Contrary to myth, Sidney Poitier was not the first black actor to play strong, compelling characters on screen. Paul Robeson in the 1930s; Ernest Anderson, Canada Lee, James Edwards and Juano Hernandez in the 1940s all had memorable roles in major integrated Hollywood productions, but Poitier was the first to play such roles consistently over a long period of time, eventually attaining the level of superstar status few actors of any race have ever enjoyed.

Born February 20, 1927 in Miami, Florida to Bahamian parents on a visit to the U.S., Poitier was raised on Cat Island in the Bahamas, but sent to Miami at 15 to live with an older brother. At 17, he moved to New York City where he worked as a dishwasher until joining the U.S. Army. After his discharge, he again found work as a dishwasher until s successful audition earned him a spot with the American Negro Theater. Audiences, however, rejected his strong Bahamian accent.

After working with a voice coach for six months, Poitier returned to the American Negro Theater and was given a lead in the 1946 Broadway production of Lysistrata for which he received good notices. It was quickly followed by a starring role in 1947’s Anna Lucasta.

He made his film debut in an un-credited role in 1947’s Sepia Cinderalla, a film made exclusively for black audiences. In 1949, while still in demand on stage, he was given the opportunity to play a major role in Daryl F. Zanuck’s forthcoming No Way Out and went to Hollywood to make the film.

Poitier’s portrayal of the black doctor who treats a bigoted white patient (Richard Widmark) in the film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz made audiences sit up and take notice of the young actor.

Click here to continue reading this article

Born April 1, 1932 in El Paso, Texas, Mary Frances Reynolds, better known as Debbie, has been a vivacious star for so long it’s impossible for anyone under 70 to recall a time when she wasn’t around.

She made her screen debut as a teenager in an un-credited role in 1948’s June Bride, but by the time of her second film, 1950’s The Daughter of Rosie O’Grady, she was prominently cast as star June Haver’s sister. She sparkled in her third, 1950’s Three Little Words as boop-boop-a-doop girl Helen Kane, even though she was dubbed by Kane herself singing her signature song, “I Wanna Be Loved by You”. The film’s star was Fred Astaire.

Two years later she was not only in a film with Astaire’s MGM dancing rival, Gene Kelly, she was his leading lady. The film was, of course, Singin’ in the Rain. A modest hit at the time, the film became revered as a classic with repeated TV showings in the 1960s and a theatrical re-release in the 1970s. It is now considered the greatest original screen musical of all time by most contemporary critics.

Reynolds’ first dramatic role was in the hit 1954 comedy-drama, Susan Slept Here, opposite Dick Powell. In 1955 she married crooner Eddie Fisher and the couple became the most photographed, written about “happy” couple of the day. That same year she joined the Thalians, a charitable organization devoted to children and adults with mental health issues, an organization with which she is still involved.

A straight dramatic role in 1956’s The Catered Affair brought her the Best Supporting Actress award of the National Board of Review.

Click here to continue reading this article