Sidney Poitier was an actor and director renowned for his significant contributions to cinema and his pivotal role in advancing racial equality in Hollywood. He received an Academy Award for Best Actor for "Lilies of the Field" (1963) and an Honorary Award presented in 2001. Born in Miami, he grew up both in the Bahamas and the United States and became a noted actor both on the stage and in such films as "The Defiant Ones" (1958, which earned him his first Oscar nomination), "A Patch of Blue" (1965), In the "Heat of the Night" (1967), and "Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner" (1967). He has also directed nine features and remains a major inspirational figure among the creative community. The respected humanitarian insisted on a crew that was at least 50 percent African-American during the filming of "The Lost Man" in 1969.

In recognition of…