Goodnight, Lou

Remembering Louis Gossett, Jr.

Great performers leave, but don’t leave.

They pass on yet remain.

They die, but yet live on forever.

That’s you, Louis Gossett, Jr.

You were on Broadway at 17.

Two years later, you were in “A Raisin in the Sun” with the great Sidney Poitier.

You played folk music to supplement your income.

You recorded music and wrote music for Richie Havens.

You started appearing regularly in films and on television.

“Skin Game” with your buddy James Garner.

“The Laughing Policeman” with Walter Matthau.

You were in the classic episode of “The Jeffersons,” playing George’s best friend who kept hitting on Louise and using mouthwash spray before you made your moves.

Then there was “Roots.”

In a show with so many great performances, your performance as “Fiddler” was one of the greatest.

A complex portrayal of a slave who did what he had to do to survive.

Kunta Kinte’s lifeline in the New World of chattel slavery.

When you told him, “You in America now,” it was simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking.

You won the Emmy for “Fiddler,” and deservedly so.

You kept acting and kept being nominated for awards.

Until “An Officer and a Gentleman.”

You aced your role of drill sergeant Emil Foley.

You held together what could have been a typical romantic drama with a wonderful performance.

You won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, the first Black male to ever do so, and making you only the third Black performer to win an Oscar.

There were hard times after that.

Divorce.

Drug addiction.

A lack of quality roles even after winning an Oscar.

You not only survived, but you persevered.

You kept acting.

You played Anwar Sadat in “Sadat,” your favorite role.

You left us with so many great performances,

So many great memories,

Lots of laughter, lots of tears.

Lou,

You’ve left us but haven’t really left.

You passed on, but you are still here.

You have achieved that immortality that comes with being a great artist.

You will be with us as long as there are televisions and motion pictures.

Thanks for the dignity, courage, and conviction you brought to every performance.

Goodnight, Lou.

Goodnight.