R.I.P. Ruby Dee

Pioneering actress and civil rights activist Ruby Dee has passed away at the age of 91. The New York Daily News has a comprehensive obituary detailing the sheer scope of this woman’s life, she who was working almost right up to the end. Decorated, celebrated, hard-working, with some unforgettable performances, Ruby Dee was one of those courageous dogged women who carved out an incredible career for herself at a time when the roles for black women were few and far between. She and Ossie Davis, who passed away in 2005, were married for 57 years: they worked together, acted together, protested together, and made a memorable and beloved team.

Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee

She starred with Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in the Sun, in the original Broadway production (a groundbreaking moment in terms of the portrayal of African-Americans appearing on the main stage of Broadway, written by not only an African-American, but a woman), as well as the 1961 film. And anyone of my generation remembers her in the monster phenomenon that was Roots. Of course she (and her husband) were also unforgettable in Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (Mother Sister!) and Jungle Fever.

Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis in “Do the Right Thing.”

She was finally nominated for an Oscar for her role in 2007’s American Gangster.

Ruby Dee at Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington, August 28, 1963.

Just 4 days ago, Audra McDonald won her astonishing 6th Tony Award, making her the most decorated actress in the history of the awards. She won for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill. McDonald closed her emotional speech with these powerful words of acknowledgement: “I am standing on Lena Horne’s shoulders. I am standing on Maya Angelou’s shoulders. I am standing on Diahann Caroll and Ruby Dee.”

I hope Ruby Dee heard those words.

Rest in peace.