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(1954-)
Actor, philanthropist
Denzel Washington is a leading actor with a reputation for selecting quality roles. He earned his place in Hollywood through superb performances, and when he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in the film Glory, he became the fifth African American to win an Academy Award. He has been named one of American's ten favorite actors. BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
Denzel Washington was born on December 28, 1954, in Mount Vernon, New York, to Denzel Washington, a Pentecostal minister, and Lennis Washington, a beautician and a former gospel singer. He grew up in an integrated neighborhood that bordered the Bronx where he associated with West Indians, Italians, as well as blacks, and learned much from the different cultures. He, his older sister Lorice, and younger brother David were brought up in a disciplined home. Washington's mother influenced and grounded her children through solid values and activities with groups such as the Boys Club and the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA). When he was 12, Denzel Washington worked parttime delivering clothes to the cleaners and brushing the clothes of clients in the barbershop his mother coowned.
Washington's parents divorced when he was 14-years old, an event that devastated the young man and led to behavioral problems. He rejected religion and became unruly, just the opposite of what he had been. To help curb his behavior, his mother sent him to Oakland Academy, a private preparatory school primarily attended by wealthy white children in upstate New York. He achieved excellence in baseball, track, football, and basketball. He also played piano in a local black band called the Last Express.
Washington entered Fordham University in 1972 to begin work on a college degree in premedicine. To pay his expenses, he acquired several loans and ran an afterschool babysitting service at a Greek Orthodox Church in Upper Manhattan. He dropped out of school one semester due to poor grades and worked at the post office and then as a trash collector, but soon returned to Fordham. During a summer job at a camp, he made a recitation on stage that set the direction of his career. He was lauded for his natural acting ability and enrolled in a theater workshop. Changing his career plans, he dropped premedicine as a major and embraced journalism. While at Fordham he starred in two student drama productions, The Emperor Jones and Othello. In 1977 he had a professional offer to act in Wilma, the story of track star Wilma Rudolph, a movie made for television. Meanwhile, Washington completed his college degree with a double major in drama and journalism. Becomes Professional Actor
With his goal now set in a new direction, acting became a focus for Washington. He began his study of professional acting at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. He won key roles in Man and Superman and Moonchildren. The class size was reduced after a tough competition, but Washington retained a place in the program. He was a quick learner and as school progressed Washington, who then believed he had learned the techniques necessary for good acting, missed class often. He left the conservatory at the end of his first year, with two remaining, and moved to Los Angeles to try professional acting.
Unsuccessful in Los Angeles, Washington moved back to his mother's house in Mount Vernon. While attending an off-Broadway play, he ran into Pauletta Pearson, whom he met briefly when the two played in Wilma. Their relationship grew; Pearson moved into the Washington home and later they married. His wife gave him the encouragement that he needed during his frustrations in the 1970s.
Washington landed a role in the social comedy Carbon Copy (1981), which flopped at the box office. Believing that he would not fulfill his dream of becoming an actor, he accepted a job at an urban recreation center teaching sports and acting to children. One week before he was to report to work, he auditioned for and landed the role of Malcolm Xin When the Chickens Come Home to Roost, which played at the Henry Street Settlement Arts for Living Center. Washington studied hard for the role, learned to imitate Malcolm X, and even dyed his hair red. He appeared in the Negro Theatre Ensemble's production of A Soldier's Play, which offered Washington the chance to play another major role. For his performance with the Negro Ensemble Theater, critics acclaimed his acting and honored him in 1982 with the Obie Award and the Outer Circle's Critic Award. These two performances led his career in an upward turn in the 1980s.
Washington appeared with several African American productions, including The Might Gents and Ceremonies in Dark Old Men. Returning to Shakespeare, he acted in Coriolanus as Aedilus, through the Black and Red Ensemble production for the Shakespeare in the Park program.
Washington did other work for television, appearing in License to Kill and Flesh & Blood. He declined a number of movie offers that would have required him to play negative roles such as a pimp or druggie. He accepted an offer to play a doctor in the television program St. Elsewhere and believed that the part would cast him as a positive role model for young blacks. During the series' full run, from 1982 to 1986, he played the Yale-educated Phillip Chandler.
Washington took breaks from St. Elsewhere to appear in movies. In 1984 he starred in A Soldier's Story, based on a play of the same title. Most of the original cast of the play were in the movie. He appeared in Power (1986), which set out to expose the problems of the media. In 1987 he acted in a powerful and moving story portraying the martyred Steve Biko, a South African activist, in Cry Freedom. This film received mixed criticism; some critics felt that too little emphasis was on Biko and too much focus was on the white newspaper editor Donald Woods. Washington's excellent performance in Cry Freedom earned him the nomination in 1987 for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor and the NAACP's Image Award for best supporting actor.
Using the same preparation techniques as for When Chickens Come Home to Roost, he immersed himself in tapes and speeches about Steve Biko. Physically, he changed his appearance to somewhat resemble Biko, removing caps from his teeth and adding several pounds to increase his weight.
