- Sidney Poitier, known for classics like "A Raisin in the Sun" and "In the Heat of the Night," was the first Black man to win an Academy Award for best actor.
- After a delinquency-filled youth and a short stint in the U.S. Army, Sidney Poitier moved to New York to pursue an acting career.
- In 1958, Sidney starred with Tony Curtis in 'The Defiant Ones,' which received nine Academy Award nominations, including 'Best Actor' nomination for Poitier.
- Many in the entertainment industry also paid tribute to Poitier, including Martin Scorsese who wrote, "For years, the spotlight was on Sidney Poitier.
- Sidney Poitier's personal life. In 1969, Sidney met Canadian actress Joanna Shimkus. The couple married in 1976 and went on to welcome two daughters.
- Poor childhood. Born on February 20, 1924, in Miami, Florida, but raised in the Bahamas, Sidney Poitier was the son of Reginald and Evelyn Poitier.
- Sidney Poitier was the first African American actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, paving the way for greater diversity and representation in Hollywood.
- (From left) Stephen Perry, Ruby Dee, Claudia McNeil, Diana Sands, and Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in the Sun (1961), directed by Daniel Petrie.
- Sidney Poitier has won the hearts of over 700 movie fans who have come together to rank his impressive filmography from best to worst.