May 27, 1936 - Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
Louis Gossett Jr. (born May 27, 1936 - March 29, 2024) was an American film and television actor, best known for his role as Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley in the movie "An Officer and a Gentleman" and as Fiddler in the television miniseries "Roots". He has won an Academy Award, an Emmy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards in an acting career that spans over five decades.
Media | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Movie | 1992 | Iron Eagle III | Charles 'Chappy' Sinclair | |
| Movie | 1977 | Freeman | Rex | |
| Movie | 2007 | The 50 Greatest Television Dramas | Self | |
| Movie | 1987 | The Principal | Jake Phillips | |
| Movie | 1982 | An Officer and a Gentleman | Sergeant Emil Foley | |
| Movie | 1991 | Toy Soldiers | Dean Parker | |
| Movie | 2003 | Momentum | Raymond Addison | |
| Movie | 1977 | The Deep | Henri Cloche | |
| Movie | 1986 | Iron Eagle | Charles 'Chappy' Sinclair | |
| Movie | 1984 | Finders Keepers | Century | |
| Movie | 2008 | Delgo | King Zahn (voice) | |
| Movie | 1971 | Skin Game | Jason O'Rourke | |
| Movie | 1972 | Travels with My Aunt | Wordsworth | |
| Movie | 1974 | The White Dawn | Portagee | |
| Movie | 2000 | The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence | Frank | |
| Movie | 1988 | Iron Eagle II | Charles 'Chappy' Sinclair | |
| Movie | 1985 | Enemy Mine | Jeriba 'Jerry' Shigan | |
| Movie | 1989 | The Punisher | Jake Berkowitz | |
| Movie | 1986 | Firewalker | Leo Porter | |
| Movie | 1960 | The New Girl | Mary's Brother | |
| Movie | 2006 | Solar Attack | President Ryan Gordon | |
| Movie | 1995 | Iron Eagle on the Attack | Charles 'Chappy' Sinclair | |
| Movie | 2010 | Why Did I Get Married Too? | Porter | |
| Movie | 1982 | I Love Liberty | Self | |
| Movie | 1973 | The Laughing Policeman | Insp. James Larrimore SFPD | |
| Movie | 1961 | A Raisin in the Sun | George Murchison | |
| Movie | 2009 | Why We Laugh: Black Comedians on Black Comedy | Self | |
| Movie | 1976 | J.D.'s Revenge | Rev. Elija Bliss | |
| Movie | 2007 | Daddy's Little Girls | Willie | |
| Movie | 2005 | Left Behind: World at War | President Geral Fitzhugh | |
| Movie | 1970 | The Landlord | Copee Johnson | |
| Movie | 1999 | Y2K | Morgan | |
| Movie | 2006 | Club Soda | Doc | |
| Movie | 1983 | Jaws 3-D | Calvin Bouchard | |
| Movie | 2009 | The Least Among You | Samuel Benton | |
| Movie | 2020 | Miracle in East Texas | Irving Tanner Jr. | |
| Movie | 1977 | The Choirboys | Calvin Motts | |
| Movie | 2006 | All In | Caps | |
| Movie | 1992 | Diggstown | "Honey" Roy Palmer | |
| Movie | 1990 | El Diablo | Van Leek | |
| Movie | 2011 | Dog Jack | Grown up Jed | |
| Movie | 2007 | Cover | Detective Hicks | |
| Movie | 2022 | Three Months | Benny | |
| Movie | 1996 | Managua | Paul | |
| Movie | 2009 | The Perfect Game | Cool Papa Bell | |
| Movie | 1976 | The River Niger | Dr. Dudley Stanton | |
| Movie | 1987 | A Gathering of Old Men | Mathu | |
| Movie | 2012 | Smitty | Mr. Smith | |
| Movie | 1991 | Cover-Up | Lou Jackson | |
| Movie | 1991 | The Josephine Baker Story | Sidney Williams | |
| Movie | 1988 | Roots: The Gift | Fiddler | |
| Movie | N/A | Gridiron Gang | Host | |
| Movie | 2002 | Deceived | Col. David Garrett | |
| Movie | 1993 | Monolith | Capt. MacCandless | |
| Movie | 2023 | The Color Purple | Ol' Mister | |
