When Joanna Drayton (Katharine Houghton), a free-thinking white woman, and black doctor John Prentice (Sidney Poitier) become engaged, they travel to San Francisco to meet her parents. Matt Drayton (Spencer Tracy) and his wife Christina (Katharine Hepburn) are wealthy liberals who must confront the latent racism the coming marriage arouses. Also attending the Draytons’ dinner are Prentice’s parents (Roy E. Glenn Sr., Beah Richards), who vehemently disapprove of the relationship.
Join the WHBPAC every Thursday afternoon for a series of films celebrating the legacies of the late great stars of the screen. After each screening, discuss the mark each star left on cinema, television, or culture with fellow attendees in our lounge.
Sidney Poitier, K.B.E., was the first black man to win an Academy Award for Best Actor (Lilies of the Field). His prodigious body of work established him as the first black matinée idol, and his career in Hollywood spanned 76 years. After starring in three major hits in 1967, he turned his attention behind the camera, where he once again found box office success with Uptown Saturday Night (1974), Let’s Do It Again (1975), and Stir Crazy (1980). His talent, his refusal to play to stereotypes, and his general likability helped to ensure that he broke down barriers in an industry that still has problems with racial representation and bias.
