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Sidney Poitier - Born in 1927 in Miami, Florida, Poitier held dual Bahamian-American citizenship.

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'Blackboard Jungle' (1955) -

Poitier's breakout role saw him play a rebellious yet musically talented student, in this tough social commentary film about teachers in an interracial inner-city school.

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'Edge of the City' (1957) - Two years later, he appeared with John Cassavetes in this gripping drama.

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'Edge of the City' (1957) - Directed by Martin Ritt, the film was unusual for its time because of its portrayal of an interracial friendship. It received positive reviews from critics, and saw Poitier nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

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'The Defiant Ones' (1958) - His role in this celebrated crime drama cemented Poitier's reputation as one of the leading African-American actors of the day.

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'The Defiant Ones' (1958) - Co-starring Tony Curtis, the film tells the story of two escaped prisoners, one black and one white, who are shackled together and who must cooperate with each other in order to survive. Highly lauded by critics, the film scoped several awards, including the Silver Bear award for Best Actor for Poitier at the 1958 Berlin Film Festival.

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'Porgy and Bess' (1959) -

Directed by Otto Preminger and based on the 1935 opera, 'Porgy and Bess' was critically and commercially unsuccessful, despite winning one Oscar and one Golden Globe. Poitier was dismissive of his performance, and had only grudgingly accepted the role of Porgy.

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Broadway, 1959 - Poitier acted in the first production of the play 'A Raisin in the Sun,' on stage in New York City.

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'A Raisin in the Sun' (1961) -

Two years later, he starred in the film version, and subsequently won the Gary Cooper Award for his efforts at the Cannes Film Festival.

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'Paris Blues' (1961) - Poitier appeared opposite Paul Newman in another Martin Ritt-directed movie. 'Paris Blues' was noted for dealing with American racism of the time, and that of Paris' far more tolerant attitude towards black people. The soundtrack album quickly became a collectors' item.

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'Lilies of the Field' (1963) - Poitier triumphed by winning the 1963 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as an African-American itinerant worker, believed by a group of nuns to have been sent by God to build them a new chapel.

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March on Washington, 1963 - Poitier (left) alongside actors Harry Belafonte and Charlton Heston. This was the occasion of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic "I Have a Dream" speech.

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'A Patch of Blue' (1965) - Poitier received BAFTA and Golden Globe Best Actor nominations for his role in this highly regarded drama. Co-star Shelley Winters won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

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'The Slender Thread' (1965) - His next film did poorly at the box office, and was met with mixed reviews. However, it's notable for being the first feature-length movie directed by Sydney Pollack.

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'To Sir, with Love' (1967) - A box-office success, this film, set in an inner-city school in the East End of London, saw Poitier back in familiar territory. Comparisons with his earlier role in 'Blackboard Jungle' were inevitable, and the critical response was far from flattering. The film's title song, sung by Lulu, was a hit in America.

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'In the Heat of the Night' (1967) - A milestone in films dealing with deep-rooted racism in the American South, 'In the Heat of the Night' remains one of Poitier's signature roles.

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'In the Heat of the Night' (1967) - In the movie, Poitier plays Virgil Tibbs, a black police officer from Philadelphia who becomes involved in a murder investigation.

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'In the Heat of the Night' (1967) - The tense standoff between Tibbs and Chief Gillespie (Rod Steiger) is seriously gripping stuff, and the film ended up winning five Academy Awards.

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'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' (1967) - Incredibly, this was Poitier's third film of 1967, and another box-office hit. However, critics picked up on Poitier's character as having no flaws and a resume of good deeds. In other words, he was apparently too perfect and respectable to ruffle the feathers of even the most conservative of white families.

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'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' (1967) - Billed as a comedy-drama, 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' was one of the few films of the time to depict an interracial marriage in a positive light.

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'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' (1967) - It's this theme that irked so many critics, who believed the plot should have dealt more bluntly with the potential complications of an interracial marriage. The film's numerous accolades included two Academy Awards and two BAFTA Awards.

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Star of Stars, 1968 - Arriving with Barbra Streisand to receive a Star of Stars Award, from the National Association of Theatre Owners at the Hilton Hotel in San Francisco.

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'The Lost Man' (1969) - Poitier met his second wife, Joanna Shimkus, during the making of this crime drama. Quincy Jones provided the funky soundtrack.

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Directing - By the early 1970s. Poitier had turned his hand to directing films, starring in some of them too. He's pictured here directing 'A Warm December' (1973).

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Directing - His 1980 offering 'Stir Crazy,' which starred Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder, was the first time a film directed by an African American earned more than US$100 million, equivalent to US$306 million when adjusted for inflation.

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'Little Nikita' (1988) - Mixed reviews greeted this film, which saw Poitier team up with the late River Phoenix for the first of two outings (the other being 'Sneakers' in 1992). 'Little Nikita' has since become a minor cult classic.

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'The Jackal' (1997) - Not a patch on Fred Zinnemann's 'The Day of the Jackal,' this poor remake was critically panned, though it did see a healthy return at the box office. Poitier played FBI Deputy Director Carter Preston, a character loosely based on the original's Deputy Commissioner Claude Lebel.

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Dance film - 'Fast Forward' (1985) is Poitier's only foray into the world of dance. Choosing to direct the film, he later found out that the Bollywood extravaganza 'Dance Dance' (1987) was inspired by his movie.

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Academy Honorary Award, 2002 - Poitier picked up his second Academy Award, an Honorary Oscar, in recognition of his "extraordinary performances and unique presence on the screen and for representing the industry with dignity, style and intelligence."

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Presidential Medal of Freedom, 2009 - Pictured: Poitier receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama at the White House.

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The 43rd NAACP Image Awards, 2012 - Poitier and old friend Harry Belafonte speak onstage during the 43rd NAACP Image Awards, held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California.

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Other awards - Other awards and honors accepted during a long and distinguished career include Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1974), the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award (1982), an AFI Life Achievement Award (1992), and a BAFTA Fellowship (2016).

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Family man -

Poitier pictured with wife Joanna Shimkus and daughters Anika and Sydney. He had four more daughters from his first wife, Juanita Hardy.

See also: Milestone events and individual achievements in black history

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