Date of Birth: December 21, 1948
Place of Birth: Washington, DC, USA
Sign: Sun in Sagittarius, Moon in Virgo
Relations: Wife, LaTanya Richardson; daughter, Zoe
Education: Morehouse College, drama major
AFTER YEAR AS a successful character actor on stage, film, and television, Samuel L. Jackson made his mark with his mesmerizing portrayal of Jules, the bible-quoting hitman in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction. He received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for the role, as well as a Golden Globe nomination.
In 1996, Jackson secured his status by starring alongside Sandra Bullock, Matthew McConaughey and Kevin Spacey in the film adaptation of the John Grisham novel A Time To Kill. Jackson also starred opposite Bruce Willis in Die Hard: With a Vengeance, Nicolas Cage and David Caruso in Kiss of Death and Jessica Lange and Halle Berry in Losing Isaiah.
Jackson preceded Pulp Fiction with a brilliant performance in Boaz Yakin's Fresh, for which New York Magazine said in its review, "People like Jackson could put black cinema where it belongs, on the leading edge of American movie-making."
Jackson made movie history when he was awarded the first and only Best Supporting Performance Award by the judges at the Cannes Film Festival for his searing portrayal of a crack addict (ironic considering that it was his first post-sobriety role after kicking a drug and alcohol addiction) in Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever. He also won the New York Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Jackson graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta with a degree in dramatic arts. He went on to perform in numerous stage plays such as Home, A Soldier's Play, Sally/Prince, and The District Line. He originated the roles in two of August Wilson's plays at Yale Rep: Boy Willie in The Piano Lesson and Wolf in Two Trains Running. For the New York Shakespeare Festival, Jackson appeared in Mother Courage and Her Children, Spell #7, and The Mighty Gents. While still a student at Morehouse, Jackson made his film debut in Together for Days, which starred Clifton Davis and Lois Chiles.
Jackson, who rarely has to audition for roles, literally begged George Lucas to cast him in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. He didn't care what role he had; he just wanted to be a part of the Star Wars phenomenon. As Mace Windu, a senior Jedi Knight who is the original mentor to Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jackson saw his dream come true. He commanded the screen and – truth be told – toy stores internationally, which reported that his action figure outsold those of any other Phantom Menace character. The Force was with him.
Returning to action protagonist in the "Jaws-meets-Aliens" scare flick Deep Blue Sea (which is not, we learned the hard way, based on the children's story Danny and the Deep Blue Sea), Jackson took on killer sharks from hell. He'll follow that up as the quintessential blaxploitation ladies man, Shaft.
Movies:
2000 Shaft
1999 Deep Blue Sea
1999 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
1999 Caveman's Valentine
1999 Mefisto in Onyx
1999 Rules of Engagement
1999 Training Day
1998 The Negotiator
1998 Out of Sight
1998 The Red Violin
1998 Sphere
1997 187
1997 Eve's Bayou
1997 Hard Eight
1997 Jackie Brown
1996 The Great White Hype
1996 The Long Kiss Goodnight
1996 A Time To Kill
1996 Trees Lounge
1996 The Search for One-Eye Jimmy
1995 Die Hard: With A Vengeance
1995 Losing Isaiah
1995 Kiss of Death
1994 Pulp Fiction
1994 Fresh
1994 The New Age
1994 Hail Caesar
1993 Amos & Andrew
1993 Jurassic Park
1993 True Romance
1993 National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon
1993 Menace II Society
1993 The Meteor Man
1992 Juice
1992 Patriot Games
1992 White Sands
1992 Fathers and Sons
1991 Jungle Fever
1991 Johnny Suede
1991 Strictly Business
1991 Jumpin' at the Boneyard
1990 A Shock to the System
1990 GoodFellas
1990 The Exorcist III
1990 Mo' Better Blues
1990 Betsy's Wedding
1990 Def By Temptation
1990 Return of Superfly
1989 Sea of Love
1989 Do the Right Thing
1988 School Daze
1988 Coming to America
1987 Eddie Murphy Raw
1981 Ragtime
1972 Together for Days
TV:
1993 Simple Justice
1992 Ghostwriter
1991 Dead and Alive: The Race for Gus Farace
1990 Common Ground
1987 Uncle Tom's Cabin
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
