The iconic actor Sidney Poitier has died. Variety reports:
Sidney Poitier, whose dignity and self-assertion ushered in a new era in the depiction of African-Americans in Hollywood films as the civil rights movement was remaking America, has died, a spokesperson for the Bahamian Prime Minister confirmed to Variety. He was 94. Poitier was the oldest living winner of the best actor Oscar — just one distinction in a career full of distinctions.
“Our whole Bahamas grieves and extends our deepest condolences to his family. But even as we mourn, we celebrate the life of a great Bahamian, a cultural icon, an actor and film director, an entrepreneur, civil and human rights activist and, latterly, a diplomat,†said Phillip Davis, Prime Minister of the Bahamas in a statement. “We admire the man not just because of his colossal achievements, but also because of who he was. His strength of character, his willingness to stand up and be counted, and the way he plotted and navigated his life’s journey.â€
Encomia are pouring out from multiple sources:
Los Angeles Times
New York Times
Wall Street Journal
His life was one of tremendous accomplishments and influence. Without Sidney Poitier there would have been no Denzel Washington, no Morgan Freeman, no Chadwick Boseman. He did that. It’s hard to imagine what American cinema would be like today without him. I believe it was more than a case of being in the right place at the right time. He was a man of unique gifts.
I think the first movie I ever saw him in was Something of Value in 1957 but the first movie in which I really noticed him was Lilies of the Field. I believe that’s a movie people will still be watching in a century.
“In the heat of the Night”
As Virgil Tibbs he radiated intensity.
Funny thing, for a long time I thought Rod Steiger WAS Carroll O’Connor.
I confused Steiger and O’Connor too.
I thought this about the slap in Heat of the Night was interesting as I was unaware of it.
“In the movie’s most startling sequence, the prominent owner of a cotton plantation slaps Tibbs for not knowing his place, and Tibbs slaps him back reflexively. Mr. Poitier wrote in his memoir “The Measure of a Man†(2000) that it was his idea for Tibbs to return the slap.
“In the original script, I looked at him with great disdain and, wrapped in my strong ideals, walked out,†he wrote. “That could have happened with another actor playing the part, but it couldn’t happen with me.â€
He insisted on a change to the script because of a searing experience as a teenager in Florida, when police stopped him for walking in a White neighborhood.
“They really had their fun with me,†he recalled in the book. “They put a pistol right to my forehead. … And for 10 minutes, they just joked about whether to shoot me in the right eye or left eye.â€
Steve