Dennis Haysbert
Life is a Lesson
By: Carolina L. Saucedo
I
n Hollywood, there are many celebrities Hearts and Love and Basketball. In 2001,
who are each defined by one of their bet- Haysbert was cast in 24, as the role of
ter characteristics. Charm, good looks, U.S. Senator David Palmer who served as
class and a captivating deep voice could America’s first Black President. Then in
only mean one person, Dennis Haysbert. 2003, Haysbert became the official spo-
As one of the most genuinely good-na- kesman for Allstate Insurance Company.
tured people that you find in Hollywood The humble actor is as passionate
today, Haysbert has caught our eye by ac- about acting as he is for social causes and
ting in film and television since 1979. charities. Haysbert has participated with
As the eighth of nine children born the Harlem Health Expo since 1999 in
to Charles and Gladys Haysbert, Dennis the prevention and education of HIV and
was athletically gifted and dreamed of AIDS and is a big advocate of healthy ea-
being an actor. As a young boy, Haysbert ting habits and global warming. Dennis
enjoyed watching classic movies on te- Haysbert has worked with Raincatcher.
levision and admired the actors for their org to place rain catchers in small villages
roles, good looks, voices and intelligence. in Kenya.
In high school, Haysbert played football, When Dennis Haysbert speaks, people
enjoyed track and basketball as long as it stop and listen. Whether it is the voice or
did not interfere with his participation in the words of wisdom, Haysbert is a wise
theatre, “I did all the school plays, and alt- man with many positive outlooks on life.
hough I didn’t actually get paid for any of Black EOE Journal was lucky enough
it, I’d like to say that my career started in to speak with Mr. Haysbert to share his
high school.” thoughts with our favorite readers:
Dennis Haysbert was offered scholars-
hips to many colleges and universities but BEOEJ: Did your childhood impact
turned many of them down because many your career in any way?
of them didn’t have a strong theatre. Hays- Dennis Haysbert: “I always loved
bert instead attended and graduated from movies and television and though at a
the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. young age I didn’t go to any movies, a lot
Many years later, the boy who dreamed of of the classic movies of that time and of
being in movies is now an award-winning years prior were on television. I watched
actor featured in many movies, television them, the ones I really liked, as it turned
shows and has even lent his voice to video out when I got older were the ones that
games. had become classics. Some would say kind of unique because I never saw color,
Haysbert’s tall frame and athletic build that they were instant classics, but back it was all around me, I grew up during
has helped him play the roles of many then, I had no idea what that was. When the civil rights era, I was a very young
athletes and military officers in many of I was about ten years old I was wat- boy for that period. I even remember
his movie and television appearances. In ching movies such as Guns of Navarone, when Martin Luther King was killed.
his very first television appearance White Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, On the It was an eerie time, but me personally,
Shadow, Haysbert was cast as a basket- Waterfront, To Catch a Thief, The Young I always saw people as people. I guess
ball player and in his first big movie, Ma- Lions and Lilies of the Field. That sort that affected the kind of actors I liked; I
jor League, was cast as a baseball player. of served me, as somewhat of a model identified actors by height, the sound of
Haysbert has made several appearances in as what I wanted my career to be like. their voice and also by the color of their
a variety of television shows and movies I liked a whole slew of actors and they skin at times. I identified with Sidney
such as: Waiting to Exhale, Heat, Random weren’t necessarily black. I guess I was Poitier, ‘here’s a black man, he’s articu-
70 www.blackeoejournal.com The Black E.O.E. Journal
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