Geraldine Keams

Geraldine Keams is a Navajo actress whose television career has often centered on maternal characters. She was born in Flagstaff, Arizona, and grew up on the Navajo reservation, later studying drama and film at the University of Arizona. Moving to New York City to pursue stage work, she joined the Native American Theater Ensemble led by Hanay Geiogamah and performed at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. For that company, she turned a Navajo creation story into the 1972 show Na Haaz Zan and acted in Body Indian, with both productions touring in 1972 and 1973. Her first movie part was in The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), a Clint Eastwood western, as Little Moonlight. In 2021, she appeared regularly on the sitcom Rutherford Falls, and the showrunner called her Navajo royalty. Keams continues to give live performances and workshops and holds a residency at the Los Angeles Music Center.