Actor Sir Sidney Poitier, age 94

[Ccook55]

Sir Sidney Poitier, star of noted films such as A Raisin In the Sun and They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!, has passed on at age 94. No cause has been disclosed yet.

 

[frankberry]

What a great Actor. RIP, Sidney.

 

[Mikey Radio]

Another of the greats is lost. RIP. I first saw Poitier in "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner". Interestingly, and perhaps a bit sadly, though that movie was released in 1967, its message about racism is still viable today, 55 years later. That film was also notable as Spencer Tracy's final picture before his death, and some believe Tracy's speech at the end was a veiled farewell to Katherine Hepburn.

 

[radioman148]

A great actor indeed. RIP!

 

[CTListener]

Another of the greats is lost. RIP. I first saw Poitier in "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner". Interestingly, and perhaps a bit sadly, though that movie was released in 1967, its message about racism is still viable today, 55 years later. That film was also notable as Spencer Tracy's final picture before his death, and some believe Tracy's speech at the end was a veiled farewell to Katherine Hepburn.

He was also in "To Sir, With Love," which spawned Lulu's smash hit of the same name. Amazingly, although Lulu was an established hit maker in the UK, that song was not sent to radio there or released as a single due to the interracial relationship plot of the movie.

 

[frankberry]

Probably his most famous line: "They call me Mister Tibbs."

 

[radioman148]

He was also in "To Sir, With Love," which spawned Lulu's smash hit of the same name. Amazingly, although Lulu was an established hit maker in the UK, that song was not sent to radio there or released as a single due to the interracial relationship plot of the movie.

I was always amazed by that since Lulu was such a star in the UK.

 

[TheBigA]

I was always amazed by that since Lulu was such a star in the UK.

The British invasion was mainly a guy thing. It was rare for women to make the transition. Only Petula Clark & Shirley Bassey had hits in the US at the time, and in fact Shirley's only US hit was the theme to the movie Goldfinger. There are a bunch of British women who never had hits in the US, most notably Cilla Black.

Lulu's success was mainly due to her producer, Micky Most, who had breakthrough US hits with The Animals, The Hollies, and Herman's Hermits.

 

[radioman148]

The British invasion was mainly a guy thing. It was rare for women to make the transition. Only Petula Clark & Shirley Bassey had hits in the US at the time, and in fact Shirley's only US hit was the theme to the movie Goldfinger. There are a bunch of British women who never had hits in the US, most notably Cilla Black.

Lulu's success was mainly due to her producer, Micky Most, who had breakthrough US hits with The Animals, The Hollies, and Herman's Hermits.

True, but my point was she had had hits in the UK, but "To Sir" wasn't one of them.

 

[CTListener]

The British invasion was mainly a guy thing. It was rare for women to make the transition. Only Petula Clark & Shirley Bassey had hits in the US at the time, and in fact Shirley's only US hit was the theme to the movie Goldfinger. There are a bunch of British women who never had hits in the US, most notably Cilla Black.

Lulu's success was mainly due to her producer, Micky Most, who had breakthrough US hits with The Animals, The Hollies, and Herman's Hermits.

Cilla had one US hit, "You're My World."

 

[CTListener]

True, but my point was she had had hits in the UK, but "To Sir" wasn't one of them.

TheBigA mentioned Herman's Hermits. Two of THEIR biggest American hits -- "Mrs Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter" and "I'm Henry VIII, I Am" -- were never pushed to British radio because they were old-fashioned music hall-style tunes and there was no appetite for that kind of music among young Brits in the mid-'60s. On these shores, of course, the kids were eating up anything sung with an English accent, and those two were the kind of songs that parents could enjoy as well.

 

[TheBigA]

Cilla had one US hit, "You're My World."

I was wondering why I was unfamiliar with it, and saw it peaked at #25. It was recorded in Abbey Road studios, produced by George Martin. She was introduced to her manager Brian Epstein by John Lennon. Her US record label was Capitol. And this was the best they could do. So sometimes the best contacts in the world aren't good enough.

 

[CTListener]

I was wondering why I was unfamiliar with it, and saw it peaked at #25. It was recorded in Abbey Road studios, produced by George Martin. She was introduced to her manager Brian Epstein by John Lennon. Her US record label was Capitol. And this was the best they could do. So sometimes the best contacts in the world aren't good enough.

I have a feeling it did better here in New England than nationally. It was on the playlist of WDRC-FM Hartford back when it was an oldies station, and I heard it in Boston as well, though not sure if it was on WODS or rimshotter WBOQ. There were left-field British Invasion songs that did very well in Boston and vicinity and stiffed elsewhere. Dave Dee Dozy Beaky Mick & Tich's "Bend It" and the Who's "Happy Jack" stand out as Top 10 tunes on Boston Top 40 radio in 1966-67.

 

[tbolt909]

Poitier was class all the way. Consummate actor and gentleman. His performance with Rod Steiger in "In The Heat Of The Night" was iconic. 2 heavyweight actors putting on a phenomenal performance. Steiger won the Oscar for Best Actor in that film, but it could have been shared by both. They both set the bar really high. The scene where the Tibbs character gets slapped and immediately slaps the White man back was suggested by Poitier. He insisted that they film it that way. Iconic actor...

 

[Oldie919]

Let's not forget "A Patch of Blue" where Poitier starred with Shelley Winters and Elizabeth Hartman.....

 

[crainbebo]

I believe I first saw him in 'Sneakers,' with Robert Redford, the crime caper from 1992. Also saw him in the *beautifully* filmed Shoot to Kill with Tom Berenger (1988). He was great in everything he did. And just like Saget, and Betty, and Madden, another one of the great movie/TV stars we've lost in the past two weeks.
RIP Sidney.