Title:
What have we here? : portraits of a life
What have we here?
Portraits of a life
Published:
2024
Format:
Books
Personal Author:
Edition:
First edition.
Physical Description:
277 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : portraits (some color) ; 25 cm
Summary:
"Film legend recalls his remarkable life of nearly eight decades--a heralded actor who's played the roles he wanted, unchecked by the racism and typecasting so rife in the mostly all-white industry in which he triumphed... On Broadway, he acted in The Cool World in an all-Black cast that included James Earl Jones and Cicely Tyson, and in the original hit Broadway production of A Taste of Honey with Angela Lansbury and a young Joan Plowright. In 1971, he landed the role of a lifetime: co-starring alongside James Caan in Brian's Song, the made-for-television movie that was watched by an audience of more than fifty million people. Williams says it was "the kind of interracial love story America needed." His rich and varied career included working with producer Berry Gordy on the Billie Holiday biopic, Lady Sings the Blues, a star vehicle for Diana Ross, then at the height of her superstardom. He also starred in the 1977 film Scott Joplin and appeared in Tim Burton's Batman and more recently the television series, And Just Like That. He became a true pop culture icon when, as the first Black character in the Star Wars universe, he played Lando Calrissian in George Lucas's The Empire Strikes Back ("What I presented on the screen people didn't expect to see"). It was a role he reprised in the final film of the original trilogy, The Return of the Jedi, and in the recent sequel The Rise of Skywalker. A legendary actor, in his own words, on all that has sustained and carried him through a lifetime of dreams and adventure"--
General Note:
Includes index.
Contents:
What have we here?
Abstract:
"Film legend recalls his remarkable life of nearly eight decades--a heralded actor who's played the roles he wanted, unchecked by the racism and typecasting so rife in the mostly all-white industry in which he triumphed... On Broadway, he acted in The Cool World in an all-Black cast that included James Earl Jones and Cicely Tyson, and in the original hit Broadway production of A Taste of Honey with Angela Lansbury and a young Joan Plowright. In 1971, he landed the role of a lifetime: co-starring alongside James Caan in Brian's Song, the made-for-television movie that was watched by an audience of more than fifty million people. Williams says it was "the kind of interracial love story America needed." His rich and varied career included working with producer Berry Gordy on the Billie Holiday biopic, Lady Sings the Blues, a star vehicle for Diana Ross, then at the height of her superstardom. He also starred in the 1977 film Scott Joplin and appeared in Tim Burton's Batman and more recently the television series, And Just Like That. He became a true pop culture icon when, as the first Black character in the Star Wars universe, he played Lando Calrissian in George Lucas's The Empire Strikes Back ("What I presented on the screen people didn't expect to see"). It was a role he reprised in the final film of the original trilogy, The Return of the Jedi, and in the recent sequel The Rise of Skywalker. A legendary actor, in his own words, on all that has sustained and carried him through a lifetime of dreams and adventure"-- Provided by publisher.
Personal Subject:
Subject Term:
Genre:
ISBN:
9780593318607
