Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier has used his outstanding acting abilities to give vigorous voice to the struggle against racial discrimination. Born in the Bahamas in 1927, Poitier moved to the United States as a teenager. To be able to pay for his acting lessons, Poitier took a job as a janitor for the American Negro Theatre. His stage work led to a role in the 1949 film No Way Out, where he played the role of a black doctor treating a white bigot. Poitier's roles were as meaningful as his skill. 1958's The Defiant Ones portrayed a white and a black prisoner shackled together that must cooperate to survive, and 1963's Lilies of the Field earned him the first Academy Award for Best Actor ever awarded to a black man. His lead in the Broadway production of Lorraine Hansbury's play, A Raisin in the Sun, was a watershed in the history of American theatre. As the center of the films such as To Sir, with Love, In the Heat of the Night, and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Poitier was creating a new foundation for African-Americans to be portrayed as leaders and stars for all audiences. For his work and accomplishments, Sidney Poitier was Knighted in 1974. Today, Poitier is still one of America's most prominent actors and directors, and continues to be a leading voice for equality and opportunity.
