Louis Gossett Jr., ‘Officer and a Gentleman,’ Star Dead at 87

Louis Gossett Jr., the primary Black man to win a Supporting Actor Oscar, has died.

The actor’s nephew stated Gossett handed away Thursday night time in Santa Monica. No explanation for dying has been revealed.

Gossett had a celebrated profession, most noticeably incomes his groundbreaking Academy Award for 1982’s “An Officer and a Gentleman” … which he stated was an enormous affirmation of his place as a Black actor in his 2010 memoir, “An Actor and a Gentleman.”

The trophy had been a very long time coming. The NYC-born actor had been working exhausting within the film biz, receiving crucial approval for his 1964 function in Broadway’s “A Raisin in the Sun” and cementing his stage presence by changing Billy Daniels in “Golden Boy.”

His Hollywood break got here when he bagged an Emmy for his function within the 1977 TV collection, “Roots.”

Louis additionally gained a Golden Globe for the 1991 TV film, “The Josephine Baker Story.”

He is additionally starred within the film, “Enemy Mine,” the TV collection “Sadat” and can be identified for his function as Colonel Charles “Chappy” Sinclair within the “Iron Eagle” movie collection.

His final credit score got here within the function of Ol’ Mister within the 2023 remake of “The Color Purple.”

Gossett revealed in 2010 he had prostate most cancers, which was caught within the early phases.

He was married 3 occasions and is survived by sons Satie — from his second marriage — and Sharron, a chef he adopted after seeing him as a younger baby on TV throughout a section on children in determined conditions.

He was 87.