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Hello, Posse!
I hope you had a great weekend, I'm in bed sick with a stomach bug so I am going to make this a quick blog today.
2022 has gotten off to a bang but not in a good way. We lost a treasure in Betty White when she passed just before the new year. That should have been a clue as to how the year was going to start. Since the change to 2022, we have lost Peter Bogdanovich, Bob Saget, and
Sidney Poitier.
Poitier was the first Bahamian-American actor of color to be awarded an Academy Award for Best Actor in 1964 for his work in Lilies of the Field. He was not only a beloved actor but also a director and an ambassador. In his career he would also go on to be awarded Golden Globe Awards, a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), and he even won a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for The Measure of a Man. He served as a member of the board of directors for The Walt Disney Company from 1995 to 2003.
Poitier was a civil rights icon, opening doors and busting stereotypes throughout his career. He not only inspired a nation but also inspired a DC hero in John Stewart, one of the Green Lanterns. This man lived an incredible life and no matter how long I make this blog, I could not do him justice.
Poitier has a long list of credits which include comedies, dramas, and even a few westerns. Todays movie, Buck and the Preacher was released in 1972. This movie stars Poitier, Harry Belafonte, and Ruby Dee. This was also Poitiers directorial debut. This film was known for breaking tradition by casting actors of color in the main roles and showed them working with Native Americans.
The film takes place at the end of the Civil War. Buck (Poitier) is a former soldier who is now a trail guide. He works helping former slaves relocate in the West. He crosses paths with the Preacher (Belafonte) who is a con-artist. The preacher joins the group Buck is taking on the trial to help them find new places to settle. The Preacher causes conflicts with Buck along the way. When the group encounters bounty hunters who are looking to recapture freed slaves to take them back to Louisiana, Buck and the Preacher have to work together to save the day.
Poitier was also in westerns Duel at Diablo and the TV mini series Children of the Dust which we will look at in later blogs.
Movie Snack Recipe
I wanted to share a snack recipe from the Bahamas to celebrate Poitiers home origins. He was born in Miami while his parents were on a trip to the US but he grew up in the Bahamas. Most of the interesting recipes I found use conch. However, due to over fishing, conch can be hard to find in many areas including the US. I did find this great recipe from Spoon Fork Bacon that takes the traditional conch fritters you can find in the Bahamas and changes it slightly with more easily found ingredients.
Be sure to go to Spoon Fork Bacon and try their Shrimp Fritter Recipe. They pair their fritters with a spicy honey drizzle. The recipe is linked on their recipe page. You can be inventive and try different dips to give the entire dish a new taste. Try a bourbon barbecue sauce, sweet chili sauce, and maybe even a wasabi or Sriracha mayo. Let your imagination run with this.
Don't Forget
If you like US historical fiction that takes place around the Civil War era, be sure to check out all of my Into the West Saga Serial books. You can find them all HERE.
Now, you know what time it is, posse. It's time to grab your snacks and settle in for another great western movie.
Enjoy,
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