Howard University’s John H. Johnson School of Communication (JHJSOC) is partnering with Woodie King of New York City’s New Federal Theatre to pay tribute to Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee during the 35th anniversary of Harlem Week at a free film festival July 27- July 30.
On Monday, July 27th, 7:30 pm, Howard alumni and guests are invited to a Literary Tribute to Ossie and Ruby at George Faison’s Firehouse Playhouse in Harlem. The program features poets Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez and Howard University Professor Dr. Richard Wright, author of Rising to the Occasion: The Word at Work in African American History.
The films of Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee will be showcased at the AMC Magic Johnson Theater on Frederick Douglas Blvd. in Harlem Wednesday, July 29th and Thursday, July 30th, including Cotton Comes to Harlem, Gone Are the Days, and Jungle Fever. In addition to the films from Mr. Davis and Ms. Dee, the festival will feature Sankofa from award-winning Howard University Professor Haile Gerima on the 29th.
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Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, with more than 100 films and theatrical performances to their credit, celebrated and influenced African American culture throughout their decades long careers,together and apart, as advocates and examples of artistic excellence and social justice.
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Howard’s John H. Johnson School of Communications has a special kinship with the late Ossie Davis: he was an alumnus of Howard and served as a member of the JHJSOC Board of Visitors for 14 years. He was also the Inaugural Annenberg Professor in the School.
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“Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee are exemplars for us all. Their dedication to the communities in which they lived was the driving force in their professional lives as well as their private lives. They felt the need to give back to those who respected them for their activism and loved them for their work. We feel especially fortunate to have had them involved with our school for so many years,? said Dr. Jannette L. Dates, dean of the JHJSOC.
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Monies raised by the Ossie Davis/Ruby Dee Film Festival Tribute will contribute to the new facility that will house John H. Johnson School of Communications.
