Beah Richards left her native Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA for New York City in 1950. She would not acquire a significant role on stage until 1955 when she appeared in the off-Broadway show Take A Giant Step where she convincingly portrayed an eighty-four-year-old grandmother, without using theatrical makeup. In 1962 she appeared in writer James Baldwin's The Amen Corner directed by the noted actor/director/activist Frank Silvera who told Richards Don't act, just be. She credited Silvera with ...[Read Story]