Acclaimed character actor Louis Gossett, Jr., who made history as the first black man to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, died at the age of 87.
His role as hard nosed drill sergeant Foley in 1982’s An Officer and a Gentleman became one of his best known roles: earning him the Oscar. He also won an Emmy for his role as Fiddler in the groundbreaking 1977 miniseries Roots, and reprised the role a decade later in 1988’s Roots: The Gift.
Gossett portrayed Air Force fighter pilot Col. “Chappy Sinclair in 1986’s Iron Eagle and followed that up with three sequels. Other notable roles on the big screen includes Firewalker (1986) with Chuck Norris, ThePrincipal (1987) with Jim Belushi, ThePunisher (1989) with Dolph Lundgren, and last year’s The Color Purple.
He was a regular on NBC’s The Powers of Matthew Star (1982-83), and has had recurring roles on shows such as SyFy’s Stargate SG-1 and HBO’s Watchmen. Gossett also made guest appearances on Touched By An Angel, Early Edition, ER, Psych, and so on.
Gossett is survived by his two adult sons, Satie and Sharron.