Georgia Allen

Georgia Williams Allen (May 12, 1919 – January 11, 2014) was an American actress. She was active from 1949 to 2006, beginning in local theater before progressing to both television and movie roles.

Georgia Allen
Headshot of Georgia Allen
Born
Georgia Williams Allen

(1919-05-12)May 12, 1919
DiedJanuary 11, 2014(2014-01-11) (aged 94)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of California, Santa Barbara
OccupationActress
Years active1949[1]–2006
Partner(s)Thaddius S. Allen (1942–2009; his death)[2]

Early life

Allen was born in Beaumont, Texas.[1] She later moved, via Cleveland, Ohio, to Atlanta, Georgia, where she became an educator in the public school system.[3]

She earned her master's degree at the University of California, Santa Barbara.[3]

Acting career

Allen was a repertory player with Atlanta University Summer Theater for thirty years (1949 to 1979).[1]

Her first screen role was as the mother of Clifton Davis' character, Gus, in Together for Days (1972).

After a five-year break, she returned in 1977 as Mrs. Jones in Greased Lightning.

She appeared in four television movies between 1979 and 1982, then several more from the mid-1980s onward.

Between 1990 and 1994, she appeared as three different characters in the television series In the Heat of the Night.

In 1997 she played Lucille Wright, the caterer of the party hosted by Kevin Spacey's character, Jim Williams, in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

Awards

Allen was awarded the Bronze Jubilee Award by WETV in 1979; the Ray McIver Award by the Just Us Theater in 1993; and the Legacy Award by Jomandi Productions, also in 1993.[1]

Her last-known appearance was as Ruby in Madea's Family Reunion (2006).

Personal life

Allen was educated at Clark College in Atlanta, graduating in 1942. That same year, she married Thaddius S. Allen, with whom she had a daughter and a son during their 67-year marriage.[2]

Death

Allen died on January 11, 2014, having survived her husband by five years. She is interred in Atlanta's Crest Lawn Cemetery.[2]

References

  1. Profiles of African American Stage Performers and Theatre People, 1816-1960 - Google Books
  2. Atlanta Journal-Constitution, January 13, 2014
  3. Tilley, Kathy (July 6, 1973). "Acting a Part-Time Job, Full-Time Love". The Atlanta Constitution. p. 31. Retrieved October 22, 2020 via Newspapers.com.
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