Sidney Poitier, the first black ‘dandy’ in Hollywood, left after his death today at the age of 94 a trace of rectitude, elegance and know-how that no other actor has been able to impersonate like him in the more than fifty years of career that he leaves behind. Their backs.
But above all, and almost beyond his stamp as the first black actor to win an Oscar (“Lilies of the Valley”, 1964), Poitier was the symbol of Hollywood during the civil rights movement, a period in which he became the biggest star in the American film industry.
The death of Poitier has been confirmed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Bahamas in a statement in which he does not specify the cause of death of the legendary actor, born in Miami in 1927 and of natural parents from the island of Cat.
Break down social barriers between African Americans and whites
The American interpreter, director, activist and diplomat of Bahamian origin was a true Hollywood idol, with fifty films behind him, including “Rebellion in the Classrooms”, “In the Heat of the Night” and “Guess who’s coming to dinner tonight “, released between June and December 1967, just as the streets burned, hits that cemented their iconic status in American society.
Those interpretations, which to a greater or lesser extent spoke of racism in the United States, helped to break down the social barriers between African Americans and whites and made him the first big black star in the industry.
His films showed the American division, but also the desire and desire to unite to leave the confrontation behind, a message that was burned into the actor’s impassive face, an image of resistance and a banner of dignity in a time where the The cinema was crying out for the figure of a hero to exemplify this struggle for equality.
And Poitier not only accepted that role, he stirred consciences.
“The blacks that appeared in the movies when I started were always negative stereotypes: clowns, butlers dragged, misfits … I chose not to be part of those topics. I want my children to be reflected in the cinema,” explained the interpreter in 1967.
“The black people who appeared in the movies when I was starting out were always negative stereotypes”
That Poitier was born in the United States was fortuitous. His parents, citizens of the Bahamas and owners of a tomato farm, traveled to Miami to sell the harvest when the woman went into labor prematurely.
Poitier was born on February 20, 1927, but grew up with his six siblings on Cat Island, the humble town in the Bahamas where he spent his first ten years of life. From there he moved to Nassau and shortly after he went to Florida to live with one of his older brothers.
His last role was in the 2001 telefilm “The Last Brickmaker in America,” a year before the Hollyood Academy awarded him the Honorary Oscar from Denzel Washington, his great successor in the industry.
Poitier took the stage and, after putting his hand to his heart, said: “I accept this award in memory of all the African-American actors who fought before me in the difficult years”, with the same pose of dignity and composure with which his most remembered characters faced ignorance and hatred.
His last public appearance was at the 86th edition of the Oscars, in 2014, where he presented an award with Angelina Jolie; in 2016 he was awarded an honorary Bafta.
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
