commitment to authentic portrayals of Black life that would define her career.[1]Professional Career
Initial Roles and Theater Beginnings (1940s–1950s)
Dee joined the American Negro Theatre (ANT) in Harlem shortly after graduating from Hunter College in 1941, marking the start of her professional acting career in theater productions focused on African American experiences.[1] Her stage debut came in 1940 with ANT's inaugural production, On Strivers Row by Abram Hill and Frank Wilson, where she portrayed the character Cobina.[11] She followed with supporting roles in ANT's Natural Man (1941) as Polly Ann and Starlight (1942), gaining experience in ensemble casts that emphasized realistic depictions of Black life amid limited opportunities in mainstream theater.[11] In 1943, Dee achieved her Broadway debut in South Pacific, a drama by Howard Irving Young and Elsie Janis unrelated to the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, playing a Native American role in a production that ran briefly at the Morosco Theatre.[12] By 1946, she starred in ANT's acclaimed adaptation of Anna Lucasta by Philip Yordan, initially performed at the ANT's basement space in the Harlem Library before transferring to Broadway's Mansfield Theatre for 957 performances, where Dee played the lead role of Anna, a Polish-American sex worker reconciling with her family.[13] That same year, she appeared in the short-lived Broadway play Jeb as Libby George, a production addressing post-World War II racial tensions through the story of a Black veteran's struggle for equality. During these years, Dee met actor Ossie Davis while rehearsing for Jeb, leading to their marriage on December 9, 1948; their professional collaboration began with joint appearances in ANT revivals and Broadway transfers.[14] Into the early 1950s, she continued building her theater profile with roles in productions like Carson McCullers' The Member of the Wedding (1950), portraying Berenice Sadie Brown in the stage version before reprising it in the 1952 film adaptation, though her primary focus remained live theater amid growing film opportunities.[9] These initial roles established Dee as a versatile performer adept at dramatic depth, often in works challenging racial stereotypes, though opportunities were constrained by the era's segregation in casting and venues.[11]Rise to Prominence in Film and Television (1960s–1970s)
Dee transitioned from theater to film prominence with her role as Ruth Younger in the 1961 screen adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun, directed by Daniel Petrie, reprising her Tony-nominated Broadway performance opposite Sidney Poitier.[9] The film, produced by Columbia Pictures, portrayed the struggles of a Black Chicago family pursuing the American Dream amid racial barriers, earning critical acclaim for its authentic depiction of African American experiences and grossing over $2 million at the box office.[15] This role solidified Dee's status as a leading Black actress in Hollywood, building on her earlier supporting parts like in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950).[16] Throughout the 1960s, Dee took on roles in socially conscious independent films, including Nothing But a Man (1964), where she played a principled schoolteacher in a drama exploring interracial tensions and working-class Black life in the South, co-starring with Ivan Dixon.[9] She appeared in Gone Are the Days! (1963), an adaptation of the play Purlie Victorious, and The Incident (1967), depicting urban racial violence on a New York subway, roles that highlighted her commitment to narratives addressing civil rights issues.[17] In 1968, she starred in Up Tight!, a remake of The Informer set in Cleveland's Black community during the riots following Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, directed by Jules Dassin.[9] These films, often produced outside mainstream studios, received praise for their realism but limited commercial distribution due to the era's racial dynamics in the industry. On television, Dee broke ground as a recurring character on the soap opera Peyton Place from 1969, portraying one half of the first regularly featured Black couple on network daytime TV, challenging segregationist norms in broadcasting.[18] She earned Emmy Awards for guest roles: in 1961 for The Barbara Stanwyck Show episode "The Seventh Miracle" and in 1966 for The Big Valley episode "The Buffalo Man," recognizing her dramatic range in Western and anthology formats.[19] Guest spots included The Nurses (1963) and The Fugitive (1966).[20] In the 1970s, Dee continued with films like Black Girl (1972), directed by Ossie Davis, and Buck and the Preacher (1972), a Western co-starring Poitier and Harry Belafonte that depicted post-Civil War Black migration, earning her further acclaim for ensemble dynamics.[9] Television work expanded to movies such as the adaptation of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1979), where she played Annie Henderson, contributing to her growing visibility in miniseries formats.[21] These roles marked her evolution into a versatile figure bridging stage authenticity with screen narratives, amid limited opportunities for Black actors, as evidenced by her selective projects emphasizing dignity and resistance.[22]Later Roles and Sustained Recognition (1980s–2014)
