Remembering the great Sidney Poitier

(News4usonline) – When you think of Sidney Poitier, the words dignified, class, elegance, and quiet strength come to mind. These are the qualities that made more Poitier than just a great actor.

Poitier became a film icon not just because of his great humanity traits, but also because he was daring and bold enough to tackle roles thought to be taboo for a Black thespian.

I mean, how dare he take on the role of Noah Cullen in the 1958 drama “The Defiant Ones,” in which he was nominated for an Academy Award as he plays an escaped prisoner opposite of Tony Curtis. In any role he played, Poitier brought it to be bigger than life.

He embodied the characters he portrayed on the big screen as well on television with unquestionable dignity and fluidity, making the roles wider in depth and scope. We saw a little bit of us in what Poitier was able to convey through his distinguished acting chops.

And from the beginning of his decades long career, the roles Poitier took on seem to be breakthrough ones when it came down to breaking racial and societal barriers. In 1967, Poitier seemed to hit Hollywood jackpot with racially-polarized films “In the Heat of the Night” and “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” These two movies will live in Hollywood lore forever.

Poitier smashed the ultimate wall in Hollywood when he played the Black boyfriend to Katherine Houghton’s white character in “Guess Who’s coming to Dinner?” The interracial romance changed the game in Hollywood as the film dealt with the white/Black relationship taboo head on.

But that was not the entire scope of Poitier’s work. Other films such as the “Porgy and Bess,” A Raisin in the Sun,” “Blackboard Jungle,” and “To Sir, With Love” are just memorable. Poitier made history when he became the first Black man to win an Academy Award for his portrayal of Homer Smith in the 1963 released film “Lilies of the Field.”

He also worked on several films with Bill Cosby, including “Uptown Saturday Night,” Let’s Do It Again,” and “A Piece of the Action.”