August 11th in African American History – Viola Davis

August 11, 1965 Viola Davis, stage and film actress, was born in St. Matthews, South Carolina.

Davis graduated from Rhode Island College with a major in theatre in 1988. She also attended the Juilliard School for the Performing Arts from 1990 to 1994. Davis won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her role in “King Hedley II” (2001) and a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for “Fences” (2010).

She has also appeared in the movies “Traffic” (2000), “Antwone Fisher” (2002), “Doubt” (2008), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and “The Help” (2011).