In the 1980s, Dee maintained an active presence in film and television, appearing in the horror film Cat People (1982) and adapting James Baldwin's Go Tell It on the Mountain for television (1984), where she portrayed a central maternal figure.[23] She also featured in the miniseries The Atlanta Child Murders (1985) and guest-starred on shows like Spenser: For Hire (1987).[23] These roles demonstrated her versatility across genres, from dramatic adaptations to procedural dramas, sustaining her reputation for portraying resilient Black women amid evolving industry opportunities.[24] Dee achieved significant acclaim in the early 1990s with her performance as Mother Sister in Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989), a neighborhood matriarch commenting on racial tensions in Brooklyn, and in Jungle Fever (1991).[23] On television, she earned a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special for her role in Decoration Day (1990), playing a key figure in a story of Southern reconciliation and hidden histories.[23] [20] Further television work included appearances in The Stand (1994), based on Stephen King's novel, and guest spots on China Beach (1990) and The Golden Girls (1990).[23] Her induction into the Theatre Hall of Fame in 1988 underscored ongoing recognition for her stage contributions, including earlier revivals like Boesman and Lena.[24] Dee received the National Medal of Arts in 1995 from President Bill Clinton, honoring her lifetime contributions to American culture through acting and advocacy.[24] In the 2000s, she portrayed Mama Lucas, the principled mother of a drug lord, in American Gangster (2007), earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress—her sole Oscar nod—and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role.[23] [24] She also narrated the audiobook With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together (2006), co-authored with her husband Ossie Davis, which won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2007.[24] Later television roles included Coretta Scott King in Betty and Coretta (2013), reflecting her continued demand for authoritative maternal and historical figures.[23] Sustained honors culminated in the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2000 (shared with Davis) and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2004, celebrating her enduring impact on American theater, film, and television spanning over six decades.[24] Dee's final projects, such as A Thousand Words (2012) and the documentary 1982 (2013), affirmed her active engagement until her death on June 11, 2014, at age 91.[23] These accolades and roles highlighted her professional longevity, with critics noting her ability to infuse characters with moral depth drawn from personal and historical realism, rather than relying on contemporary trends.[24]Personal Life
Marriages and Family Dynamics
Ruby Dee's first marriage occurred in 1941 to blues singer Frankie Dee Brown, from whom she adopted her professional surname; the union lasted four years and ended in divorce in 1945, producing no children.[25][26] In December 1948, Dee married actor and activist Ossie Davis, a relationship that endured until Davis's death on February 4, 2005, totaling 57 years.[26][27] The couple met in 1946 during the Broadway production Jeb and often collaborated professionally, appearing together in numerous plays, films, and television projects that blended their artistic and personal commitments.[26] Dee and Davis had three children: son Guy Davis, a blues musician and actor born in 1952; daughter Nora Davis Day; and daughter Hasna Muhammad.[28][26] The family settled in a Mount Vernon, New York, home in 1963, where the children were raised amid their parents' civil rights involvement and creative endeavors.[29] Their offspring described a grounded upbringing focused on imparting practical life lessons and habits rather than leveraging parental fame, with Dee and Davis prioritizing family unity and intellectual growth over celebrity trappings.[28][30] The parents' mutual support in activism and artistry fostered a household where children witnessed resilience amid professional demands and social challenges, though they emphasized normalcy in daily interactions.[28][31]Health and Death
Ruby Dee died on June 11, 2014, at the age of 91, at her home in New Rochelle, New York.[32][33][34] Her death was attributed to natural causes, with family representatives confirming she passed peacefully surrounded by relatives.[32][35] No prior chronic health conditions were publicly detailed in contemporaneous reports, though Dee had maintained an active professional schedule into her later years, including voice work and appearances following the 2005 death of her husband, Ossie Davis.[25] A private family service was held, with her survivors including three children and several grandchildren.[35]Political Involvement
Civil Rights Advocacy and Achievements
Ruby Dee engaged in civil rights activism throughout her career, particularly intensifying her efforts in the 1960s alongside her husband Ossie Davis, with whom she collaborated on protests, fundraisers, and public advocacy for racial equality.[36] They were longstanding members of pivotal organizations including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), through which they supported voter registration drives, anti-segregation campaigns, and community mobilization efforts.[37] [38] A notable achievement came on August 28, 1963, when Dee and Davis emceed the entertainment program at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, an event drawing over 250,000 participants to advocate for civil rights legislation and economic justice; Dee hosted initial gatherings at the Washington Monument, facilitating speeches by figures like Josephine Baker while amplifying calls for desegregation and voting rights.[36] [39] Her friendships with leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X further positioned her to publicize and fund civil rights initiatives, including narrating segments in the 1970 documentary King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis, which compiled footage of King's marches from 1955 to 1968.[40] Dee continued her advocacy into later decades, including an arrest on April 15, 1999, during a protest against the police shooting of Amadou Diallo, where she joined demonstrators in New York City decrying excessive force and racial profiling in law enforcement.[41] For her contributions, she received the Frederick Douglass Award from the New York Urban League on May 7, 1970, recognizing her and Davis's combined activism in advancing Black equality and community development.[42]Ties to Leftist and Communist-Affiliated Organizations
