Denzel Washington, Jennifer Hudson, Halle Berry – just a few of the many African-Americans to receive Academy Awards after a long era where white actors and actresses dominated the awards. But before Washington’s performance in “Training Day” or Berry in “Monster’s Ball,” there was Sidney Poitier.
On this day, April 13th, in 1964, the prominent Sidney Poitier wins an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the movie “Lilies of the Field.” Poitier pioneered the way for African-American actors to move away from the stereotypical dimwitted character assigned to them by Hollywood producers. He was one of the few African-American artists who refused to be type casted.
In “Lilies of the Field,” Poitier stars as a traveling worker who helps German nuns build a chapel in the lilies of the field. His acting is outstanding and he marks history as the second African-American to win an Oscar (Hattie McDaniel was the first in 1939 for Best Actress). However, he was the first African-American to partake in an interracial on-screen kiss in the movie “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” and one of the few African-American males to be recognized by Hollywood for roles not associated with dancing or singing.