Actor

Edna Mae Harris

Acting

Career Snapshot

Explained

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Acting credits

Active

Consistent number of acting credits.

TMDB popularity

3.1

Moderate attention

TMDB internal trend index. Higher usually means more searches and page activity now.

Movies: 13Series: 1

TMDB ID: 89942

IMDb ID: nm0364657

Known for: Acting

Born: September 29, 1910

Died: September 15, 1997

Age: 86

Place of birth: New York City, New York, USA

Gender: Female

Adult content flag: No

Career span: 1936 - 1994

Years active: 59

Average TMDB rating: 7.01

Wikidata: Q3048174

Also known as

Edna M. Harris • Edna May Harris

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Biography

Edna Mae Harris was one of the best-known Black actresses of the 1930s and 1940s. She starred in many all-black cast independently produced movies of the day. An attractive woman who had a soulful voice, personality and sex appeal, she could sing, dance and act. The personification of a Harlem performer, Edna found fame by playing in both stage and screen versions of The Green Pastures (1936) as Zeba. Audiences loved her, and she received glorious reviews, so it was no surprise when Hollywood asked her to repeat her role on screen to wide acclaim. Edna Mae was very much in demand starring in some of the top Black movies such as Spirit of Youth (1938), Paradise in Harlem (1939), Sunday Sinners (1940), The Notorious Elinor Lee (1940), and Tall, Tan, and Terrific (1946), showing her excellent acting skills in drama and comedy. Edna Mae Harris got to tell her story in her later years in the documentary, Midnight Ramble (1994), about independently produced Black films.