| Movie | 1978 | The Lazarus Syndrome | Dr. MacArthur St. Clair | |
| Movie | 1977 | Little Ladies of the Night | Russ Garfield | |
| Movie | 1991 | Carolina Skeletons | James Bragg | |
| Movie | 1975 | Black Bart | Black Bart | |
| Movie | 1974 | It's Good to Be Alive | Sam Brockington | |
| Movie | 1990 | Sudie and Simpson | Simpson | |
| Movie | 2005 | Lackawanna Blues | Ol'lem Taylor | |
| Movie | 1997 | In His Father's Shoes | Frank Crosby / Richard | |
| Movie | 1998 | Legend of the Mummy | Corbeck | |
| Movie | 1994 | Flashfire | Ben Durand | |
| Movie | 1969 | The Bushbaby | Tembo | |
| Movie | 2024 | IF | Lewis (voice) | |
| Movie | 1994 | Curse of the Starving Class | Ellis | |
| Movie | 1996 | Run for the Dream: The Gail Devers Story | Bob Kersee | |
| Movie | 1993 | Father & Son: Dangerous Relations | ||
| Movie | 1995 | A Father for Charlie | Walter Osgood | |
| Movie | 2000 | The Color of Love: Jacey's Story | Lou Hastings | |
| Movie | 1974 | Sidekicks | Jason O'Rourke | |
| Movie | 1984 | The Guardian | John Mack | |
| Movie | 2021 | I Forgive | God (voice) | |
| Movie | 1987 | The Father Clements Story | ||
| Movie | 1998 | The Inspectors | Inspector Frank Hughes | |
| Movie | 1995 | The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies | Self | |
| Movie | 2014 | The Dependables | Lou Jones | |
| Movie | 2022 | Sidney | Self | |
| Movie | 1988 | Sam Found Out: A Triple Play | Sam | |
| Movie | 1975 | Delancey Street: The Crisis Within | Otis James | |
| Movie | 1994 | Blue Chips | Father Dawkins (uncredited) | |
| Movie | 1996 | Inside | Questioner | |
| Movie | 2001 | For Love of Olivia | Daniel Stewart | |
| Movie | 2013 | Miracle at Gate 213 | Roy Peddington | |
| Movie | 1980 | It Rained All Night the Day I Left | Leo Garcia | |
| Movie | 2008 | Stanley Kramer: A Man's Search for Truth | Self | |
| Movie | 1994 | A Good Man in Africa | Prof. Sam Adekunle | |
| Movie | N/A | Everbrook (The Home) | ||
| Movie | 2023 | Outlaw Johnny Black | Reverend Tharrington (voice) (uncredited) | |
| Movie | 1988 | Goodbye, Miss 4th of July | Big John Creed | |
| Movie | 2015 | Boiling Pot | Detective Haven | |
| Movie | 1968 | Companions in Nightmare | Lt. Adam McKay | |
| Movie | 1996 | Captive Heart: The James Mink Story | James Mink | |
| Movie | 1992 | Liberators: Fighting on Two Fronts in World War II | Reader | |
| Movie | 2004 | The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made | Rev. Elija Bliss (archive footage) | |
| Movie | 2014 | A Fighting Man | Cubby | |
| Movie | 1997 | To Dance with Olivia | Daniel Stewart | |
| Movie | N/A | Straight Up | Cosmo | |
| Movie | 2017 | Double Play | Coco | |
| Movie | 2000 | The Highwayman | Phil Bishop | |
| Movie | 1995 | Kings of the Ring: Four Legends of Heavyweight Boxing | Narrator | |
| Movie | 2016 | Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise | Self | |
| Movie | 1979 | Lawman Without a Gun | Tom Hayward | |
| Movie | 2017 | Undercover Grandpa | Mother | |
| Movie | 2018 | Breaking Brooklyn | Miles Bryant | |
| Movie | 1990 | Zora is My Name! | ||
| Movie | 2017 | King of the Dancehall | The Bishop | |
| Movie | 2019 | Hal | Self | |
| Movie | 2017 | Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes / Feeling Heart | Self | |
| Movie | 2008 | The Black List: Volume One | Self | |
| Movie | 1994 | Ray Alexander: A Taste For Justice | Ray Alexander | |