Washington appeared in two other movies, For Queen and Country (1988) and The Might Quinn (1989), before landing a role in Glory (1989). The film details the story of African American soldiers trained to fight in the Civil War, the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantryunit formed in 1863 by white colonel Robert Gould Shawof Boston. Many Americans felt that African Americans could not fight in the Civil War. However, the courage and strength of these men under Shaw's supervision enabled them to fight an heroic battle ending in the July 18, 1863, attack on Battery Wagner, a key fortification of Charleston, South Carolina. Denzel Washington played the part of Trip, a former slave, who had become angry, tough, and bitter from his slave experiences. As in previous movies Washington prepared by reading firsthand accounts of even he was to portray. Quoted in his biography, Denzel Washington, he said, "It was difficult to break myself down and become a primitive man; that was the challenge of this part." This role brought his second Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and his first Oscar.
Although Washington consistently received moving and stirring roles to play, he rejected a part the 1980s film Platoon, because he wanted to play a Native Americanrather than a black. Washington claims both ethnic groups in his background.
Director Spike Leetailored the role of jazz musician Bleek Gilliam for Denzel Washington in Mo Better Blues (1990). The story depicted an African American jazz trumpeter who might be based on Lee's father, Bill Lee who tries to balance his love of music with his love of two women. The critics were mixed in their reviews, but Washington's performance was outstanding. Utilizing his familiar training techniques for the role, Washington, engaged himself in the character of Miles Davisby learning to play a trumpet and staying in the company of this legendary musician.
Washington next appeared in the 1990 comedy-drama, Heart Condition. It is the story of a white detective who receives the heart of black lawyer, Washington, who acted as the ghost. Washington moved on to Ricochet (1991), then to Mississippi Marsala in 1992. For the latter film he won the NAACP's Best Actor Award.
In 1992, Washington and Lee collaborated as actor and director for the powerful movie Malcolm X. His extraordinary performance in this stirring movie earned him the Academy Award's nomination for Best Actor, the NAACP Image Award for Best Actor, and the Berlin Film Festival's Award. The film was named the best picture for 1992, a plus for Spike Lee and Denzel Washington. In addition, Washington won the New York Film Critic's Circle Award, Best Actor; the Boston Society of Film Critic's Award, Best Actor; and Chicago Film Critic's Award, Best Actor.
Washington continued to receive offers for movie roles. He appeared in three films during 1993; Much Ado About Nothing, a film version of Shakespeare's comedy; The Pelican Brief, the story of a newspaper reporter's investigation of the assassinations of two Supreme Court justices; and Philadelphia, the story of a homophobic lawyer who learns about life and love from his AIDS-stricken client. In 1995 he acted in Crimson Tide, an action film in which he was a young, Harvard and U.S. Naval Academy-trained executive officer aboard a beleaguered nuclear submarine further beset by mutiny, and Devil in a Blue Dress, in which he played a private detective who, after wrestling with racism, reconfirms his American dream. His next venture was the military drama Courage Under Fire, a story of a lieutenant colonel, played by Washington, and his command in the Persian Gulf. The officer gave an order to fire during the night on what he thought was the enemy; later the officer found out that the unit fired on was one of his own.
In 1996 Washington starred in The Preacher's Wife, with singer Whitney Houston. It was an adaptation of the old movie classic, The Bishop's Wife, about a church couple. More recently, he turned down a role in Amistad, telling USA Weekend, "I ain't putting no chains around my neck. I'm not in the mood." He did accept a role in both Gregory Hoblit's Fallen and Spike Lee's He Got Game. He is booked for roles through the year 2000. A Harris Poll, cited in USA Weekend in January of 1998, listed him the tenth most popular movie star.
Handsome, suave, tall, and brown skinned, Denzel Washington is considered the next Sidney Poitier. He works with the Boys and Girls Club and does commercials for the national organization. He has given generously $1 million to the Children's Fund of South Africa and $2.5 million to his church, the Church of God in Los Angeles. In 1997 he won the Whitney M. YoungAward from the Los Angeles Urban League for outstanding community activities, especially with youngsters.
Denzel and Pauletta Pearson Washington are the parents of four children: John David, Katta, Malcolm, and Olivia. A family man, he finds time to coach the football team of John David and Katta's basketball team, and to enjoy his wife's gourmet meals and holiday traditions. They live in a Beverly Hills home built by black architect Paul Williams. Washington believes in religion and family. Quoted in his biography, he said: "I always try to have my family with me when I am out in public." He wants to show that "black people can have families," thus helping to remove negative stereotypes of the oneparent black family. During a family visit to Africa in summer of 1995, the Washingtons renewed their marriage vows, in a ceremony performed by archbishop Desmond Tutu. Although Washington receives many accolades, he strives to remain unaffected by them.
Washington's trademark for success in portraying a character has been to learn as much about the individual as possible, including his social, historical, and political environments and displaying physical traits. With this kind of dedication and zeal to be true to the character, Washington has established himself as a leading actor in the movie industry. PERSONAL INFORMATION
Addresses: Attention Sandy Rice, Publicist, PMK Public Relations Inc., 955 South Carrillo Drive, No. 200, Los Angeles, CA 90048. FURTHER READINGS
Brode, Douglas. Denzel Washington: His Films and Career. Secaucus, NJ: Carol Publishing Group, 1997.
Current Biography Yearbook. New York: H. W. Wilson, 1992.
"Denzel Washington, Black Matinee Idol." Washington, D.C., Times, February 2, 1990.
Nelson, Jill. "No More Mr. Nice Guy?" USA Weekend (9-11 January 1996): 45.
Salzman, Jack, David Lionel Smith, and Cornel West, eds. Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. New York: Macmillan Library Reference USA/Simon and Schuster Macmillan, 1996.
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