
Sidney Poitier was born on February 20, 1927 on the high seas en route to Miami, Florida, USA. He is a famous American actor, film director and activist.
Biography and Career :
At the age of 13, Sidney Poitier left school to join the American Army. After this, he became interested in theatre so he joined the American Theatre of black people.
He made his debut on Broadway in 1946 with the play "Lysistrata", the actors to play being only black ones. Later on, he made his debut in film. At first he was distributed in a documentary of the American Army. In 1950 Sidney Poitier showed up in Hollywood. He became the first famous black star in America.
In 1958 he was nominated to Oscar with "The Rebels". "Guess Who's Coming to Diner" was another great success. In 1964, he beca
me the first Afro-American to win the Prize of the American Academy of Film for The Best Male Actor in "The Field With Lillies".
Another important prize for him was given by the Institute of American Film for his entire career, being the first black director and actor to be honored that way.
Trivia :
- He had a relationship with Diahann Carroll.
- He was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special at Bafta Awards for "Mandela And De Klerk" (1997).
- He was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries at Screen Actors Guild Awards for "Mandela And De Klerk" (1998).
- He was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV at Golden Globe Awards for "Separate But Equal" (1992).
Quotes :
- "A good deed here, a good deed there, a good thought here, a good comment there, all added up to my career in one way or another."
- "As a man, I've been representative of the values I hold dear. And the values I hold dear are carryovers from the lives of my parents."
- "I come from a great family. I've seen family life and I know how wonderful, how nurturing, and how wonderful it can be."
- "I decided in my life that I would do nothing that did not reflect positively on my father's life."
Filmography :
- From Whence Cometh My Help (1949) (documentary)
- No Way Out (1950)
- Cry, The Beloved Country (1951)
- Red Ball Express (1952)
- Go, Man, Go! (1954)
- Blackboard Jungle (1955)
- Good-bye, My Lady (1956)
- Edge of the City (1957)
- Something of Value (1957)
- Band of Angels (1957)
- Virgin Island (1958)
- The Mark of the Hawk (1958)
- The Defiant Ones (1958)
- Porgy and Bess (1959)
- All the Young Men (1960)
- A Raisin in the Sun (1961)
- Paris Blues (1961)
- Pressure Point (1962)
- The Long Ships (1963)
- Lilies of the Field (1963)
- The Bedford Incident (1965)
- The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
- A Patch of Blue (1965)
- The Slender Thread (1965)
- Duel at Diablo (1966)
- To Sir, with Love (1967)
- In the Heat of the Night (1967)
- Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
- For Love of Ivy (1968)
- The Lost Man (1969)
- King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis (1970) (documentary)
- They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! (1970)
- Brother John (1971)
- The Organization (1971)
- Buck and the Preacher (1972)
- A Warm December (1973)
- Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
- The Wilby Conspiracy (1975)
- Let's Do it Again (1975)
- A Piece of the Action (1977)
- Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist (1979) (short subject) (narrator)
- Shoot to Kill (1988)
- Little Nikita (1988)
- Sneakers (1992)
- A Century of Cinema (1994) (documentary)
- Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick (1996) (documentary)
- The Jackal (1997)
- The simple life of Noah Dearborn (1999)
- Ralph Bunche: An American Odyssey (2001) (documentary) (narrator)
- Tell Them Who You Are (2004) (documentary).
Sidney Poitier Image : feri.org
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