| Movie | 1995 | Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder | Ray Alexander | |
| Movie | 1991 | Keeper of the City | Det. James Dela | |
| Movie | 1999 | Strange Justice | Vernon Jordan | |
| Movie | 2002 | What About Your Friends: Weekend Get-Away | Dr. Barnes | |
| Movie | 2019 | Supervized | Pendle | |
| Movie | 2016 | A.C. Green: Iron Virgin | Himself | |
| Movie | 1981 | Don't Look Back: The Story of Leroy "Satchel" Paige | Leroy 'Satchel' Paige | |
| Movie | 2019 | The Gang Activists | Self | |
| Movie | 2014 | And the Oscar Goes To... | Self (archive footage) | |
| Movie | 1995 | Zooman | Rueben Tate | |
| Movie | 2020 | The Cuban | Luis Garcia | |
| Movie | 2003 | Jasper, Texas | R.C. Horn | |
| Movie | 1999 | Love Songs | Reuben | |
| Movie | 1982 | Benny's Place | Benny Moore | |
| Movie | 2011 | The Grace Card | George Wright | |
| Movie | 2019 | Foster Boy | Judge George Taylor | |
| Movie | 2020 | The Reason | Pastor Jim | |
| Movie | 2008 | A Love Story of Today | Self | |
| Movie | 2008 | A Special Kind of Love | Self | |
| Movie | 1983 | The Making of Jaws 3-D: Sharks Don't Die | narrator | |
| Movie | 2007 | Stories USA | Doc (segment "Club Soda") | |
| Movie | N/A | Crimes of Violence | Self - Host | |
| Movie | N/A | Forget to Remember | ||
| Movie | 2021 | Not to Forget | Pastor John | |
| Movie | 1978 | To Kill a Cop | Everett Walker | |
| Movie | 2012 | The Undershepherd | Bishop Redford | |
| Movie | 1998 | Small Steps, Big Strides: The Black Experience in Hollywood | Self | |
| Movie | 2009 | Amazing Racer | Max Donovan | |
| Movie | 1987 | Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood | Self | |
| Movie | 2001 | Dr. Lucille | ||
| TV Show | 1990 | Captain Planet and the Planeteers | Commander Clash (voice) | 2 |
| TV Show | 1974 | Good Times | 2 | |
| TV Show | 1972 | The Rookies | 1 | |
| TV Show | 2002 | Half & Half | Ray Willis | 2 |
| TV Show | 1999 | Family Guy | Drill Sargent (voice) | 1 |
| TV Show | 2002 | The Dead Zone | Pastor David Lewis | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | Little House on the Prairie | 1 | |
| TV Show | 2004 | The Batman | Lucius Fox (voice) | 3 |
| TV Show | 1996 | Early Edition | Jim Matthews | 1 |
| TV Show | 1975 | The Jeffersons | 1 | |
| TV Show | 1971 | Alias Smith and Jones | 1 | |
| TV Show | 1962 | The Merv Griffin Show | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1969 | The Bill Cosby Show | Hurricane Smith | 1 |
| TV Show | 1997 | Stargate SG-1 | Gerak | 5 |
| TV Show | 1993 | Return to Lonesome Dove | Isom Pickett | 4 |
| TV Show | 1979 | Backstairs at the White House | Levi Mercer, Houseman | 4 |
| TV Show | 1994 | ER | Leo Malcolm | 1 |
| TV Show | 1989 | Gideon Oliver | 5 | |
| TV Show | 1973 | Police Story | 2 | |
| TV Show | 1970 | McCloud | 1 | |
| TV Show | 1970 | The Young Rebels | 15 | |
| TV Show | 1982 | The Powers of Matthew Star | Walter "Walt" Shepherd (D'Hai) | 22 |
| TV Show | 1977 | Roots | Fiddler | 3 |
| TV Show | 1980 | Palmerstown, U.S.A. | 1 | |
| TV Show | 1973 | The American Film Institute Salute to ... | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1953 | The Oscars | Self | 2 |
| TV Show | 1979 | The Lazarus Syndrome | MacArthur St. Clair | 10 |
| TV Show | 2005 | Black in the 80s | 3 | |
| TV Show | 1975 | Saturday Night Live | Self - Host | 1 |
| TV Show | 2006 | Psych | Lloyd Marr | 1 |
| TV Show | 2014 | Extant | Quinn | 4 |
