who s in hollywood. sophie, sidney poitier s influence on the movie industry immense, but his legacy transcends hollywood. yeah, clive, it is hard to overstate the strength and depth of prejudice that sidney poitier overcame to go from being a tomato farmer s son who moved to new york city with $3 in his pocket to be the highest paid actor in the world while the civil rights movement was still making headway in the united states. he changed perceptions of race, first black male star to engage the american national consciousness at a time when the prevailing image of a movie star was very much of someone white. and he was acutely aware of the power and responsibility that came with his fame and fortune. he once said he felt like he was representing 18 million people with every move he made. there has, of course, been a huge outpouring of