Ossie Davis

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.

Cast

Do the Right Thing

(Da Mayor)

Doctor Dolittle

(Archer Dolittle)

Jungle Fever

(Reverend Purify)

Dinosaur

(Yar (voice))

Neighborhoods: The Hidden Cities of San Francisco - The Fillmore

(Narrator)

Goin' Back to T-Town

(Narrator)

Joe Versus the Volcano

(Marshall)

Grumpy Old Men

(Chuck)

The Hill

(Jacko King)

Sam Whiskey

(Jed Hooker)

The Scalphunters

(Joseph Lee)

12 Angry Men

(Juror 2)

Bubba Ho-tep

(John F. "Jack" Kennedy)

Baadasssss!

(Granddad)

Let's Do It Again

(Elder Johnson)

I'm Not Rappaport

(Midge Carter)

Avenging Angel

(Capt. Harry Moradian)

Get on the Bus

(Jeremiah)

The Secret Path

(Too Tall)

Harry & Son

(Raymond)

Feast of All Saints

(Jean-Jacques)

The House of God

(Dr. Sanders)

Hot Stuff

(Captain John Geiberger)

Finding Buck McHenry

(Buck McHenry)

Malcolm X

(Eulogy Performer (voice))

Here's to Life!

(Duncan Cox)

The Peace!

(Self)

Miss Evers' Boys

(Mr. Evers)

John Brown's Raid

(Dangerfield Newby)

The Evolution of an American Filmmaker

(Self)

The Red Shoes

Billy: Portrait of a Street Kid

(Dr. Fredericks)

A Man Called Adam

(Nelson Davis)

The Tuskegee Airmen: They Fought Two Wars

(Narrator)

Teacher, Teacher

(Charles Carter)

Gone Are the Days!

(Reverend Purlie Victorious Judson)

The Tenth Level

(Reed)

Still A Brother: Inside the Negro Middle Class

(Narrator)

The Soul Collector

(Mordecai)

The Cardinal

(Father Gillis)

Arthur Ashe: Citizen of the World

(Narrator)

By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X'

(Self)

Unstoppable

(Self)

School Daze

(Coach Odom)

The Android Affair

(Dr. Winston)

Countdown at Kusini

(Ernest Motapo)

Deacons for Defense

(Reverend 'Rev' Gregory)

Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues

(Self (archive footage))

Marcus Garvey: Toward Black Nationhood

(Narrator)

Slaves

(Luke)

Fourteen Hours

(Cab Driver (uncredited))

No Way Out

(John Brooks (uncredited))

Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist

(Self)

The Outsider

(Lt. Wagner)

4 Little Girls

(Self - Actor and Playwright)

Malcolm X

(Eulogy (voice))

The Fall

The Sun... the Sand... the Hill

(Jason King (archival footage))

The Sun... the Sand... the Hill

(Jason King (archive footage))

Making 'Do the Right Thing'

(Self)

Tyler Texas Black Film Collection

(Himself)

All God's Children

(Blaine Whitfield)

Freedom Road

(Narrator)

Freedom Man

(Benjamin Banneker)

Beah: A Black Woman Speaks

(Self)

The Ernest Green Story

(Grandfather)

Gladiator

(Noah)

Black Liberation

(Narrator)

Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property

(Himself)

Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The Ghosts of Christmas Eve

(Caretaker)

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives

A Vow to Cherish

(Alexander Billman)

Night Gallery

(Osmond Portifoy)

The Sheriff

(James Lucas)

Death of a Prophet

Theater Talk: 'A Raisin in the Sun'

(Self)

The Client

(Harry Roosevelt)

Jackie Robinson: Breaking Barriers

(Narrator)

Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker

(Self)

The History Makers: Success

(Self)

Don't Look Back: The Story of Leroy "Satchel" Paige

(Chuffy Russell)

Black Shadows on a Silver Screen

(Narrator)

Proud

(Lorenzo DuFau)

Malcolm X: Make It Plain

(Self)

The Legend of the Candy Cane

(Julius (voice))

Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough

(Self)

Sesame Street: Sleepytime Songs & Stories

(Anansi the Spider (Sleepytime Songs and Stories) (voice))

Hands of Inge

(Narrator (voice))

She Hate Me

(Judge Buchanan)

Kongi's Harvest

(Narrator)

Shock Treatment

(Capshaw)

The Unfinished Journey

(Narrator (voice))

Paul Robeson: Here I Stand

(Self)

Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder

(Uncle Phil)

Ray Alexander: A Taste For Justice

(Uncle Phil)

Cop & ½

(Detective in Squad Room)

Lincoln

(Frederick Douglas (voice))

Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood

(Self)

Wattstax

(Self (uncredited))

Haiti: Killing the Dream

The Real Malcolm X

Third Watch

(Mr. Parker)

Evening Shade

(Ponder Blue)

The Great Adventure

(John Ross)

Touched by an Angel

(Gabriel)

Hawaii Five-O

(Ramon Borelle)

The L Word

(Melvin Porter)

JAG

(Terrence Minnerly)

Hallmark Hall of Fame

(Charles Carter)

The Stand

(Judge Richard Farris)

Run for Your Life

(Frankie Morton)

The Fugitive

(Lt. Johnny Gaines)

Promised Land

TV Revolution

Alex Haley's Queen

(Parson Dick)

The Defenders

(Nixie)

The Defenders

(Officer Bond)

The Defenders

(District Attorney)

The Defenders

(Assistant District Attorney)

The Defenders

(District Attorney Daniel Jackson)

The Kennedy Center Honors

(Self)

The West

(Self)

The Client

(Judge Harry Roosevelt)

Thomas Jefferson

(Narrator (voice))

B.L. Stryker

(Oz Jackson)

Folk Britannia

(Self (archival footage))

Kraft Television Theatre

(The Emperor Jones)

Reading Rainbow

(Self - Narrator (voice))

Christianity: The First 1000 Years

(Himself - Narrator)

The Name of the Game

(Kubani)

King

(Rev. Martin Luther King Sr.)

Run for Your Life

(Dave Corbett)

Run for Your Life

(Sgt. Dave Corbett)

Touched by an Angel

(Erasmus Jones)

Promised Land

(Erasmus Jones)

Baseball

(Various (voice))

The West

(Self / John R. Gills (voice))

Bonanza

(Sam Davis)

American Masters

(Self)

Christianity: The First Two Thousand Years

(Narrator)

Tony Awards

(Self - Presenter)

The Stand

(Judge Richard Farris (credit only))

Baseball

((voice))

American Experience

(Self - Harlem Resident)

12 O'Clock High

(Major Glenn Luke)

Roots: The Next Generations

('Dad' Jones)