Ruby Dee maintained longstanding associations with organizations linked to the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) and other Marxist groups, often through sponsorships, endorsements, and public support, though she was never publicly confirmed as a CPUSA member. In 1946, Dee and her husband Ossie Davis backed the CPUSA-led Civil Rights Congress, a group focused on defending African Americans against legal injustices but criticized for its alignment with Soviet foreign policy and defense of accused spies.[38] Their involvement in such entities contributed to their inclusion in Red Channels, a 1950 publication by the anti-communist group Counterattack that identified 151 entertainers and broadcasters, including Dee, as having ties to over 100 allegedly subversive organizations, leading to professional blacklisting during the McCarthy era.[21] [12] Throughout the 1950s, Dee campaigned publicly for a stay of execution for Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, convicted of espionage for passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union and widely regarded as CPUSA operatives, reflecting her sympathy for causes framed by leftist networks as anti-imperialist resistance. In the 1960s, she participated in events sponsored by groups like the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), including the 1965 March on Washington for Peace in Vietnam, which drew support from communist-influenced peace movements.[43] Later, in 1982, Dee served on the Committee of Sponsors for the "We Will Make Peace Prevail!" gala organized by New World Review, a CPUSA-aligned publication, alongside participants predominantly identified as party members.[44] Into the 1990s and 2000s, Dee's engagements continued with Marxist-affiliated entities. She initiated the 1994 International Peace for Cuba Appeal, connected to the Workers World Party-dominated International Action Center, which advocated lifting the U.S. embargo on Cuba as part of broader anti-capitalist solidarity efforts.[44] In 1998, she endorsed the "Communist Manifestivity" event by the Brecht Forum, marking the 150th anniversary of the Communist Manifesto.[44] Dee also joined the Advisory Board of the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism, formed in 1991 by a CPUSA splinter faction rejecting the party's Gorbachev-era reforms.[44] In 2002, she signed the "Not In Our Name" anti-war statement issued by the Revolutionary Communist Party, opposing U.S. military actions post-9/11.[43] As late as 2003, at age 80, Dee emceed a memorial for a blacklisted CPUSA member, underscoring her enduring alignment with such networks despite professional repercussions.[38] These ties, while rooted in racial justice advocacy, overlapped with groups the U.S. government and anti-communist investigators designated as fronts for advancing Soviet or domestic revolutionary agendas.[45]Criticisms, Blacklisting, and Ideological Controversies
During the McCarthy era, Ruby Dee faced professional repercussions due to her associations with organizations identified as communist fronts by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and anti-communist publications. In 1950, she was listed in Red Channels, a pamphlet compiled by former FBI agents that named 151 actors, writers, and broadcasters with purported ties to over 100 subversive groups, effectively blacklisting her from major Hollywood and broadcast opportunities for several years.[21] [12] This inclusion stemmed from her participation in leftist causes, including protesting the 1953 execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg on charges of espionage for the Soviet Union, an event she publicly opposed as a miscarriage of justice alongside other entertainers.[21] Dee and her husband Ossie Davis were targeted for their involvement in the Black Arts Left and unions like Actors' Equity, which drew scrutiny from McCarthyite investigators amid broader fears of communist infiltration in the arts.[46] Although neither was subpoenaed to testify before HUAC, they were labeled communist sympathizers by outlets like columnist Ed Sullivan and faced informal investigations, with their political activities—such as affiliations with groups advocating racial and economic justice—cited as evidence of disloyalty.[47] The couple denounced Senator Joseph McCarthy's tactics as a witch hunt but refused to disavow leftist networks, leading to temporary exclusion from commercial television and film roles, though they sustained careers in theater and independent projects.[48] [49] Ideological controversies persisted beyond the 1950s, with critics accusing Dee of fellow-traveling with the Communist Party USA through endorsements of causes like anti-apartheid efforts and peace appeals linked to Marxist groups. In 1962, a lawsuit in Scarsdale, New York, sought to block a school performance featuring Dee and Davis, charging them with a "long record of association with individuals identified as Communist fronts and causes," highlighting local backlash against their radicalism amid Cold War tensions.