Ossie Davis

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Acting

Raiford Chatman "Ossie" Davis (December 18, 1917 – February 4, 2005) was an American actor, director, writer, and activist. He may be best known for his roles in Spike Lee-directed films such as School Daze (1988) and Do the Right Thing (1989). Other films Davis acted in include The Hill (1965), A Man Called Adam (1966), Let's Do It Again (1975), Joe Versus the Volcano (1990), Grumpy Old Men (1993), The Client (1994), Dr. Dolittle (1998), Dinosaur (2000), and Bubba Ho-Tep (2002). He was married to Ruby Dee, with whom he frequently performed, from 1948 until his death.

Filmography

• Love in Exile (2026)
• Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch (2024)
• Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues (2022)
• The Peace! (2005)
• Deacons for Defense (2005)
• The History Makers: Success (2005)
• Unstoppable (2005)
• By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X' (2005)
• She Hate Me (2004)
• Proud (2004)
• Baadasssss! (2004)
• Beah: A Black Woman Speaks (2004)
• The Evolution of an American Filmmaker (2003)
• The Tuskegee Airmen: They Fought Two Wars (2003)
• Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property (2003)
• Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003)
• Theater Talk: 'A Raisin in the Sun' (2002)
• Bubba Ho-tep (2002)
• Feast of All Saints (2001)
• Neighborhoods: The Hidden Cities of San Francisco - The Fillmore (2001)
• The Legend of the Candy Cane (2001)
• Here's to Life! (2000)
• Dinosaur (2000)
• Finding Buck McHenry (2000)
• The Unfinished Journey (1999)
• Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The Ghosts of Christmas Eve (1999)
• The Soul Collector (1999)
• The Secret Path (1999)
• Paul Robeson: Here I Stand (1999)
• A Vow to Cherish (1999)
• Doctor Dolittle (1998)
• Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood (1998)
• Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist (1998)
• 12 Angry Men (1997)
• 4 Little Girls (1997)
• Jackie Robinson: Breaking Barriers (1997)
• Miss Evers' Boys (1997)
• Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough (1997)
• I'm Not Rappaport (1996)
• Get on the Bus (1996)
• The Android Affair (1995)
• Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder (1995)
• The Client (1994)
• Ray Alexander: A Taste For Justice (1994)
• Malcolm X: Make It Plain (1994)
• Arthur Ashe: Citizen of the World (1994)
• Grumpy Old Men (1993)
• Cop & ½ (1993)
• Goin' Back to T-Town (1993)
• The Ernest Green Story (1993)
• Lincoln (1992)
• Malcolm X (1992)
• The Real Malcolm X (1992)
• Haiti: Killing the Dream (1992)
• Gladiator (1992)
• Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker (1991)
• Jungle Fever (1991)
• Joe Versus the Volcano (1990)
• The Red Shoes (1990)
• Making 'Do the Right Thing' (1989)
• Do the Right Thing (1989)
• School Daze (1988)
• Sesame Street: Sleepytime Songs & Stories (1986)
• Avenging Angel (1985)
• Tyler Texas Black Film Collection (1985)
• Harry & Son (1984)
• Marcus Garvey: Toward Black Nationhood (1984)
• The House of God (1984)
• For Us, the Living: The Story of Medgar Evers (1983)
• Purlie (1981)
• Don't Look Back: The Story of Leroy "Satchel" Paige (1981)
• Death of a Prophet (1981)
• All God's Children (1980)
• Freedom Road (1979)
• Hot Stuff (1979)
• Freedom Man (1979)
• Billy: Portrait of a Street Kid (1977)
• The Tenth Level (1976)
• Countdown at Kusini (1976)
• Let's Do It Again (1975)
• Black Shadows on a Silver Screen (1975)
• Gordon's War (1973)
• Wattstax (1973)
• Black Girl (1972)
• Malcolm X (1972)
• The Sheriff (1971)
• Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970)
• Kongi's Harvest (1970)
• Night Gallery (1969)
• Slaves (1969)
• Sam Whiskey (1969)
• Teacher, Teacher (1969)
• The Fall (1969)
• The Scalphunters (1968)
• Still A Brother: Inside the Negro Middle Class (1968)
• The Outsider (1967)
• Black Liberation (1967)
• Now is the Time (1967)
• A Man Called Adam (1966)
• The Sun... the Sand... the Hill (1965)
• The Hill (1965)
• Shock Treatment (1964)
• The Cardinal (1963)
• Gone Are the Days! (1963)
• Hands of Inge (1962)
• John Brown's Raid (1960)
• Fourteen Hours (1951)
• No Way Out (1950)