Dorothi Fox

Dorothi Fox is an American actress born on January 8, 1930, in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Over the course of a career spanning more than five decades, Fox has worked across stage, film, and television.

Fox began her professional life in African-American theatre, joining the Negro Ensemble Company in 1966 initially as head usher. She went on to make her Broadway debut in The Last of Mrs. Lincoln by James Prideaux, and her Broadway work continued through 1972, including a credit in The Great White Hope. Beyond Broadway, Fox worked extensively with the New Federal Theatre, founded by Woodie King Jr., as well as numerous other theatrical companies.

Her transition to film came in the 1970s, when she appeared in several notable productions. In Woody Allen's 1971 comedy Bananas, Fox portrayed FBI director J. Edgar Hoover in the guise of a Black woman. She also appeared in the blaxploitation films Come Back, Charleston Blue in 1972 and The Wiz in 1978, alongside the political thriller Three Days of the Condor in 1975.

Fox's career extended well into the 21st century through television work. She gained recognition portraying political commentator Nancy Fichandler on the Onion News Network and also appeared in Random Acts of Flyness and Orange Is the New Black.

In 2019, Fox returned to the stage with the Negro Ensemble Company in Imminently Yours, written by Karimah. The tragicomedy, set in the American South, explores the intergenerational experiences of an African-American family, and Fox played the role of Lillie Mae.