Sepiatone Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 Never tire of this powerhouse film. Every time I see it I wonder---- HOW did Sidney Poitier and Claudia McNeil NOT get academy awards for their work in this?? I KNOW I'm not alone in this query, AM I? Of course, every time I see Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, and the part comes when Sidney's character picks his Father up at the airport, I wonder, "Will WILLIE Give Sidney back the MONEY? Sepiatone 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slaytonf Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Never tire of this powerhouse film. Every time I see it I wonder---- HOW did Sidney Poitier and Claudia McNeil NOT get academy awards for their work in this?? I KNOW I'm not alone in this query, AM I? Of course, every time I see Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, and the part comes when Sidney's character picks his Father up at the airport, I wonder, "Will WILLIE Give Sidney back the MONEY? Sepiatone The times they were not a-changin' enough. Who did win that year? Did this movie come before, or after, Lilies of the Field? One last shout out for Danny Glover's performance in American Playhouse's edition of the great work, also with Esther Rolle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8hLoNlrn70 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakeem Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Never tire of this powerhouse film. Every time I see it I wonder---- HOW did Sidney Poitier and Claudia McNeil NOT get academy awards for their work in this?? I KNOW I'm not alone in this query, AM I? Of course, every time I see Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, and the part comes when Sidney's character picks his Father up at the airport, I wonder, "Will WILLIE Give Sidney back the MONEY? "A Raisin in the Sun" was released in 1961 -- two years before Poitier's screen triumph in "Lilies of the Field." The 1961 film year was dominated by "West Side Story" and "Judgment at Nuremberg," which were nominated for 11 Academy Awards each. "West Side Story," of course, won 10 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director (Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins), Best Supporting Actor (George Chakiris) and Best Supporting Actress (Rita Moreno). "The Hustler" received nine nominations. A pair of Europeans won the Oscars for Best Actor (Maximilian Schell, "Judgment at Nuremberg") and Best Actress (Sophia Loren, "Two Women"). Nominations for Poitier and McNeil would have been deserved, but it was just one of those years when some actors were squeezed out by the overall quality of competition. The biggest question is how the two stars of "A Raisin in the Sun" ever got along during the making of the movie. In the 1959 Broadway version, McNeil had the showcase role. But Poitier had become a major star by 1961, and McNeil reportedly resented his prominence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sepiatone Posted March 12, 2015 Author Share Posted March 12, 2015 I recall seeing Ivan Dixon, who played ASAGAI in "Raisin" on the old Mike Douglas talk show. Dixon was on there as he was in the cast of hit CBS show "Hogan's Heroes", and he talked a bit about this movie. He said he and other cast members would be standing just outside camera range when Poitier was doing the scene where he found out Willie had skipped town with the money. He said, "It was like being in ACTING CLASS." or something to that effect. "We could only pray to be HALF as good!" I often wondered how JOHN FIEDLER felt playing HIS part?! Sepiatone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dargo Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 I recall seeing Ivan Dixon, who played ASAGAI in "Raisin" on the old Mike Douglas talk show. Dixon was on there as he was in the cast of hit CBS show "Hogan's Heroes", and he talked a bit about this movie. He said he and other cast members would be standing just outside camera range when Poitier was doing the scene where he found out Willie had skipped town with the money. He said, "It was like being in ACTING CLASS." or something to that effect. "We could only pray to be HALF as good!" I often wondered how JOHN FIEDLER felt playing HIS part?! Sepiatone I think it affected Fiedler greatly, Sepia, in fact SO much so that he would eventually seek help from a certain Chicago-based psychologist for years. (...which in the long run didn't help much in alleviating his deep feelings of guilt, as a fellow patient by the name of Mr. Carlin would constantly pick on him during their mutual sessions and thus exacerbating his condition) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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