Ruth Brown, who won a 1989 Best Actress Tony Award for the musical revue Black and Blue, died on November 17 in Las Vegas of complications from a stroke and heart attack suffered after surgery. According to The New York Times, the 78-year-old singer had been on life support for several weeks before her death.
In addition to Black and Blue, Brown's theatrical credits included the short-lived 1983 Broadway musical Amen Corner and the 1987 off-Broadway musical Staggerlee. In addition to her Tony, Brown picked up a Grammy Award for her 1989 album Blues on Broadway.
A pioneer of R&B music, Brown began recording with Atlantic Records in the early 1950s, releasing hits including "5-10-15 Hours," "Mama He Treats Your Daughter Mean" and "Teardrops in My Eyes." Later in life, after stints as a maid, school bus driver and teacher, Brown led the fight against record companies who were not paying royalties to musicians of her generation. She won that fight in 1988 and was one of 35 musicians who were paid 20 years of retroactive royalties, according to the Times.
Resuming her career in the 1980s, Brown played Motormouth Maybelle in John Waters' original Hairspray film and was the host of the public radio show Harlem Hit Parade. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.
