In pictures: Hollywood legend Sidney Poitier

2 years ago 452

Actor Sidney Poitier stars successful "Buck and the Preacher," a movie that helium besides directed successful 1972.

AP

Updated 1635 GMT (0035 HKT) January 7, 2022

Actor Sidney Poitier stars successful "Buck and the Preacher," a movie that helium besides directed successful 1972.

AP

Sidney Poitier, whose elegant bearing and principled onscreen characters made him Hollywood's archetypal Black movie star, has died astatine the property of 94.

Poitier became the archetypal Black antheral to triumph an Academy Award erstwhile helium took location the champion histrion Oscar successful 1964.

Poitier, who won the grant for his show successful "Lilies of the Field," was 1 of the biggest box-office stars of the 1960s. He remained a Hollywood fable successful his aboriginal years.

Poitier appears with Glenn Ford successful a country from the movie "Blackboard Jungle" successful 1955. It was Poitier's breakthrough role, 5 years aft helium made his movie debut successful "No Way Out." Poitier was calved successful Miami successful 1927, but helium spent overmuch of his puerility successful the Bahamas. A dense Bahamian accent and constricted speechmaking quality erstwhile outgo him an acting occupation astatine Harlem's American Negro Theater, but helium worked connected his accent by imitating vigor announcers and helium improved his speechmaking skills by studying newspapers.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Moviepix/Getty Images

Poitier and Tony Curtis are chained unneurotic successful 1958's "The Defiant Ones." Both men were nominated for the Academy Award for champion actor. It was the archetypal clip a Black antheral had been nominated for the award.

United Artists/Moviepix/Getty Images

Poitier and his archetypal wife, Juanita, unbend astatine their location successful New York successful 1959. They had 4 daughters earlier divorcing successful 1965.

Gordon Parks/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

Poitier talks to Dorothy Dandridge successful the 1959 philharmonic "Porgy and Bess." At close is Pearl Bailey.

Mondadori Portfolio/Getty Images

Poitier, center, attends a civil-rights rally adjacent the Statue of Liberty successful 1960. Singer and histrion Harry Belafonte is connected the acold left.

Al Fenn/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

Poitier appears connected the speech amusement "Open End" with histrion Tony Franciosa, big David Susskind, vocalist and histrion Harry Belafonte and histrion Shelley Winters.

Archive Photos/Getty Images

Civil rights person Martin Luther King Jr., left, is joined by, from left, vocalist and histrion Harry Belafonte, activistic Asa Philip Randolph and Poitier circa 1960. A fewer years later, Poitier was 1 of the Hollywood celebrities who attended the 1963 March connected Washington.

Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

Poitier attends the Cannes Film Festival successful France successful 1961. He starred successful the theatrical mentation of "A Raisin successful the Sun," which won the Gary Cooper Award astatine the festival.

DALMAS/SIPA/AP

Poitier besides starred successful the signifier mentation of "A Raisin successful the Sun."

Gordon Parks/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

Poitier appears with Diahann Carroll successful a country from the 1961 movie "Paris Blues."

Pictorial Parade/Archive Photos/Getty Images

Poitier appears with Lilia Skala successful the 1963 movie "Lilies of the Field."

Courtesy Everett Collection

Poitier holds his champion histrion Oscar aft winning for "Lilies of the Field." It was the archetypal clip a Black antheral had won the grant for champion actor.

Archive Photos/Getty Images

Poitier signs his sanction and leaves his handprints astatine the celebrated Grauman's Chinese Theatre successful Hollywood.

Globe Photos/ZUMA Wire

Poitier stars successful 1967's "To Sir, with Love."

Columbia TriStar/Moviepix/Getty Images

Poitier appears successful a country from "In the Heat of the Night." The 1967 movie won the Oscar for champion representation and is besides known for 1 of Poitier's astir celebrated movie quotes: "They telephone maine Mister Tibbs!"

United Artists/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis/Getty Images

Poitier talks with Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn successful a country from different 1967 hit, "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner."

Columbia Pictures/Getty Images

Poitier appears successful "The Lost Man" with Joanna Shimkus successful 1969. The 2 joined successful 1976.

Courtesy Everett Collection

From left, actors Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Barbra Streisand and Poitier stitchery astatine their movie accumulation institution First Artists successful 1972.

Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

Poitier carries his girl Anika arsenic his wife, histrion Joanna Shimkus, wheels their younger girl Sydney astatine Heathrow Airport successful London successful 1974.

Press Association/AP

Bill Cosby talks to Poitier during a country from the movie "Uptown Saturday Night" successful 1974.

Warner Brothers/Getty Images

Poitier explains a country to histrion Richard Pryor arsenic helium directs the 1980 drama "Stir Crazy."

Michael Ochs Archives/Moviepix/Getty Images

Poitier stands adjacent President Bill Clinton and archetypal woman Hillary Clinton astatine the Kennedy Center Honors successful 1995. At near is ballet dancer Jacques d'Amboise, who besides was honored that year.

Wilfredo Lee/AP

South African President Nelson Mandela stands adjacent to Poitier astatine a quality league successful Cape Town, South Africa, successful 1996. Poitier played Mandela successful the movie "Mandela and de Klerk."

Sasa Kralj/AP

Poitier chats with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg earlier the premiere of the movie "Mandela and de Klerk" successful 1997.

STR New/Reuters

Poitier plays astir with boxing fable Muhammad Ali astatine an ESPY Awards rehearsal successful 1997. Poitier would contiguous Ali with the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage.

Peter Morgan/Reuters

Poitier is joined by his wife, Joanna, and respective of his daughters astatine the Screen Actors Guild Awards successful 2000.

Ron Galella Collection/Getty Images

Poitier is presented with a Hall of Fame tribute astatine the NAACP Image Awards successful 2001.

Lucy Nicholson/AFP/Getty Images

Poitier laughs with histrion Denzel Washington astatine an NBA playoff crippled successful Los Angeles successful 2002.

Kevin Reece/WireImage/Getty Images

Poitier and Diahann Carroll contiguous an grant astatine the NAACP Image Awards successful 2005.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Poitier talks to children successful Porto Novo, Benin, during a measles vaccination run organized by the Red Cross successful 2005.

Erick-Christian Ahounou/AFP/Getty Images

President Barack Obama talks with Poitier aft presenting him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom successful 2009. "It's been said that Sidney Poitier does not marque movies, helium makes milestones — milestones of creator excellence; milestones of America's progress," Obama said during the ceremony. "On surface and down the camera, successful films specified arsenic 'The Defiant Ones,' 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner,' 'Uptown Saturday Night,' 'Lilies of the Field' — for which helium became the archetypal African American to triumph an Academy Award for champion histrion — Poitier not lone entertained, but enlightened, shifting attitudes, broadening hearts, revealing the powerfulness of the metallic surface to bring america person together."

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Poitier attends a tribute to histrion Shirley MacLaine successful 2012.

Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Poitier and histrion Angelina Jolie contiguous an Academy Award unneurotic successful 2014.

Adam Taylor/Walt Disney Television/Getty Images

Poitier's handprints are seen astatine the TCL Chinese Theatre successful Hollywood successful 2020.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Read Entire Article