| TV Show | 2010 | Hawaii Five-0 | Lou's father | 1 |
| TV Show | 2015 | The Book of Negroes | Daddy Moses | 6 |
| TV Show | 2015 | The Spoils Before Dying | Duke Webster | 6 |
| TV Show | 2017 | The Good Fight | Carl Reddick | 1 |
| TV Show | 1948 | The Ed Sullivan Show | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | The Six Million Dollar Man | O'Flaherty | 1 |
| TV Show | 1983 | Sadat | Anwar al-Sadat | 2 |
| TV Show | 1959 | Bonanza | Buck Walter | 1 |
| TV Show | 1996 | Promised Land | Anderson Walker | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | The Rockford Files | Marcus Aurelius Hayes / O'Brien | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | The Rockford Files | Marcus Aurelius 'Gabby' Hayes | 1 |
| TV Show | 2009 | Celebrity Ghost Stories | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1998 | Hercules | Chiron (voice) | 1 |
| TV Show | 1988 | American Experience | Self - Narrator | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | Petrocelli | Kurt Olson, DA | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | Petrocelli | District Attorney Kurt Olson | 1 |
| TV Show | 1971 | Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law | Lt. Carl Fellows | 1 |
| TV Show | 1970 | The Partridge Family | Sam Simon | 1 |
| TV Show | 1969 | Love, American Style | Freddy | 1 |
| TV Show | 1969 | The Bold Ones: The New Doctors | Dr. Karnes | 1 |
| TV Show | 1968 | The Mod Squad | Smitty | 1 |
| TV Show | 1968 | The Mod Squad | Lloyd | 1 |
| TV Show | 1968 | The Mod Squad | Charley Jameson | 1 |
| TV Show | 1967 | Cowboy in Africa | Fulah | 1 |
| TV Show | 1967 | Cowboy in Africa | Joseph Hemera | 1 |
| TV Show | 1966 | Daktari | Mkono | 1 |
| TV Show | 1962 | The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson | Self | 2 |
| TV Show | 1961 | The Mike Douglas Show | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1967 | The Invaders | Ollie | 1 |
| TV Show | 1978 | The Critical List | Lem Harper | 2 |
| TV Show | 1977 | Please Turn the Page | Self | 1 |
| TV Show | 1994 | Ellen | Sgt. Timko | 1 |
| TV Show | 1994 | Touched by an Angel | Anderson Walker | 1 |
| TV Show | 2019 | Watchmen | Old Man / Will Reeves | 7 |
| TV Show | 1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Nominee | 1 |
| TV Show | 1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Audience Member | 2 |
| TV Show | 1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Presenter | 2 |
| TV Show | 1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Host | 1 |
| TV Show | 1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Nominee / Presenter | 1 |
| TV Show | 1974 | Harry O | Cleon Jackson | 1 |
| TV Show | 2014 | Madam Secretary | Father Laurent Vasseur | 1 |
Media | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Movie | 1996 | Inside | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 1997 | In His Father's Shoes | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 2001 | For Love of Olivia | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 1997 | To Dance with Olivia | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 2000 | The Color of Love: Jacey's Story | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 2024 | IF | In Memory Of | Crew |
| Movie | 1995 | A Father for Charlie | Executive Producer | Production |
| Movie | 1999 | Love Songs | Director | Directing |
| TV Show | 1982 | The Powers of Matthew Star | Director | Directing |
