- published: 29 Sep 2015
- views: 2984036
Forest Steven Whitaker (born July 15, 1961) is an American actor, producer, and director. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh on the gritty, award-winning television series, The Shield. Whitaker won an Academy Award for his performance as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the 2006 film The Last King of Scotland. Whitaker has also won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA.
Whitaker was born in Longview, Texas, and his family moved to South Central Los Angeles when he was four. His father, Forest Whitaker, Jr., was an insurance salesman and the son of novelist Forest Whitaker, Sr. His mother, Laura Francis (née Smith), was a special education teacher who put herself through college and earned two Masters degrees while raising her children. Whitaker has two younger brothers, Kenn and Damon, and an older sister, Deborah.
As a teenager, Whitaker commuted from Carson to wealthy Palisades High School on LA's West Side. There, he was all-league defensive tackle on the football team quarterbacked by Jay Schroeder, a future NFL player. While in high school, he also took voice lessons, performed in musicals, and caught the "acting bug"; his first role as an actor was the lead in Dylan Thomas' play, Under Milk Wood. Whitaker graduated from "Pali High" in 1979.
Yeah, you turned me on
Felt like I was born
Into a new life but now I am on my own
It`s been a wild time
Didn`t see the sunshine
Now I just like to be on my own
Think I`ve been blinded
Didn`t realize me behind
Your game changed my feelings
And gave me new wings
Like a bird I was sailing
Through the waves I felt save
In your lovely arms
But I didn`t believe
What I got to give
For this emotional flight
You tried to shine on your light
On me made me blind
My head I couldn`t find my soul
Yeah, it`s been a nice dream
Didn`t wake up and I seem
Loosing my mind left all of my life behind
Couldn`t see clearly
Knocked out my brain nearly