Ossie Davis
Acting
Born: December 18, 1917 · Cogdell, Georgia, USA
Died: February 4, 2005 (aged 87)
Highest Rated
Biography
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.
Known for
Doctor Dolittle
1998
Dinosaur
2000
Do the Right Thing
1989
Malcolm X
1992
The Client
1994
The L Word
2004
Grumpy Old Men
1993
Bubba Ho-tep
2002
Joe Versus the Volcano
1990
The Stand
1994
Bonanza
1959
12 Angry Men
1997
Photos (3)
Movies (74)
Doctor Dolittle
Archer Dolittle
Dinosaur
Yar (voice)
The Client
Harry Roosevelt
Malcolm X
Eulogy Performer (voice)
Gladiator
Noah
Do the Right Thing
Da Mayor
Grumpy Old Men
Chuck
12 Angry Men
Juror 2
Jungle Fever
Reverend Purify
Joe Versus the Volcano
Marshall
She Hate Me
Judge Buchanan
Cop & ½
Detective in Squad Room
Bubba Ho-tep
John F. "Jack" Kennedy
The Secret Path
Too Tall
Fourteen Hours
Cab Driver (uncredited)
The Cardinal
Father Gillis
The Hill
Jacko King
The Scalphunters
Joseph Lee
School Daze
Coach Odom
Avenging Angel
Capt. Harry Moradian
Night Gallery
Osmond Portifoy
Sam Whiskey
Jed Hooker
Baadasssss!
Granddad
Get on the Bus
Jeremiah / 'Pop'
No Way Out
John Brooks (uncredited)
Miss Evers' Boys
Mr. Evers
Slaves
Luke
Still A Brother: Inside the Negro Middle Class
Narrator
Let's Do It Again
Elder Johnson
I'm Not Rappaport
Midge Carter
Feast of All Saints
Jean-Jacques
Harry & Son
Raymond
A Man Called Adam
Nelson Davis
Hot Stuff
Captain John Geiberger
The Unfinished Journey
Narrator (voice)
Death of a Prophet
1981
Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder
Uncle Phil
John Brown's Raid
Dangerfield Newby
Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives
2003
The House of God
Dr. Sanders
Proud
Lorenzo DuFau
The Sheriff
James Lucas
The Ernest Green Story
Grandfather
Malcolm X
Eulogy (voice)
The Outsider
Lt. Wagner
Deacons for Defense
Reverend 'Rev' Gregory
Teacher, Teacher
Charles Carter
Freedom Road
Narrator
Don't Look Back: The Story of Leroy "Satchel" Paige
Chuffy Russell
The Android Affair
Dr. Winston
Here's to Life!
Duncan Cox
The Real Malcolm X
1992
Shock Treatment
Capshaw
The Tenth Level
Reed
Kongi's Harvest
Narrator
Sesame Street: Sleepytime Songs & Stories
Anansi the Spider (Sleepytime Songs and Stories) (voice)
Ray Alexander: A Taste For Justice
Uncle Phil
The Fall
1969
Gone Are the Days!
Reverend Purlie Victorious Judson
A Vow to Cherish
Alexander Billman
Black Liberation
Narrator
The Soul Collector
Mordecai
The Red Shoes
1990
All God's Children
Blaine Whitfield
Goin' Back to T-Town
Narrator
Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The Ghosts of Christmas Eve
Caretaker
Hands of Inge
Narrator (voice)
The Legend of the Candy Cane
Julius (voice)
Finding Buck McHenry
Buck McHenry
Countdown at Kusini
Ernest Motapo
Billy: Portrait of a Street Kid
Dr. Fredericks
Neighborhoods: The Hidden Cities of San Francisco - The Fillmore
Narrator
Black Shadows on a Silver Screen
Narrator
Haiti: Killing the Dream
1992
TV Shows (35)
JAG
Terrence Minnerly · 1 eps
Hawaii Five-O
Ramon Borelle · 1 eps
Bonanza
Sam Davis · 1 eps
Third Watch
Mr. Parker · 3 eps
The Fugitive
Lt. Johnny Gaines · 1 eps
Touched by an Angel
Gabriel · 2 eps
Touched by an Angel
Erasmus Jones · 4 eps
The Name of the Game
Kubani · 1 eps
Run for Your Life
Frankie Morton · 1 eps
Run for Your Life
Dave Corbett · 1 eps
Run for Your Life
Sgt. Dave Corbett · 1 eps
The L Word
Melvin Porter · 4 eps
The Defenders
Nixie · 1 eps
The Defenders
Officer Bond · 1 eps
The Defenders
Assistant District Attorney · 1 eps
The Defenders
District Attorney · 2 eps
The Defenders
District Attorney Daniel Jackson · 3 eps
Kraft Television Theatre
The Emperor Jones · 1 eps
12 O'Clock High
Major Glenn Luke · 1 eps
The Stand
Judge Richard Farris · 2 eps
The Stand
Judge Richard Farris (credit only) · 2 eps
Promised Land
1 eps
Promised Land
Erasmus Jones · 2 eps
Evening Shade
Ponder Blue · 100 eps
Baseball
Various (voice)
Baseball
(voice) · 7 eps
The Great Adventure
John Ross · 1 eps
Roots: The Next Generations
'Dad' Jones · 1 eps
B.L. Stryker
Oz Jackson · 12 eps
The Client
Judge Harry Roosevelt · 21 eps
Alex Haley's Queen
Parson Dick · 3 eps
King
Rev. Martin Luther King Sr. · 3 eps
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Charles Carter · 1 eps
Thomas Jefferson
Narrator (voice) · 2 eps
Christianity: The First Two Thousand Years
Narrator · 2 eps
Self / Appearances (23)
American Experience
Self - Harlem Resident · 1 eps
Tony Awards
Self - Presenter · 1 eps
American Masters
Self · 1 eps
Reading Rainbow
Self - Narrator (voice) · 1 eps
The Kennedy Center Honors
Self · 1 eps
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Self (archive footage)
The West
Self · 9 eps
The West
Self / John R. Gills (voice) · 1 eps
The Evolution of an American Filmmaker
Self
4 Little Girls
Self - Actor and Playwright
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
Self
Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist
Self
By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X'
Self
Wattstax
Self (uncredited)
Beah: A Black Woman Speaks
Self
The History Makers: Success
Self
Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough
Self
Paul Robeson: Here I Stand
Self
Malcolm X: Make It Plain
Self
Theater Talk: 'A Raisin in the Sun'
Self
Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood
Self
Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property
Himself
Tyler Texas Black Film Collection
Himself
Directing (5)
Writing (9)
American Playhouse
Writer
East Side/West Side
Writer
Cotton Comes to Harlem
Screenplay
For Us, the Living: The Story of Medgar Evers
Writer
Gone Are the Days!
Writer
Purlie
Musical
Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
Writer
Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
Original Story
Countdown at Kusini
Screenplay