One of my Immortal Loves (link below), the great actor, Sidney Poitier, died yesterday at his home in Los Angeles, California; he was 94 years old.
He had many groundbreaking roles and he was in two of my favorite films, Blackboard Jungle, in 1955 with Glenn Ford and Anne Francis, then A Raisin in the Sun with Ruby Dee in 1961.
A Raisin in the Sun - 1961
movie poster
Sidney Poitier was born on February 20, 1927, in Miami, Florida. He is a Bahamian-American
actor, film director, author and diplomat. In 1964, Poitier became the
first Bahamian and first African-American to win an Academy Award for Best Actor, for his role in Lilies of the Field.
The significance of these achievements was bolstered in 1967, when he
starred in three successful films, all of which dealt with issues
involving race and race relations: To Sir, with Love; In the Heat of the Night; and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, making him the top box-office star of that year. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Poitier among the Greatest Male Stars of classic Hollywood cinema, ranking 22nd on the list of 25.
From 1997 to 2007, he served as the non-resident Bahamian ambassador to Japan. On August 12, 2009, Poitier was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor, by President Barack Obama. In 2016, he was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship for outstanding lifetime achievement in film.
In 2002, Poitier received the 2001 Honorary Academy Award for his overall contribution to American cinema. With the death of Ernest Borgnine, in 2012, he became the oldest living man to have won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Viewfinder links:
CNN ~ Sidney Poitier, Hollywood's first Black movie star, dies at 94 NBC News ~ Sidney Poitier, who broke barriers, dies at 94
YouTube link:
Styrous® ~ Friday, January 7, 2022
