Sidney Poitier Biography

Actor, director. Born February 20, 1927, in Miami, Florida. Born prematurely on the high seas en route to Miami, Poitier grew up in The Bahamas. His youth was filled with delinquency, and his parents eventually sent him to live with his brother in Florida in 1941. Poitier served a short stint in the United States Army before moving to New York to pursue an acting career.

A student at the American Negro Theater in New York City, Poitier appeared on stage and in films before making his Hollywood debut in 1950. Cast mainly in supporting roles, he won an Oscar for Lilies of the Field (1963). The win marked the first Oscar awarded to a black actor and made Poitier cinema's first African American superstar, one who consciously defied racial stereotyping. Handsome and unassuming, he brought dignity to the portrayal of noble and intelligent characters, including Philadelphia detective Virgil Tibbs in In the Heat of the Night (1967). Other notable films include The Defiant Ones and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967).

During the 1970s he also began to direct, producing a number of lowbrow comedies such as the successful Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder vehicle Stir Crazy (1980) and Ghost Dad (1990). He returned to acting after a 10-year absence, appearing in Shoot to Kill (1988), Little Nikita (1988), Sneakers (1992), and One Man, One Vote (1997). In 2001, he received a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for his autobiographical book The Measure of a Man. In 2002, he received and an honorary Oscar.

Poitier was married to Juanita Hardy from 1950 until 1965; the couple has four children. He is currently married to Canadian-born actress Joanna Shimkus; they have two children. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the British Empire in 1974, which entitles him to use the title "Sir," though he chooses not to do so. He has also served as non-resident Bahamian ambassador to Japan and to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

© 2009 A&E Television Networks. All rights reserved.