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Hollywood legend Sidney Poitier dies at 94

Mr Poitier won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role in “Lilies of the Field” in 1963.

• January 7, 2022
Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier

Sidney Poitier, a Bahamian-American actor and the first black man to win an Oscar for Best Actor, died on Friday at the age of 94.

The news of his demise was announced by the Bahamian Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell.

However, details about the circumstances surrounding his death are yet unknown.

Bahamas Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper also on his official Facebook page, described the deceased as “an icon; a hero, a mentor, a fighter, a national treasure.”

“I was conflicted with great sadness and a sense of celebration when I learned of the passing of Sir Sidney Poitier.

“Sadness that he would no longer be here to tell him how much he means to us, but a celebration that he did so much to show the world that those from the humblest beginnings can change the world and that we gave him his flowers while he was with us,” Mr Cooper wrote.

Mr Poitier won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role in “Lilies of the Field” in 1963.

He had also starred in movies such as “To Sir With Love,” “In the Heat of the Night” in 1967 among others.

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