One of my favorite actors ever, Sir Sidney Poitier, a pioneer black actor who became famous starting in the 1950s as one of the first, if not THE first, black actor to play leading roles in Hollywood, has died. He had a long life, passing away at the age of 94. He died at his home in the Bahamas, where he grew up. Poitier was born in Miami, Florida, in 1927.
Poitier was known as being the first black actor to win the Oscar for best actor for his performance in 1964's Lillies of the Field. Perhaps my favorite of his films was The Defiant Ones, co-starring with Tony Curtis. I don't think he ever gave a bad performance. At least as actor; he discovered early on he couldn't sing his way out of a paper bag.
One thing I didn't know about him is while I knew he was married twice, and for 45 years to Joanna Shimkus with six daughters from both marriages (and a slew of descendants), I didn't know he had a nine-year affair with the late Diahann Carroll. This might be because I was a child when they were involved. This affair went on during his peak career years.
Sidney Poitier was born on 20 February 1927 in Miami, Florida.
His parents were Bahamian farmers who had travelled to the US to sell tomatoes. His premature birth meant he gained US citizenship as well as Bahamian.
Relatives believed his father's family originated in Haiti and that his ancestors were runaway slaves.
He was brought up on Cat Island in the Bahamas before the family moved to the capital, Nassau.
Aged 15 he went to live with his brother in Miami before moving to New York, where he worked as a dishwasher.
It was in the US that he experienced racism for the first time.
"I lived in a country where I couldn't get a job, except those put aside for my colour or my caste."
In his later years, he was ambassador to Japan and then to the Bahamas (for UNESCO).
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