Welcome to the liturgist podcast.

You are now listening to Black History is American History.

I'm William Matthews and I'm propaganda.

I'm Nikki Black and I'm Andre Henry.

Today's moment in Black History, Sydney Portier.

Sir Sydney Portier was born February 20th, 1927.

His family lived in the Bahamas but Portier was born in Miami while they were visiting

thereby acquiring American citizenship.

He grew up in the Bahamas moving to New York when he was 16.

He joined the North American Negro Theatre landing his breakthrough film role in 1950 as

an incorrigible high school student in Blackboard Jungle.

In 1958, Portier starred with Tony Curtis and critically acclaimed the defiant ones as

chained together convicts who escape and must cooperate.

He received a nomination from the Academy Award for Best Actor with Portier being the

first Black actor to receive that honor.

In 1964, he won the Academy Award for Best Actor in the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor

for his roles in Lillies of the Field in which he played a handyman who stays with and

helps a group of German-speaking nuns build a chapel.

Portier received critical acclaim for Raising in the Sun in 1961 and a patch of blue in 1965.

He continued to break ground in three successful 1967 films, each dealing with issues of race

and race relations.

To Sir with Love, Gessu's coming to dinner and in the heat of the night, making him the

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