
Rex Ingram
Rex Ingram (October 20, 1895 – September 19, 1969) was an American stage, film, and television actor.
Ingram graduated from the Northwestern University medical school in 1919 and was the first African-American man to receive a Phi Beta Kappa key from there. He went to Hollywood as a young man where he was literally discovered on a street corner by the casting director for Tarzan of the Apes (1918), starring Elmo Lincoln. He made his (uncredited) screen debut in that film and had many other small roles, usually as a generic black native, such as in the Tarzan films.
With the arrival of sound, his presence and powerful voice became an asset and he went on to memorable roles in The Green Pastures (1936), The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (the 1939 MGM version), The Thief of Bagdad (1940—perhaps his best-known film appearance—as the genie), The Talk of the Town (1942), and Sahara (1943).
From 1929, he also appeared on stage, making his debut on Broadway. He appeared in more than a dozen Broadway productions, with his final role coming in Kwamina in 1961. He was in the original cast of Haiti (1938), Cabin in the Sky (1940), and St. Louis Woman (1946). He is one of the few actors to have played both God (in The Green Pastures) and the Devil (in Cabin in the Sky). In 1966 he played Tee-Tot in the movie Your Cheatin' Heart.
Ingram was arrested for violating the Mann Act in 1948. Pleading guilty to the charge of transporting a teenage girl to New York for immoral purposes, he was sentenced to eighteen months in jail. He served just ten months of his sentence, but the incident had a serious effect on his career for the next six years.
In 1962, he became the first African-American actor to be hired for a contract role on a soap opera, when he appeared on The Brighter Day. He had other work in television in the 1950s and 1960s.
Rex Ingram died of a heart attack at the age of 73.
[biography (excerpted) from Wikipedia]
Known For









Credits
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Djinn (archival footage)★ 7
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Self (archive footage)★ NR
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The Bill Cosby Show 1969George★ 5.4
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Journey to Shiloh 1968Jacob★ 5.4
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Cowboy in Africa 1967Nhinga★ 5
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Hurry Sundown 1967Prof. Thurlow★ 6.4
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Daktari 1966Natoma★ 7
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Branded 1965Hannibal - Valet★ 6.4
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Your Cheatin' Heart 1964Teetot★ 6.3
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Sam Benedict 1962Judge Larkin★ 6
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Self (archive footage)★ NR
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Desire in the Dust 1960Burt Crane★ 4
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Elmer Gantry 1960Preacher of Black Congregation (uncredited)★ 7.3
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Watusi 1959Umbopa★ 5.7
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Escort West 1959Nelson Walker★ 5.6
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Black Saddle 1959Alex Booth★ 6
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Anna Lucasta 1958Joe Lucasta★ 6.2
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The Rifleman 1958Thaddeus★ 7
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God's Little Acre 1958Uncle Felix★ 6.1
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Congo Crossing 1956Dr. Leopold Gorman★ 5.2
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Gunsmoke 1955Juba★ 6.6
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Sukulu Chieftain★ 4.9
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Climax! 1954Petraca★ 3.3
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Moonrise 1948Mose★ 6.3
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Lem★ 7.5
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Shoe Shine Jasper 1947(voice)★ NR
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Narrator / John Henry (voice)★ 5.9
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Adventure 1945Preacher (unconfirmed)★ 6.2
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Giant★ 5.7
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Dark Waters 1944Pearson Jackson★ 5.8
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Jasper's Paradise 1944(voice)★ NR
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Sahara 1943Sgt. Maj. Tambul★ 7.2
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Fired Wife 1943Charles★ 4.8
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Cabin in the Sky 1943Lucius / Lucifer Jr.★ 6.5
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The Talk of the Town 1942Tilney★ 7.3
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The Gay Knighties 1941Narrator (voice)★ NR
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Hoola Boola 1941Narrator (voice)★ 9
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The Thief of Bagdad 1940Djinn★ 7.1
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Let My People Live 1939Dr. Gordon★ NR
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Jim★ 6.5
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The Green Pastures 1936De Lawd / Adam / Hezdrel★ 6.3
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★ NR
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Emperor Jones 1933Court Crier★ 5.6
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The Four Feathers 1929Fuzzy Wuzzy Native★ 4.4
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The King of Kings 1927(uncredited)★ 6.5
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The Ten Commandments 1923Israelite Slave (uncredited)★ 6.5
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Tarzan of the Apes 1918(uncredited)★ 5.4