Life Lit by Some Large Vision: Selected Speeches and Writings

by Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee (Introduction)

Star actor of stage, film , and television, civil rights activist, screenwriter, and director, Ossie Davis was among the most beloved and respected men in Hollywood and American society as a whole, whose brilliant oratory style was among his most inspiring and celebrated gifts —and all of his written essays, tributes, letters, and more have been collected for this book.

This book represents the best of the scores of speeches and talks, written and delivered by the great Ossie Davis. While the sound of his voice will be missed in the reading, his unique gift for expressing himself, articulating his thoughts and his visions are present on every page of this moving collection.

Davis had intended to assemble these disparate pieces long before his passing in the spring of 2005. His wife and his family have followed-up and delivered to us the text of his speeches, essays, tributes and eulogies, letters, and the brilliant monologue that was "The Benediction" from his groundbreaking play, first produced in 1961, "Purlie Victorious."

In the end, this is a book that will resonate from Hollywood to the heartlands across the country as a document of one man's wisdom and generosity, and a legacy that enriches all of us.

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Ossie Davis was born Raiford Chatman Davis, a son of Kince Charles Davis, a railway construction engineer, and his wife Laura Cooper. The name Ossie came from a county clerk who misheard his mother's pronunciation of his initials "R.C." when he was born. Following the wishes of his parents, he attended Howard University but dropped out in 1939 to fulfill his acting career in New York; he later attended Columbia University School of General Studies. His acting career, which spanned seven decades, began in 1939 with the Rose McClendon Players in Harlem. He made his film debut in 1950 in the Sidney Poitier film No Way Out. He voiced Anansi the spider on the PBS children's television series Sesame Street in its animation segments.

Davis experienced many of the same struggles that most African American actors of his generation underwent; he wanted to act but he did not want to play stereotypical subservient roles, such as a butler, that was the standard for black actors of his generation. Instead, he tried to follow the example of Sidney Poitier and play more distinguished characters. When he found it necessary to play a Pullman porter or a butler, he tried to inject the role with a certain degree of dignity.

In 2003, both Ossie Davis and his wife Ruby Dee starred and narrated in the HBO film Unchained Memories, a tribute to the WPA slave narratives.

Reviews

[Christine]

So much history in this selection of work from Ossie Davis. It is hard to pick a favorite, though I was particularly compelled by the section of tributes and eulogies, Malcolm X, Godfrey Cambridge, James Boggs. This work is easily a reference, not only of history, but also to inspiration.

[David]

Davis writes with passion and compassion, clarity, power, and thoughtfulness. It is inspiring, and moving.