At a press conference at the Hotel Indigo in Vinings, Louis Gossett Jr. recalled his historic Academy Award win.
This year marked the 40th anniversary of Gossett’s win for Best Supporting Actor in the film “An Officer and a Gentleman.” Gossett – whose acting career spans over decades and has a role in the upcoming musical adaptation of “The Color Purple” to be released on Dec. 25 – was the first Black actor to win the award. The 87 year old recalled the moment from his place at the front of the room, seated in his wheelchair.
The other four nominees that year were Charles Dunning, John Lithgow, James Mason and Robert Preston – pretty good company, according to Gossett.
“Well, you know what?,” he remembered thinking. “To be in the top five is pretty good stuff.”
Gossett wasn’t just one of the top five, though. He was the winner. He remembered walking up to the podium to accept the award, which was given out that year by Susan Sarandon and Christopher Reeve. The way Gossett tells the story, Sarandon gave him a kiss on the mouth (“She wouldn’t let me go!,” he joked) and Reeve gave him a “Superman handshake” and a wink.
If you watch a video of the moment, it looks like Sarandon actually pecked him on the cheek, but Reeve does give him a pretty hearty handshake – one that Gossett jokingly shakes out like it hurts. His speech is funny and sincere, ending with the line, “All you other four guys, this is ours.”
Sharing his successes with those around him and working for the betterment of the world as a whole – that seems to be the crux of Gossett’s mission, even outside of acting. In 2006, he founded the Eracism Foundation, a nonprofit with the end goal of helping to eradicate racism completely.
During the press conference, Gossett watched a video of cast members from “The Color Purple” – which is based on the stage musical adapted from Alice Walker’s seminal 1982 novel – thanking him for his time on set. Fantasia Burrino, who stars as Celie in the film, expressed her gratitude through song, a moment that made Gossett visibly emotional.
When asked why, Gossett began speaking about his great-grandmother, who he also thanks in his Oscar speech, and the lessons she passed down to him as a child. In particular, he talked about the idea of trying to work and live in a way that is a benefit to others.
“I learned it originally as a child, and I’ll stick with it now until death,” he said.
In an interview with Rodney Ho at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2019, Gossett said he considered retiring after his role in Damon Lindelof’s television adaptation of “Watchmen.” Clearly, something changed his mind – in addition to “The Color Purple,” Gossett is set to appear in John Krasinski’s animated film “IF” next year.
When asked why he thought right now is a good time to revisit Walker’s story, he called the novel a “monumental piece,” and talked about the importance of its commitment to truth.
“Since I’m still here, I’m devoted to the absolute, bottom line truth about our existence together as mankind,” he said.