Facing Adversity with Dignity: The Sidney Poitier Story

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This is Lisa Beebe and this is our American stories. The show were Americans the store and the American people up next to story about submit perhaps the most important actor of the 20th century and certainly actor who taught us all how to live and how to conduct ourselves to be 28 man after icon was the first full biography of Fortier written by a professor of history at the University of Memphis which is just an hour north of where we broadcast in Oxford, Mississippi to Greg Hagler a short drive north to get the story. Let's take a listen, Prof. of history at the University of Memphis and the first book I wrote was the project manager icon 2004.

The book was originally my PhD dissertation student at University city was born on Is one of the outer islands of the Bahamas. It was a primarily rural agricultural island on on the cusp of the box and it was a fairly isolated place in the 1930s depression. It was placed in slide, barter economy rather than a cash economy showed a lot of freedom for the young child likes Cindy was the youngest of seven children, five brothers and two sisters. The oldest brother Cyril was about 15 years old and having a big family like partiers was more the rule than the exception. Because the farming families. For the most part the more work so they were instilled with the values of hard work and personal discipline. From the earliest beginnings countdown was an idol. It was a pipe. He was there when he was still young boy and he does remember being able to roam freely play swam for young children, Alan was a gigantic playground after chores. Cindy often roam the island unsupervised wandering down narrow flower line pass building mud huts collecting turtle eggs, swimming in the Atlantic and climbing somebody or trees to shakedown the plump grey-brown fruit and eaten to a stomachache fish added peppers lives in student and it can over a fire on the beach's imagination drifted out to see to the wall beyond Stand on the peers. He recalled watch the ships until they disappear, and I just stare that line and dream was a real dreamer conjure up the kind of worlds that were on the other side.

What I doing so many hours I stared he would later credit that is kind of giving him the sum of the tools of an actor.

The physical expressiveness, the ability to sort of experiment physically give us a sense of his body as he put it, that would benefit them in his professional career, but at the same time there was crushing poverty and so his family moved to the capital city of Nassau and it was there that party really started to have to endure more struggles he was going into his teenage years in an urban environment sometimes petty crime and ran into trouble sometimes with that with the colonial authorities still a British colony at the time and this was really sort of rubbed his father the wrong way as his father Reginald Poirier was very much a disciplinarian man who had survived based on the basis of his hard-working tomato farmer back at Kent Island was used to backbreaking labor and his father really emphasized lessons of personal virtue of hard work taking responsibility for yourself and the famous lesson that he cast down to his son was the measure of a man is how he provides for his family and that was the lesson kept coming back to Sydney grew into adult is reflected on his own life was the legacy so his mother Evelyn was the one who basically taught him more.

The lessons of how to be a good human how to live amongst others on how to be a participating member in society and he saw that first hand, and some of the job that she had to take on when they moved to Nassau when Reginald had become too old and too frail to sickly to works of successfully and she took all the job she could provide for the family. She took it on the pound, compounding rock basically turn turning rocket. The powder and she was the one who was who especially insisted on the personal codes of respect for others and looking out for your family should force that wanted daily level in his life.

These were real values. The values as parents values that would stick with him forever.

Toward the end of his life he was celebrated at the Kennedy Center honors and when everyone in this massive theater was standing and plotting and cheering him. He stood up and he looked up into the skies and you and you could see him mouth. My mother, my phone, so is almost by accident of history that city party had American citizenship.

He was born in Miami only because his parents had sailed to Miami to sell their tomato crop and Sydney was not due to be born still for quite some time while they were in my Miami. His mother Evelyn gave birth to them prematurely and it appeared that he was in survived to the point where his father even went out and bought a tiny coffin to bury him, and that was no bigger than a shoebox, but his mother fiercely insisted that Cindy would survive that he would live and she even went to the point of visiting a soothsayer and fortuneteller assured her that he would live. Go on to to do great things, that he would even walk with kings and that message she took it a sort of element of faith. She went back to her husband and son. You know the sales and delivery nurse in the health and your listing to Erin Suzanne tell the story of Sidney Pontiac and what a story indeed grows up in this idyllic real remote part of the Bahamas call Island and was able to roam free part of her rural family background and every other family was like it lots of kids because they were labor in all that time to roam free in imagining dream and play many goes to Nassau, the bigger city and things start to turn south. He starts to get into trouble for it. We learn a lot about his mother and his father. We already start to understand more about this remarkable actor and his life's work.

