Dr. Roy Charles Bell Sr., a prominent Atlanta dentist and civil rights activist, helped open the doors so African-Americans could access proper health care at Grady Memorial Hospital.

Upward and outward movement of the eyeball on attempted voluntary lid closure is called Bell’s phenomenon, as named by Charles Bell. This is a common clinical finding in 75% of normal individuals.

Roy C. Bell, 84, a retired dentist who practiced in Rockville and Washington from 1983 to 2003, died July 1 at a hospital in Williamsburg of sepsis and pneumonia after gall bladder surgery.