People, Locations, Episodes

Ruby Dee, Actress, and Activist born

Ruby Dee was born on this date in 1922. She was an African American actress and activist.

Born Ruby Ann Wallace in Cleveland, Ohio, her father, Marshall Edward Wallace, was a porter and waiter on the Pennsylvania Railroad; her mother, Emma Wallace, was a schoolteacher. She grew up in Harlem, New York, and was a 1945 graduate of Hunter College.

Dorothy Dandridge, Entertainer born

*This date marks the birth of Dorothy Dandridge in 1922. She was an African American actress, singer, dancer, and entertainer.

Redd Foxx, Comedian, and Actor born

Redd Foxx was born on this date in 1922. He was an African American comedian and actor.

Born in St. Louis, John Elroy Sanford (his birth name) was the son of Fred and Mary, an electrician and minister respectively. His father deserted the family when he was four and his grandmother and mother in Chicago raised him. Foxx quit high school after one year to play in a washtub band with two friends, Lamont Ousley and Steve Trimel; they eventually ran away to New York in 1939.

George Kirby, Comedian born

*George Kirby was born on this date in 1923.  He was a Black comedian, singer, and actor.   Born in Chicago, Kirby broke into show business in the 1940s at the Club DeLisa. This South Side establishment employed a variety-show format and preferred to hire local singers, dancers, and comedians. His first recording was as […]

Julius Harris, Actor born

The birth of Julius Harris in 1923 is celebrated on this date. He was an African American actor.

Morrie Turner, Cartoonist born

*Morrie Turner was born on this date in 1923. He was a syndicated African American cartoonist and artist.

From Oakland, California, his father was a Pullman porter and his mother a nurse, he began drawing seriously in elementary school. Morris “Morrie” Turner attended McClymonds High School; in his senior year, he moved to Berkeley to finish his high school years at Berkeley High School. During this time he began questioning why there were no minorities in cartoons, his mentor, Charles Schulz who created Peanuts, suggested he create one.

Marlon Brando Jr., Actor and Activist born

*Marlon Brando Jr. was born on this date in 1924. He was a white-American actor and activist. Brando was born in Omaha, Nebraska, to Marlon Brando Sr., a pesticide and chemical feed manufacturer, and Dorothy Julia Pennebaker. Brando had two elder sisters, Jocelyn and Frances. His ancestry was primarily German, Dutch, English, and Irish. Considered […]

William Marshall, Stage and Screen Actor born

*William Marshall was born on this date in 1924. He was an African American stage and screen actor.

Born and raised in Gary, Indiana, Marshall graduated from that cities Roosevelt High School. His acting career began in the early 1950s with the films Lydia Bailey, Demetrius and the Gladiators, and Sabu and the Magic Ring, in which he played “Ubal,” the genie.

Theresa Merritt, Stage, Musicals, and TV actress born

Theresa Merritt was born on this date in 1924. She was an African American actress.

She was born in Emporia, VA, and probably best recognized from her role as “Mama Eloise” on the TV sitcom “That’s My Mama.” Merritt’s talents found success on TV, film, and the stage. In 1985, she received a Tony Award nomination for her performance in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” on Broadway. Her films included “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” and “All That Jazz,” and she played “Aunt Em” in the musical “The Wiz.”

Nipsey Russell, Comedian born

Nipsey Russell was born on this date in 1924. He was an African American dancer and comedian.

Born in Atlanta, he was most widely known as a guest panelist on many 1970s and 1980s game shows, such as Match Game, To Tell the Truth, and Pyramid. One of the early Black stand-up comedians who found success with mainstream audiences, Russell started performing professionally in 1931 at the age of 6, when he was featured as a singing- dancing master of ceremonies for a children’s troupe in Atlanta organized by Eddie Heywood, Sr.

Matthew Beard Jr., Child Actor born.

*Matthew Beard Jr. was born on this date in 1925. He was a Black child actor. Beard was born near Los Angeles, California, to Matthew Beard Sr. and Johnnie Mae Beard (née Clay). His father was the founding pastor of the Beloved Church of God in Christ in Los Angeles. Beard previously played baby parts […]

Theodor Michael, Economist born

*Theodor Michael was born on this date in1925. He is an Afro-German economist, editor, lecturer and actor.

Virginia Capers, Actress, and Singer born

*Virginia Capers was born on this date in 1925. She was an African American actress and singer.

Sammy Davis Jr., Entertainer born

This date marks the birth of Sammy Davis, Jr,. in 1925. He was an African American impressionist, actor, singer, and dancer.

William Greaves, Documentary Filmmaker born

*William Greaves was born on this date in 1926. He was a Black documentary filmmaker and a pioneer of African American filmmaking. William Greaves was born in Harlem in New York City. He was one of seven children of taxi driver and minister Garfield Greaves and the former Emily Muir. After graduating from the elite […]