Summary
In preparing for the role, Washington sat down face-to-face with [Frank Lucas] who served 15 years in prison before helping to bring down an entire division of NYC's dirty cops. "They were gangsters with badges," says Washington. "I got him (Lucas) in a room and turned on the recorder. I just wanted to get him alone and get the truth. I remember telling him-don't tell me anything I don't need to know. I don't wanna have to testify."
What's interesting about Washington's acting path is how he cleverly seems to balance his roles. He's made his career playing good strong characters. Remember: Rubin "Hurricane" Carter in The Hurricane, Antwone Fisher, Steven Biko in Cry Freedom, Malcolm in Spike Lee's Malcolm X, and Coach Herman Boone in Remember the Titans.Although it's unusual for this Hollywood star to get involved politically, Washington says he knows [Clinton I. Young Jr.] is a good man whose heart is in the right place. "He's helping young people make some positive contributions and that's what's needed right now," said Washington. More than 1,000 people showed up to see Washington support his good friend.[...] the big question floating around Hollywood this fall is this: should Denzel Washington-America's favorite movie star, according to a 2006 Harris Poll-get ready to make room for Oscar number three? A third win would firmly solidify Washington's place as the most Oscar-winning and most nominated Black actor in Motion Picture Academy history. [...] tell that to critics who are generating quite a buzz about Washington's American Gangster, his new movie, which hits theaters across the country and around the world November 2nd Quite frankly, in Gangster, Washington transforms and somehow has you rooting for real-life Harlem cult hero, Frank Lucas, the movie's main character and highly successful and prolific heroin dealer, who in the late '60s created his own version of the American dream and became a power player among New York city's elite-criminal and otherwise.See the full content of this document
Extract
The Other Side of Hollywood
Hollywood's Most Oscar-Winning Black Actor - Denzel Washington Poised to Make History
Is this the year for Oscar Number Three?His two Oscars stand shoulder-toshoulder on a mantle inside his sprawling Beverly Hills mansion. They are visible to any visitor. They are bright shiny beacon...See the full content of this document