My goodness watches movies now during what we just heard no understand so much more that Cindy Poitier's life when we come back more of the life story of Sidney Poitier here on our American story. We have been here, the host of our American stories every day on the show were bringing inspiring stories from across this great country, very smart, big cities and small towns, but we truly can't do the show without our stories are free to listen to, but they're not free to me you love our American stories.com and click the donate button give a little give a lot go to our American stories.com Tori MG podcasts we have such a special percent brought to you by near attack ODT radios find Windows hanging down near attack ODT were not to plant 75 mg can help migraine sufferers still such an exciting event like window tango. I took minor tech PT. I was amazing to our conversation with some of our closest friend is brought to you by near attack ODT were meant to plant 75 mg life with migraine attacks can mean missing out on big moments with friends and family near attack ODT were not to plant 75 mg is the only medication that is proven to treat a migraine attack and prevent episodic migraines else sell like window tango town have to be next to millions will make Medicare coverage decisions for next year and United healthcare can help you feel confident about your choices for those eligible Medicare annual enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7. If you're working past age 65. You might be able to delay Medicare enrollment. Depending on your employer coverage. It can seem confusing, but it doesn't have to be UHC Medicare health plan's.com to learn more United healthcare helping people live healthier lives me know me from the recap on LA TV podcasts life as a come at you every Tuesday and Thursday will be talking real and apologetic about all things like that and culture and everything in between.

From someone who's never quite listen to life as a gringo on the radio at the gate podcasts brought to you by State Farm like a good neighbor, State Farm is there and we continue here with our American stories and with Erin Suzanne and is the author of Sidney Poitier man after I come.

Let's return to arm more of the store by this accident. He was born in Miami that would end up having a transformative effect on his life because when Poitier made the choices that he made that sort of get them in trouble in the way it happened. Many black teenagers living in Nassau around that time it started a family drama because when 15 years old. He was shipped off back to Miami to live with her brother Cyril who was already living there and said you had American citizenship. So it's a paved path for him to come to the United States in the next chapter in the Bahamas majority population is black and so there is works" of segregation the same codes of direct racial exportation that Cindy was very shocked to find when he came to Miami was a part of the Jim Crow South and he found himself just absolutely flummoxed by not only legal segregation but also the informal codes that govern black life in the South. So one of the jobs that he picked up my move to Miami was working as a delivery boy and the first time that he didn't deliver in a white neighborhood. He knocked on the front door and go person answer the door screamed at him and told him the back door and he had no idea that was the racial code of the title by persons in front door of a white person's home. So actually just left the delivery of some time in Miami said he knew that he wanted racial code. Not for him. Need to get really even really know how to do it. At first he tried to hop on a train, assuming that would take him to the north. The living lives of the mythical idea of monitoring to the north and often end up in the middle of nowhere really ended up taking a job at a resort outside of Atlanta, Georgia, where he worked for summer doing menial labor and I gave him enough money experience to figure out how to buy a train ticket to go anybody to continue. So he shows up in your keys so you can't really and is searching for is where he is in his late teens doesn't know any anyone in the city. While there are many West Indian immigrants in Harlem at that time Bahamian community was quite smaller so I didn't have any natural context that sounds so showed up. He was able to rent a room with some of his scratchings but was unable to sustain it. There are nights when he slept in and pay toilets because that was all he could afford 20 slept on rooftops because he didn't have anyone close because it is a kid growing up in the winter it was particularly tough jobs primary job that he often didn't work as a dishwasher and restaurant service that he found work was often valued part of the New York Amsterdam news black newspaper in New York City and look at the help wanted section and one day he came across this ad that said American university dishwasher and always other jobs so they came to the American Negro fear which was housed 135th St. library and the person answer the door was Frederick Frederick O'Neill will like it was one of the founders of the American theater is actually intimidating figure, and through an audition and realize that he was a guy who had basically no experience as an actor, singsong West Indian accent and members. Anyway, we'll take the mountains.

