Ruby Dee, Oscar Nominated Actress and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 91

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"The African Americans: Many Rivers To Cross" Screening
Ruby Dee attends the "The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross" screening at The Paris TheatreMichael Stewart—WireImage/Getty
By Laura Stampler

Actress and civil rights activist Ruby Dee died Wednesday at her home in New Rochelle, N.Y, her agent told The Hollywood Reporter. Dee was 91.

Dee was born in Cleveland and raised in Harlem. She began her career on the stage before gaining national recognition for her 1950 role in The Jackie Robinson Story. She went on to a sweeping career in theater, television, and film. She was the winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Screen Actors Guild Award, and was nominated for an Oscar towards the end of her career for the 2007 film American Gangster.

One of her most notable roles was in 1961’s A Raisin in the Son, wherein Dee recreated her stage role.

Dee was also known for her activism during the Civil Rights movement. She and her late husband, Ossie Davis, were friends with Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the pair received the National Civil Rights Museum’s Lifetime Achievement Freedom award in 2005. Dee and her husband were also advocates for open marriages, opting for truth over affairs, which they discussed in a co-written 2000 autobiography.

Dee is survived by three children: Nora, Guy, and Hasna.

Remembering Ruby Dee, 1922-2014

Jackie Robinson
Ruby Dee, an actress and civil rights activist, first gained national recognition for her role as Rae Robinson in the 1950 biopic The Jackie Robinson Story.FPG/Getty Images
Ruby Dee/C Mcneil/"A Raisin In The Sun"
One of her best known roles was as Ruth Younger in the 1961 drama A Raisin in the Sun.Bettman/Corbis
Actress Ruby Dee giving a reading at Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 March on Washington
Ruby Dee was also a civil rights activist. Above, Dee is seen giving a reading at Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 March on Washington in Washington, DC on August 28, 1963.Charles Del Vecchio—The Washington Post/Getty Images
43rd Annual Emmy Awards
Ruby won an Emmy in 1991 for her role in Decoration Day. She would also win a Grammy and a Screen Actors Guild Award over the course of her career.Jim Smeal—WireImage/Getty Images
MCDAMGA EC062
One of her last roles was playing Mama Lucas in the 2007 film American Gangster, a role for which she would be nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar.Universal

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