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Edna Mae Harris

Edna Mae Harris

Known For Acting
Birthday Sep 29, 1910
Died Sep 15, 1997 (86)
Birthplace New York City, New York, USA
Popularity 0.1 (history)
Updated Aug 05, 2025 (Update)
Entry Date Apr 26, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
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 perfo ... rmer, 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.

Known For

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Filmography

Stage Door Canteen

Stage Door Canteen

1943

as Sun Tan Girl (uncredited)

Sunday Sinners

Sunday Sinners

1940

as Corrine Aiken

The Notorious Elinor Lee

The Notorious Elinor Lee

1940

as Fredi Welsh

Stolen Paradise

Stolen Paradise

1940

as Maid

Lying Lips

Lying Lips

1939

as Elsie Bellwood

Paradise in Harlem

Paradise in Harlem

1939

as Doll Davis

Spirit of Youth

Spirit of Youth

1938

as Mary Bowdin

The Green Pastures

The Green Pastures

1936

as Zeba

Private Number

Private Number

1936

as Lulu (Uncredited)

Bullets or Ballots

Bullets or Ballots

1936

as Rose - Lee's Maid (uncredited)

Fury

Fury

1936

as Black Woman (uncredited)

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No data available

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Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

No data available

I Remember Harlem

as self

Episodes: 4

First Aired: Feb 01, 1981

Popularity Metrics

Popularity History


Year Month Avg Max Min
2024 6 3 5 1
2024 7 2 3 1
2024 8 1 4 1
2024 9 1 1 1
2024 10 1 2 1
2024 11 1 2 1
2024 12 1 1 1
2025 1 1 1 1
2025 8 0 1 0

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