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1 of 5Ruby 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 -
2 of 5One of her best known roles was as Ruth Younger in the 1961 drama A Raisin in the Sun.Bettman/Corbis -
3 of 5Ruby 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 -
4 of 5Ruby 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 -
5 of 5One 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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