I want to go get a job as a dishwasher because it worked as a dishwasher. So how could this guy say this to me that he was this quixotic idea for him at the time, but he also had that personal discipline where he figured out he went back he did some auditions they needed more than men because there are more women in the troop men so stick around. He worked as like doing odd jobs for the theater so that they would continue to let them take the classes and become part of the organization and he trained himself to speak in a more American way. He would imitate the voices on the radio back to his small room he would hear the voice on the radio said he also had the restaurant is dishwasher and he was trying to learn how to read.

He was so that by the time that he was arriving in Harlem in the 1940s work that later an elderly Jewish man that would later sort of credit is having is incredibly important influence on his life took a shine to them and agreed to try to help him learn to reach their shifts sit down together and the men would help them learn to become a voracious reader information constantly reading constantly entertained by ideas of someone who was only half literate really into his teenage years, so this is you is the story of one man's benevolence having a lasting effect on someone who would want national and international. After this long partnership with the American Negro theater.

We basically learned how to be an actor got his first break. He was cast in the castle which was a play that American Negro theater had adapted and have a minor hit play on Broadway story companies that went around the country to join these touring companies that was out of his baptism, and so he was acting alongside people like Ozzie Davidson, Ruby Dee will become lifelong friends and got all sorts of experiences and got to see the United States as they traveled around and was able to earn some money but into the late 1940s parties career was very much piecemeal state opportunity here a bit part in a play here. American Negro theater will start to fall apart. By the end of the 1940s because a lot of its actors were using it as a launching pad to get Broadway roles American Negro theater had imagine itself as a independent black theater that was there for the constant tension between uptown and downtown. The beginning of the red scare and a lot people and parties bill you were part of that leftist world Harlem was in many ways the center of radical political activity in the early years of an established various organizations, cultural organizations that were sponsored by the Communist Party somebody I can work through this organization called the committee for the Negro and supplanted the American Negro theater is a primary outlet black talent, but it was an organization becomes part of the plot.

It was negotiating just as his Hollywood career was listening to author Erin Susie and tell the story of city pointing is a professor of history at the University of Memphis, which again is just an hour north of our home studios in Oxford, Mississippi, by the way, we asked him about whether party knew whether he was working for a front group of the Communist Party and it was a no and we just wanted to clear that up not trying to imply that what he knew he was working for. By the way, what a life.

What a piece of storytelling experiences the heart of segregation in Miami in the 1940s and he couldn't believe that it shocked him escape to New York to live well wherever he could. Sleeping on rooftops toilet and then one man saves his life really that's Frederick O'Neill doesn't give a gold star for his crummy on fish tells him he's no good. Thanks to Cindy's father and his mother has both the discipline resilience and perseverance become the actor that rejection important when we come back more of the life story is here on our Americans. Tory we have such a special set brought to you by near attack ODT and Windows came down near attack ODT were not 75 mg can help migraine sufferers still set an exciting event window tango.

I took minor attack ODT. I was present amazing to our conversation with some of our closest & was brought to you by near attack ODT were magic pants 75 mg life with migraine attacks can mean missing out on big moments with friends and family near attack ODT were magic pants 75 mg is the only medication that is proven to treat a migraine attack and prevent episodic migraines else cell like window tango down have to be next to millions will make Medicare coverage decisions for next year. Healthcare can help you feel confident about your choices for those eligible Medicare annual enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7.

If you're working past age 65. You might be able to delay Medicare enrollment. Depending on your employer coverage. It can seem confusing, but it doesn't have to be UHC Medicare health.com to learn more United healthcare helping people live healthier lives.

