Louis Gossett Jr, the first black man to win an Oscar for best supporting actor, dies at 87
Louis Gossett Jr, the first black man to win a supporting actor Oscar for his role in An Officer And A Gentleman, has died aged 87.
The actor’s family released a statement confirming that he died on Friday morning.
“It is with our heartfelt regret to confirm our beloved father passed away this morning,” the statement said.
“We would like to thank everyone for their condolences at this time. Please respect the family’s privacy during this difficult time.”
Gossett’s nephew told The Associated Press that the actor was in Santa Monica, California, at the time.
No cause of death was revealed.
Gere and Gossett in An Officer And A Gentlemen. Pic: Everett/Shutterstock
Gossett became the third black Oscar nominee in the supporting actor category in 1983.
He won for his performance as the intimidating Marine drill instructor in An Officer And A Gentleman opposite Richard Gere and Debra Winger in 1982.
He also won a Golden Globe for the same role.
“The Oscar gave me the ability of being able to choose good parts in movies like Enemy Mine, Sadat and Iron Eagle,” Gossett said in film expert, Dave Karger’s, 2024 book “50 Oscar Nights”.
He said at the time that his statue was in storage.
The star became the third black Oscar nominee in the supporting actor category. Pic: AP
Born on 27 May 1936, in Brooklyn, New York, Gossett later added Junior to his name to honour his father.
He first started acting in school productions and at the age of 16 made his Broadway debut in the play Take A Giant Step.
Having studied at New York University on a basketball and drama scholarship, the actor became friends with Hollywood great James Dean and studied acting alongside Marilyn Monroe, Martin Landau and Steve McQueen.
In 1959 he gained critical acclaim for his role in the Broadway production of A Raisin In The Sun, and in 1961 appeared in the film version of the same production.
Gossett in Roots in 1977. Pic: Moviestore/Shutterstock
Gossett’s big break on the small screen was as Fiddler in the 1977 TV miniseries Roots, which depicted the atrocities of slavery.
He later won an Emmy Award for the role.
He also appeared in TV movies including The Story of Satchel Paige, Backstairs at the White House, The Josephine Baker Story – for which he won another Golden Globe – and Roots Revisited.
In 2023, he played patriarch, Ol’ Mister Johnson, in the musical remake of The Colour Purple, alongside Halle Bailey, Danielle Brooks and Colman Dolmingo.
Gossett was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2010 and hospitalised with COVID in 2020. Pic: AP
Throughout his career Gossett was subject to racism, including an incident in the late 1990s, when he said he was pulled over by police while driving his restored 1986 Rolls Royce Corniche II.
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An officer told him he looked like someone they were searching for, but the officer recognised Gossett and left.
He later founded the Eracism Foundation to “help create a world where racism does not exist”, according to the foundation’s website.
In the years after his Academy win, Gossett struggled with alcohol and cocaine addiction. He went to rehab, where he was diagnosed with toxic mould syndrome – associated with prolonged exposure to mould which he attributed to his house in Malibu.
Pic: Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock
In 2010, Gossett announced he had prostate cancer, which he said was caught in the early stages and in 2020, he went into hospital after contracting COVID-19.
The actor married three times, the third to actor Cyndi James-Reese. The pair divorced in 1992.
He is survived by his two sons – Satie, a producer and director from his second marriage, and Sharron, a chef whom he adopted after seeing the seven-year-old in a TV segment on children in desperate situations.
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The Duchess of Sussex has delayed the release of her new Netflix series due to the devastation caused by the wildfires in LA, the streaming platform has announced.
Meghan’s eight-part series, With Love, will premiere on 4 March instead of 15 January.
“I’m thankful to my partners at Netflix for supporting me in delaying the launch, as we focus on the needs of those impacted by the wildfires in my home state of California,” Meghan said in a statement to Tudum, the official companion site to Netflix.
Harry and Meghan comforted volunteers and handed out food to evacuees during a visit to Pasadena on Friday, where they met with the city’s mayor Victor Gordo and emergency workers tackling the Eaton Fire.
Prince Harry and Meghan were seen comforting residents on Friday
Footage showed the duchess, wearing a blue “LA” baseball cap, and the prince hugging and consoling people who had fled to the Pasadena Convention Center.
They were also seen speaking Doug Goodwin, whose home was destroyed in the wildfires, and also to Jose Andres, founder of World Central Kitchen (WCK) which has been helping feed the public and emergency crews.
Prince Harry and Meghan spoke to Doug Goodwin (centre right), whose home was destroyed and Pasadena mayor Victor Gordo (right) in Altadena, California. Pic: AP
A description of the Netflix series on Tudum’s website said: “Produced by Meghan, ‘With Love, Meghan’ blends practical how-to’s and candid conversation with friends, new and old.
“Meghan shares personal tips and tricks, embracing playfulness over perfection, and highlights how easy it can be to create beauty, even in the unexpected.
“She and her guests roll up their sleeves in the kitchen, the garden, and beyond, and invite you to do the same.”
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The royals live in Montecito, near Santa Barbara, around 90 miles from Los Angeles.
They are understood to have donated supplies, including clothing and children’s items, to people affected by the disaster.
They released a statement on Thursday urging people to help those affected by the wildfires and to open their homes to those evacuated.
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