1988
School Daze
Nunn appears in Spike Lee’s college-set film.
FLM.REDBILL
NUNN
บิล นันน์
A powerful presence in stories of community
From Radio Raheem to Robbie Robertson.
20 OctoberPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
A voice within the neighbourhood
Bill Nunn was an American actor from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Sources differ on his birth year, reporting 1952 or 1953; he died on 24 September 2016.
At Morehouse College in Atlanta, Nunn met filmmaker Spike Lee. He appeared in Lee’s School Daze (1988), followed by Do the Right Thing (1989), in which he played Radio Raheem.
Radio Raheem’s presence and his ever-present music are central to the portrait of a Brooklyn neighbourhood in Do the Right Thing. Nunn also appeared in Lee’s Mo’ Better Blues and He Got Game.
In Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films, Nunn played newspaper editor Robbie Robertson. Away from the screen, he supported young performers through theatre outreach in Pittsburgh. The links below show titles currently available in the FLM.RED catalogue.
Selected roles and community work
1989
Do the Right Thing
He plays Radio Raheem in the Brooklyn-set drama.
2002
Spider-Man
Nunn plays newspaper editor Robbie Robertson.
2016
Pittsburgh tribute
The city council honoured his life and community work.
Performance readings are FLM.RED editorial interpretation.
Films in FLM.RED
Titles in this collection; not a complete filmography.
Sources & image notes
- City of Pittsburgh — Bill Nunn tribute
- The Guardian — Bill Nunn obituary
- IMDb — Bill Nunn
- Legacy — Bill Nunn
Portrait illustration: FLM.RED.