You may know me from the recap on LA TV life as a come at you every Tuesday and Thursday will be talking real and apologetic about all things like that and culture and everything in between.

From someone who's never quite listen to life as a gringo on the radio at webby podcasts brought to you by State Farm like a good neighbor farm is there, and we continue with our American stories and the story Cindy were talking with Susie and Sydney 28 man I can return to Erin and more of the life story of city policy is first break in Hollywood in 1949. We cannot 1950, no way no way out was at the very end of the cycle of movies and Hollywood that were known as message will movies that were designed to combat racial prejudice gentlemen's agreement is probably the most famous and no way out was a film in which party a plate.

Dr. Young, Dr. who had treated a patient who died and his brother was vengeful and racist out to get the doctor and put into this film parties character admits to committing a motor just be an investigation and an autopsy into the body, which will ultimately use this source makes this incredible sacrifice is doctrinally out sets the template for parties entire career. Basically his image, and it's in many ways presenting you black image on screen that were watching been sort of sexual threats going back to the birth of a nation party was not that of all he plays very mannered middle-class man (there were characters who were song and dance man like Bill Robinson is a dramatic characters which are comic like step infection and parties character was not that again he was character dignity is not someone who is threatening. He wasn't violent sacrificial so this film and the message will recycle establish a template where an assumption as the sort of black man sacrifices on behalf of society and often helps out his wife became, like liberals fantasy of what a black person should be like in white liberals construction like this and how can we not integrated society. How can we not become a more racially simple no way out what EA does find film roles here and there, but he still struggling to squeak out an existence of Hollywood, even to the point where he opens a restaurant in Harlem called ribs in the rough ribs restaurant simply as a way as a backup plan in case but then gets his big break with the 1955 film blackboard, which is in the midst of the sort of youth oriented films showing appealing rebels of Marlon Brando in the wild one. James Dean rebel without a cause. Parties character in blackboard jungle Gregory Miller was a teenager in a school in New York is a bunch of her belly as boys who are in this classroom and parties character is electric in the sense that he's just really cool he is. He exudes this list style and at first he's very resistant to the new white teacher played by Glenn Ford. Teacher recognizes and parties character is incredible ability to be a leader.

This way the whole classroom basically quotes into his side will you write as smart as in every class needs a leader what you cooperate about alignment by the end of the film on the side of the teacher against the more villainous white students who are against the teacher and want a knife so he was a character who ends up embodying parties typical on-screen persona black man who helps the white man to negotiate through this difficult arc person's career, but at the same time he bring such electricity into the ROI bring such charisma into the character of Gregory Miller that it becomes a role in advancing into the next level of his career really makes anybody into a star to give top billing on the market is the divine will, comes out 1958*opposite Tony Curtis. They play prisoners, one white, one black, who are chained to each other and they are able to escape from prison truck and it's the story of their relationship. They hate each other first race divides them try to scratch out some type of freedom but are chained to an characters and Oscar nominations for the role in this film and again just like a blackboard jungle will resolve with with his character. This note: that brings a lot of subtlety to the role of humanity to a character could easily become one-dimensional in such a powerful and so appealing at the same time also plays into the pate pattern of sacrifice at the end of the film.

