Role Film actress Name Ruth Attaway | Spouse(s) Allan Morrison Years active 1936-1979 Siblings William Attaway | |
Died September 21, 1987, New York City, New York, United States Parents William S. Attaway, Florence Parry Attaway Movies Being There, The Bermuda Depths, Pie in the Sky Similar People William Attaway, Hal Ashby, Allen Baron | ||
Occupation Actress, social worker | ||
Being There (1979) Key Scene - Ruth Attaway
Ruth Attaway (June 28, 1910 – September 21, 1987) was an American film and stage actress. Among the films she appeared in include Raintree County (1957), Porgy and Bess (1959) and Being There (1979).
Contents
- Being There 1979 Key Scene Ruth Attaway
- Early life
- Theatre work
- Film work
- Television work
- Other ventures
- Honors
- Personal life and death
- Partial filmography
- References
Early life
Attaway was born on June 28, 1910 in Greenville, Mississippi. She was the daughter of physician W.A. Attaway, PhD. Her siblings included a sister, Florence and a brother, William. She graduated from the University of Illinois, where she majored in sociology.
Theatre work
Attaway made her Broadway debut in 1936 in the Pulitzer Prize winning play, You Can't Take It with You.
Attaway was the first director of the New York Players Guild, a black repertory theater company formed in New York in 1945.
From 1954 to 1955, Attaway portrayed Anna Hicks in the play Mrs. Patterson at the National Theater.
From 1964 to 1967, Attaway was with the Repertory Society of Lincoln Center.
Film work
Attaway made her film debut by portraying Moll in The President's Lady (1953), opposite Susan Hayward and Charlton Heston. She went on to play a variety of characters in film such as Philomena in The Young Don't Cry (1957), Serena Robbins in Porgy and Bess (1959), the Farmer's Wife in Terror in the City (1964), Edna in Conrack (1974) and Louise in Being There (1979).
Television work
In 1954, Attaway was within the cast of an unaired pilot titled Three's Company.
She also played Delia in the 1978 television movie, The Bermuda Depths.
Other ventures
In addition to acting, Attaway was also trained as a social worker and, between acting jobs, worked with the American Red Cross, the New York State Department of Social Welfare and New York's Metropolitan Hospital.
Honors
On November 10, 1953, Attaway was one of three people cited by the Coordinating Council For Negro Performers at a special benefit in Harlem.
Personal life and death
Attaway was married to Allan Morrison, an editor of Ebony. He died on May 29, 1968 at the age of 51.
Attaway died on September 21, 1987 in New York Hospital of injuries resulting from a Manhattan apartment fire. She was 77 years old.