[50] Later affiliations, such as endorsing a 1979 emergency appeal in The Guardian (a leftist publication) and supporting events tied to the Communist Workers Party in 1982, fueled claims of consistent pro-communist advocacy, though Dee maintained her commitments were driven by anti-racism and anti-imperialism rather than party membership.[44] These ties drew criticism from conservative observers for blurring lines between civil rights and Soviet-aligned ideology, but Dee viewed such scrutiny as suppression of dissent, consistent with her defense of figures like Paul Robeson.[51]Other Contributions
Writing, Poetry, and Bibliography
Ruby Dee extended her artistic contributions beyond acting into writing, adapting African folktales for children, compiling poetry anthologies, and producing personal collections of essays, poems, and monologues that emphasized cultural heritage, resilience, and social themes. Her works often drew from oral traditions and personal experiences, reflecting a commitment to preserving Black narratives and inspiring younger audiences.[24] Among her children's books, Two Ways to Count to Ten: A Liberian Folktale (Henry Holt & Co., 1988), illustrated by Susan Meddaugh, recounts jungle animals competing to win a bride by counting to ten, highlighting wit over brute strength and receiving the Literary Guild Award in 1989.[52][53] She followed with Tower to Heaven (Henry Holt & Co., 1991), an adaptation of a Ghanaian tale in which an elderly woman, Yaa, challenges the sky god Onyankopon by stacking villages to reach him, underscoring defiance and communal ingenuity.[52][54] In poetry, Dee curated Glowchild and Other Poems (The Third Press, 1972), an anthology of verses by young Black poets addressing nature, passion, politics, hope, peace, and freedom, selected to motivate inner-city youth amid urban challenges.[52][55] Her own poetic and narrative voice emerged in My One Good Nerve: Rhythms, Rhymes, Reasons (John Wiley & Sons, 1998), a compilation of poems, short stories, and monologues adapted from her one-woman stage show, blending humor, introspection, and commentary on everyday struggles.[52][56] Dee co-authored the joint autobiography With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together (William Morrow, 1998) with husband Ossie Davis, detailing their 50-year partnership, early Harlem theater days, and intertwined careers in arts and activism; the audiobook edition earned a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2007.[24][52] She also edited Life Lit by Some Large Vision: Selected Speeches and Writings (Atria Books, 2006), gathering Davis's addresses and essays on civil rights and personal philosophy.[52] Additionally, Dee authored or adapted plays including Take It from the Top, The Stepmother, an adaptation of Rosa Guy's The Disappearance, and Zora Is an Easy Spell, often incorporating elements of Black history and folklore for stage performance.[24]Bibliography
- Two Ways to Count to Ten: A Liberian Folktale (Henry Holt & Co., 1988)[52]
- Glowchild and Other Poems, selected and introduced by Ruby Dee (The Third Press, 1972)[52]
- Tower to Heaven (Henry Holt & Co., 1991)[52]
- With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together, with Ossie Davis (William Morrow, 1998)[52]
- My One Good Nerve: Rhythms, Rhymes, Reasons (John Wiley & Sons, 1998)[52]
- Life Lit by Some Large Vision: Selected Speeches and Writings of Ossie Davis, edited by Ruby Dee (Atria Books, 2006)[52]
Music and Discography
Ruby Dee contributed to audio recordings primarily through spoken word performances, narrations of literature, poetry, and historical narratives, often in collaboration with her husband Ossie Davis. These works emphasized African American history, civil rights themes, and literary readings, aligning with her activism and acting background rather than traditional musical performance. Her recordings were released on labels such as Folkways, Caedmon, and Smithsonian Folkways, focusing on dramatic readings that preserved oral traditions and speeches. A notable highlight was her shared Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2007 for With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together, an audio adaptation of their joint memoir that featured personal reflections and archival elements, marking one of Davis's final studio recordings before his death in 2005.[57] This accolade underscored her vocal artistry in non-fiction narration, competing in a category that included poetry, audiobooks, and storytelling. Her discography includes:- The Original Read-In for Peace in Vietnam (Folkways Records, 1967), a compilation featuring anti-war statements read by Dee and others.
- What If I Am a Woman? Vol. 1: Black Women's Speeches (Smithsonian Folkways, 1977), narrating 19th-century African American women's rights addresses by figures like Sojourner Truth, emphasizing themes of equality and abolition.
- The Poetry of Langston Hughes (Caedmon Records, with Ossie Davis), readings of Hughes's works including "Southern Mammy Sings" and "Aunt Sue's Stories."[58]
- To Be a Slave (Caedmon Records, with Ossie Davis), dramatized slave narratives adapted from Julius Lester's book, using firsthand accounts to depict enslavement experiences.
- Zulu and Other African Folk Tales (Caedmon Records, TC 1474, 1975, with Ossie Davis), narrating traditional African stories.[58]