Sidney Poitier

Sidney Poitier is an extraordinary man who is an inspiration for many people. He went through struggles in his life some because of racial discrimination. He is an amazing actor who worked extremely hard to get to where he is today.

Sidney was born on February 20,1927, there are different accounts of where exactly he was born Sidney said he was born in Miami Florida. He grew up in the Bahamas on a small island named Cat Island. His father was a hard working farmer who loved his family. When they had started to lose money Sidney's father moved them to the capital to try and start over when Sidney was 11 years old. At the age of 15 Sidney was sent to live with his brother in Miami. A year later at the age of 16 he joined the army.

After getting out of the army he moved to New York City to become an actor. Since he was having trouble finding work Sidney was thrown out of where he was living because of over due rent. When he finally found work and a place to live he auditioned for The American Negro Theater. He was rejected from the theater because he could not read and had a thick accent, but that did not bring him down it just made him more determined to succeed. While at work Sidney would listen to the radio and say the words along with the person on the radio pronouncing each word and trying to over come his accent. He also practiced reading on his spare time. After all his hard work and determination he auditioned for The American Negro Theater again and he was accepted.

Sidney made his Broadway debut in 1946 in Lysistrata. He remained in plays until 1950 and then moved into movies. The first movie he was known for was No Way Out. On April 29th,1950 Sidney married Juanita Hardy. Sidney and Juanita had four children together. Being a family man Sidney made standards for the roles he would play. When he was offered the role of Porgy in the movie Porgy and Bess he turned it down. Sam Goldwyn the producer of the movie told Sidney to think about it, but Sidney refused to.

When Sidney came across a role he wanted to play in the film The Defiant Ones he was unable to. The producer of the film told him that Sam Goldwyn was the reason he could have the part. When Sidney spoke with Sam he said that if Sidney didn't take the role of Porgy he would never play in another movie again. So Sidney agreed because he really wanted to do he didn't want to end his career. After completing Porgy and Bess he was able to do The Defiant Ones. He was later nominated for an Academy Award for best actor for his role in The Defiant Ones, he did not win but he was still honored to be nominated.

Sidney was nominated again for 1963's Lilies of the Field, and he won. He became the first black man to win an Academy Award. Two years after winning the award Sidney and his wife of 15 years divorced. Sidney continued to work supporting his four children. Sidney started directing and came out with his first movie in 1972 Buck and the Preacher. He continued to direct and star in many films after that. In 1976 he remarried Joanna Shimkus and they had two children together.

Sidney is an inspiration to many people. He gives people hope, the kind of hope that says anything is possible, and no matter how impossible it may seem it can happen. Sidney is honored today for his determination and will be remembered long into the future as a great man.