The chain comes off the two are still running away together on a train the very end of the film hop onto the train. This freedom until he curses character just can't make it, we can plot it jumps off the train stays with his friends and cradles about the very little traffic story about watching Mr. first time you watch the film. He watches it downtown New York theater. Most of the patrons in the film 120 leaps off the train stays with a white person. The audience reaps cheers and applause. This is reassuring to the people here for them that were not going to disrupt them. That's actually the phone for second time in the same way it jumps up and this time so by the early 60s party is certainly emerging as a significant movie star he is. The file's Porgy and Ben's. He was on raisin in the sun, which will have along Broadway run and then was a successful film as well and she had this incredible performance is alternately younger. He really defined the role in terms of young black man is coming into his own in learning how to to provide for his family and shows that even as he is facing intensely racist society. This is all occurring in the midst of the rising civil rights of the students sit in movement of 1960 the spreads throughout the South. Freedom rides in 1961 bring integrated buses and demonstrations all throughout the deep South in 1962 James Meredith integrating University of Mississippi, which leads to try to prevent him from attending an openly federal marshals protect this early swelling momentum for the cause of American civil rights is the only black actor who is obtaining leading Hollywood films. He essentially is emerging as Hollywood's response to the civil rights he is how Hollywood deals with race more or less an icon of support you been listening to Erin, Susie, and tell the story of Sidney. No way out. This is way out in the end and Richard Widmark played the part of the antagonist. It was fascinating to listen to the account of one of America's great black novelist and writer. That's James Baldwin tell the story of seeing this movie and white theater and a black theater very different responses was remarkable about what EA was that it wasn't a song and dance man. The typical African-American song and dance man wasn't the comic buffoon, nor was he threatened he was something new and something dangerous to everybody. Something lovable everybody to when we come back more of this remarkable story of life story. Sidney Pott on our American stories Tory. We have such a special set brought to you by near attack ODT we recorded at and Windows came down near attack ODT were not 75 mg can help migraine sufferers still such an exciting event like window tango. I took minor tech PT.

I was present amazing time. Our conversation with some of our closest is brought to you by near attack ODT were magic pants 75 mg life with migraine attacks can mean missing out on big moments with friends and family near attack ODT were magic 75 mg is the only medication that is proven to treat a migraine attack and prevent episodic migraines else sell like window tango town have to be next to millions will make Medicare coverage decisions for next year and UnitedHealth care can help you feel confident about your choices for those eligible Medicare annual enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7. If you're working past age 65. You might be able to delay Medicare enrollment. Depending on your employer coverage.

It can seem confusing, but it doesn't have to be UHC Medicare health plan's.com to learn more United healthcare helping people live healthier lives.

You may know me from the recap on LA TV podcast, to every Tuesday and Thursday will be talking real and apologetic about all things like that and culture and everything in between. From someone who's never quite listen to life as a gringo on the heart rate or web you gave podcast brought to you by State Farm like a good neighbor, State Farm is there and we continue with our American stories and he's the author of city pate actor. I can't go to your local bookstore and pick us up or order it through your bookstore, go where ever you. Let's pick up now where he last left off in 1963 he makes a film called lilies of the field is a low-budget film will have two weeks to film the entire movie and basically revolves around his character Manning Homer Smith is this family handyman in the American Southwest comes across a group of nuns who basically asked him to build a chapel to find some kind of self-worth and in the story.

It's time I you you know we a and classic character any kind of connection to the black community on his own innate goodness in the chapel for these nuns out of the goodness of his heart and it is a very heartwarming story of the sweet story, but becomes something phenomenal and part of it is its political timing comes out in the fall of 1963. This is in the aftermath of the March on Washington, which was in August of that year the massive demonstrations for civil rights the country in the aftermath of violence in Birmingham is character in that film captures a certain point that's in the Oscar for best doctor he wins the Academy award spring of 1964 lilies of the field and creates new ability to create new complications because the civil rights movement continues to is something of the philosophy of black power merging by 1966 popular and emphasizes black identity and black pride and certain sense of disillusionment with the federal with white liberals with mainstream themes of civil rights continues to play some version of the same kind of character that is always played in each breaking 67 that asks would you go see this film.

Just knowing that this actor is an city party a rank as the most popular movie star in America.

Based on this metric. At the end of 1967 and the census of racial crisis bubbling in America.

