- Victim of the blacklisting era of the 1950s.
- Compiled a professional boxing record of 33-31-7 with 13 knockouts.
- Fought as a professional boxer from 1926-1933.
- Father of Carl Lee.
- Lost to world champions Jack Britton, Tommy Freeman, and Lou Brouillard.
- Boxed a 10 round draw with Middleweight champion Vince Dundee in 1928.
- During his boxing career Lee earned about $90,000 (over $2 million in today's dollars), but when he retired in 1933 he was broke. "Just threw it all away", he said.
- Began acting with the Federal Theatre Project of New York in 1935. The young Orson Welles helped Lee's career by casting him in two famous productions: as Banquo in the controversial "Voodoo Macbeth" (1936) and in the title role of "Native Son" (1941), adapted from Richard Wright's novel.
- Studied piano and violin as a child. He briefly led his own jazz band in the mid-1930s.
- In 1943, Lee was signed by 20th Century-Fox to appear in an upcoming screen version of George Gershwin's opera "Porgy and Bess"; he was slated to play Crown, Bess' no-good boyfriend. This project was canceled due to conflicts with the intended leads, Paul Robeson and Lena Horne. Lee went on to do Lifeboat (1944) for Fox instead.
- Lost the sight in his right eye due to an untreated boxing injury. This forced him to quit the sport at age 26.
- As a young amateur boxer he fought as Lee Canegata. He was given the moniker "Canada Lee" by a ring announcer who couldn't pronounce his last name. He liked it and kept it.
- In 1946, Lee portrayed the villain Daniel de Bosola in a production of John Webster's 17th century tragedy "The Duchess of Malfi". This marked the first time an African American actor had played a white role on the Broadway stage. The producers hedged their bets by having him appear in whiteface, but a precedent was set.
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