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Mary Alice

Acting Born Dec 3, 1936 Indianola, Mississippi, USA 24 credits

Biography

Mary Alice was born on December 3, 1936 in Indianola, Mississippi, USA to parents Ozelar Jurnakin (Smith) and Sam Smith.

She was an actress, known for The Matrix Revolutions (2003), Awakenings (1990) and Malcolm X (1992). She taught in Elementary School before her acting career took off. When she was still a struggling actress doing stage plays, she made a living doing her castmate's laundry for a salary of $200 a week. She was a lifelong liberal Democrat, feminist, and civil rights activist. Was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2000. She retired from acting in 2005.

She died of natural causes on July 27, 2022 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. Upon her death, she was buried with her siblings at Oak Wood Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois, in regard for her last wishes.

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Full filmography

  • Law & Order (1990) as Virginia Bryan
  • Green Acres (1965)
  • Touched by an Angel (1994) as Georgia Bishop
  • Great Performances (1971)
  • Oz (1997) as Eugenia Hill
  • L.A. Law (1986) as Maxine Manley
  • Providence (1999) as Abby Franklin
  • Police Woman (1974)
  • A Different World (1987) as Lettie Bostic
  • Sanford and Son (1972)
  • Good Times (1974)
  • Performance (1991) as Black lady
  • The Matrix Revolutions (2003) as The Oracle
  • Cosby (1996)
  • Soul Food (2000) as Mrs. Pettaway
  • The Jury (2004)
  • Awakenings (1990) as Nurse Margaret
  • I'll Fly Away (1991) as Marguerite Peck
  • I'll Fly Away (1991)
  • Malcolm X (1992) as School Teacher
  • Kojak (2005) as Joyce
  • A Perfect World (1993) as Lottie
  • Beat Street (1984) as Cora
  • The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) as Annie Lamb