Oscar-nominated actress Ruby Dee died in New York on Wednesday at the age of 91.
Ruby Dee was born on October 27, 1924 in Cleveland, Ohio. She was a well respected actress, known most recently for her role in American Gangster (2007) as Denzel Washington’s mother, but has a long list of great films including Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing.
In 2008, Dee became the second oldest actress to be nominated for an Academy Award at the age of 83. She was nominated for her incredible work in the film American Gangster with Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.
Ruby Dee was most certainly best known for her incredible role in 1961’s A Raisin in the Sun, where she played Ruth Younger alongside actor Sidney Poitier. She would later go on to star in multiple TV shows and films.
Dee has been awarded an Emmy, Grammy, Obie, Drama Desk, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement awards. She is also the recipient of the National Medal of Arts and the Kennedy Center Honors, among dozens of other civil right activist awards.
On June 11, 2014 she passed away in her home in New Rochelle, NY. Our thoughts go out to Ruby’s family and friends.
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