Suppose you were to look at the cover of season 1 of the St. Elsewhere DVD. In that case, you might think that Denzel Washington was the big star of the 1982-1988 NBC medical drama about “the lives and work of the staff of St. Eligius Hospital, an old and disrespected Boston teaching hospital.” This would not be correct; it was more of an ensemble cast.
This worked to Denzel’s advantage. Because he wasn’t in every scene, he got to go out and make movies. The only one I saw in that period was Cry Freedom (1987), in which he played the South African patriot Stephen Biko. Even though the story was mostly about his friend, journalist Donald Woods (Kevin Kline), attempting to investigate Biko’s death, Denzel is compelling. He was the NAACP Image Award winner as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture. I bought the soundtrack: The Funeral (September 25, 1987).
Glory (1989) – His Oscar and Golden Globe-winning performance in a supporting role. The James Horner soundtrack, which I own, can be listened to here. It won a Grammy.
Mississippi Masala 1991. NAACP Image Award as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture
Formerly Malcolm Little
Malcolm X (1992) -He was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role. But he won various other awards. I have this soundtrack too. Listen to Someday We’ll All Be Free – Aretha Franklin.
The Pelican Brief (1993) – Denzel was nominated for an MTV award as Most Desirable Male
Philadelphia (1993) – Tom Hanks said working with Washington on the movie was like “going to film school.” Hanks said he learned more about acting by watching Denzel than anyone else. I have this soundtrack as well. Here’s the final scene with the Neil Young title song.
Crimson Tide (1995) Denzel won another NAACP Image Award as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture.
Devil in a Blue Dress (1996) – I saw this at Page Hall at the SUNY Albany downtown campus. Walter Mosley, author of the book and co-writer of the script, was supposed to be present but he could not make it.
The Preacher’s Wife (1996)—with Whitney Houston. I’m sure I saw this on TV, but I don’t particularly recall it.
The Hurricane (1999), in which he plays boxer Rubin Carter. He won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama but lost the Best Actor Oscar. Once again, he won the NAACP Image Award as Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
Remember The Titans (2000) – not only did Denzel win the Image Award again, but the film was deemed Outstanding Motion Picture. This I saw on TV as well, but I remember it quite well.
Best Actor Oscar
I did not see Training Day (2001), for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, the first black man to do so since Sidney Poitier did so for Lilies of the Field. Denzel was also the winner of the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama and the NAACP Image Award as Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
I did see the following films:
Manchurian Candidate (2004) – I STILL need to see the original
Unstoppable (2010) – in case you don’t remember this one: “With an unmanned, half-mile-long freight train barreling toward a city, a veteran engineer and a young conductor race against the clock to prevent a catastrophe.” It’s entertaining.
Flight (2012) Denzel was nominated for an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, as well as other awards
August Wilson
Fences (2016) – the film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture (Todd, Black, Scott Rudin, and Denzel); Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Denzel); and Best Adapted Screenplay (August Wilson, posthumously). Viola Davis won for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Denzel played the same role on Broadway for about two and half months in 2010. It was nominated for seven Tonys and won three: Best Revival of a Play (Produced by Carole Shorenstein Hays and Scott Rudin), Best Actor in a Play (Denzel Washington), and Best Actress in a Play (Viola Davis).
Fences was one of six Broadway productions in which he appeared. He will be in Othello in 2025.
Denzel is committed to producing all ten of August Wilson’s plays for film. He’s already produced Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020) and The Piano Lesson (2024).
His life
Of course, he’s more than his performances. Check out this 2017 interview.
Here are a couple of paragraphs from Wikipedia:. “On June 25, 1983, Washington married Pauletta Pearson, whom he met on the set of his first screen work, the television film Wilma. They have four children: John David (born July 28, 1984), also an actor and a former football player; Katia (born November 27, 1986), who graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor of Arts in 2010; and twins Olivia and Malcolm (born April 10, 1991). Malcolm graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in film studies, and Olivia played a role in Lee Daniels’s film The Butler. Malcolm made his directorial debut with The Piano Lesson, with Denzel producing and John David starring in it. In 1995, Washington and his wife renewed their wedding vows in South Africa with Desmond Tutu officiating…
“Washington has served as the national spokesman for Boys & Girls Clubs of America since 1993 and has appeared in public service announcements and awareness campaigns for the organization. In addition, he has served as a board member for Boys & Girls Clubs of America since 1995. Due to his philanthropic work with the Boys & Girls Club, PS 17X, a New York City Elementary School decided to officially name their school after Washington.”
In 2022, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 2024 also marks ten years of Denzel’s sobriety. He was baptized just this month and was given a minister’s license by the church.