Over the course of the summer and fall of 1967.3 pate movies come out in quick succession to Sir with love in the heat of the night and Gus is coming to each of these films. In this way carries on the city pate image. The city pate. I can't always put his character, seems to represent, like a ban on those wounds. It suits people's racial anxieties that black people can still be a friend can still be mannered, can still be helpful can still be nonviolent obesity party and in the night, which comes out right after to Sir with love builds on that idea within this course is famous. In the world is character is questioning this aristocratic gentleman parties questioning the man and he slapped what is character/watershed moment for many viewers of the time never been able to see this kind of like actions kind of like resentment, rage expressed on screen, but the larger pattern in the film is working with that all three of these films in the heat of the night to Sir with love and justice for all top number one box office is at the peak of his drops off a cliff course in April 1960 with the king's assessment and at the time. Many people are seeing this is sort of the end of an era writing the philosophy of nonviolence and some will run its course. This deep sense of disillusion among many black Americans in rage. Of course as well. But what happening. By the late 1960s, is that you have more more black critics shaped by black power who are increasingly and openly critical of in the most significant of these criticisms comes from a playwright Clifford Mason writing the New York Times 67 and the big headline times that there was why does white America loves to departures takedown of so many parties, films, and it includes some really harsh language against critics are wondering if city party obsolete can no longer be a viable character because he continues to present this kind of image on screen in the early 70s, overseeing a new type of black hero appear on screen and shaft and super fly in their emotional resonance with a lot of black audiences at the time, they never really seen these kinds of characters on screen and social fashion to many African American feels the sting from some point in the early 1970s for a few years basically to do so to get away from this political heat has been established is also exceptionally resourceful, very intelligent connections all through hard men in Hollywood in the 1970s and so he uses that leverage. In some ways the silly hope his career, but help the larger race on screen so doesn't comedies.

For instance on Saturday night piece of the action. Let's do it again.

That's our bill because we want to get a few of them, Jimmy Walker movies that are in the quotation tradition by crossing over sexual problem black lines is also winning white is directing these films and he's getting about people, not just in front of the screen and cameras to deploy more black people really been employed for some distance is able to tell his own story as he became kind of a veteran Hollywood mentor to actors like Denzel Washington or will Smith was wearing a lifetime achievement Oscar in the early 2000 rights a couple memoirs of his life.

So like anyone was approaching past middle age and into the years as a conference, and also because something is distanced from that. It's easier to appreciate the contributions made it difficult for many Americans to see in the early 1970 so there is this more sort of long-standing appreciation of what is good. We see no recent passing. It was the tone was naturally so, because he would been a very break and had to negotiate through these difficult times and make difficult choices that would've been a burden on anyone. Manage it with much more grace and style dignity and I think we have the right to expect so it's 2000 and, at this point is still very much an underdog candidate for the Sunday run Illinois course and his campaign managers and black candidates. Illinois political history had been able to appeal to black as and managers running this focus group in particular with this group of white women who are wealthy on the North Shore of Chicago and showing them images of the various candidates what they think about and when I show them the picture of Obama. Think about what woman says city project that moment.

Campaign manager Jim Cawley said this is a guy with actual crossover example of the ways in which the body has shaped the patterns of American life in the way that he has appeal to the best and a great job on the production by Greg.

Special thanks to Erin Suzanne for his book and his effort here telling the story sharing the story of Sidney pate his book city pate man actor. I can't buy the book and if it's not there order it from your local bookstore or wherever you find once you never seen it. See his first Oscar nomination along with the great Tony Curtis lilies of the field gets in his first Oscar in 1967.

My goodness, to Sir with love the night is coming to dinner all three films with your family had to face black power movement didn't like them chose to many white braces held outline how to live with grace and was right has appeal through his work best stories and you on our Americans knows companies want more than one site. We provide 360 support from discovery accounting solutions engineer already. Right now you're thinking the recap on LA TV podcast light as a come at you every Tuesday and Thursday will be talking real and apologetic about all things light and culture and everything in between. From someone who's never quite listen to life as a gringo on the web you gave podcast brought to you by State Farm like a good neighbor, State Farm is there some millions will make Medicare coverage decisions for next year. Healthcare can help you feel confident about your choices for those eligible Medicare annual enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7. If you're working past age 65. You might be able to delay Medicare enrollment. Depending on your employer coverage. It can seem confusing, but it doesn't have to be UHC Medicare health plan's.com to learn more United healthcare helping people live healthier lives