Academy Award Winner, Lou Gossett Jr., becomes a friendly 'drill sergeant' for the young

He also portrays John in a new audio New Testament

February 2008

By Dan Wooding
Founder of ASSIST Ministries

The towering figure of Lou Gossett Jr. remains one of the most sought after and busiest veteran actors in the film and television industry today. His unique talent for portraying powerful and charismatic characters has charmed audiences worldwide, resulting in an impressive amount of coveted awards, including an Oscar, Emmy, and Golden Globe.

Gossett first gained recognition in the New York theatre scene, where at
the age of 16, he won a Donaldson award for "Best Newcomer," beating out a young James Dean. Soon he was offered a prestigious Broadway role opposite Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in the Sun and he went on to star in the film version, paving the way for a long and rewarding career.

In 1977 Gossett captured an Emmy, television's highest honor, for his compelling portrayal of "Fiddler" in the historic television mini-series, Roots. In 1982, he electrified the screen with his unforgettable portrayal of a relentless military sergeant in the hit film An Officer and a Gentleman, earning him to the ultimate acting honor, an Academy Award for "Best Supporting Actor." He struck gold again in 1992 for his poignant work in HBO's The Josephine Baker Story, and garnered a Golden Globe. Even in a guest-starring role for the popular CBS series Touched by an Angel, Gossett's work was singled out and he received the 1998 NAACP Image Award.

Throughout his career, Gossett has turned in numerous outstanding performances, resulting in eight additional Emmy nominations. His passion for his work is matched only by his strong belief in helping others by giving back to the community. He serves as a spokesperson and a behind the scenes leader for many charitable organizations. Gossett is currently developing a nonprofit foundation, The Eracism Foundation, with the aim of developing and producing entertainment that brings awareness and education to issues such as racism, ignorance, and societal apathy.

In a red carpet interview at the recent 16th Annual Movieguide® Faith & Values Awards Gala, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, Gossett, a committed Christian, talked about why he is turning his attention to the young.

"I'm an elder now and I need to really reconnect with the young," he said. "Our job is to take the message to the young while we're still here. It seems like when you do that you live longer. It seems very necessary. As you've been seeing in the papers, the message really is 'back to basics.' Our children are without these messages anymore and they're left to their own devices and they're immature and they make immature decisions. So it is our number one job to nurture our children."

I mentioned the fact that Bill Cosby, a couple of years back, gave an off-the-cuff speech condemning poor African American youth and their parents. He criticized poor Black parents for being willing to buy $500 sneakers for their children rather than spend $200 for Hooked on Phonics. Dr. Cosby also held poor African American parents responsible for not setting the proper example for their children by speaking standard English. Poor African American youth were criticized for their use of non-standard English and the widespread adoption of "pimp culture."

I asked Lou Gossett Jr., if he was on a similar crusade.

"Similar, yeah, but I don't punish them; I don't put my finger in their face because look, nobody taught them anything else," he said. "So you've got to teach them get them back in line and then we will have a better planet. So we have to plant the seeds in our children so they're better in the future."

I asked if he thought the church had lost contact with the country's young people.

"Yes, but they're working on regaining it," he said.

"The Society of St. Vincent de Paul gave me a lifetime achievement award on the sixteenth of February and my support group was two rabbis, two African-American ministers, a Muslim, and some Catholics, because we all agree that our children are the number one most important commodity and the spirituality must start before they get to school; before they hit the streets. If they're armed with those bottom line things then they can resist a little bit better."

I then asked Gossett if he felt that the races still divided up each Sunday in America, or if things were getting better.

Lou Gossett Jr., recently participated in the recording of The Word of Promise, a New Testament Audio Bible dramatized by an all-star cast of actors, which also included Jim Caviezel as Jesus, Richard Dreyfuss, Stacy Keach, Lou Diamond Phillips and Marisa Tomei, plus many more. This 25-hour, 20-CD audio Bible production of The New Testament from the NKJV New Testament, was produced with state of the art audio technology, including sound effects and an original musical score and released by Thomas Nelson, Inc., the world's largest publisher/seller of Bibles, along with the Falcon Picture Group.

In it, Gossett portrayed John and so I asked him why he took that role.

"Because it affirmed for me the original story," he explained. "Speaking those words, you have to mean what you say to understand what it meant. I also wanted people to understand the Bible in a new way."

Dan Wooding is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS). He was, for ten years, a commentator, on the UPI Radio Network in Washington, DC. Wooding is the author of some 42 books, the latest of which is his autobiography, "From Tabloid to Truth", which is published by Theatron Books. To order a copy, go to www.fromtabloidtotruth.com. danjuma1@aol.com.