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Jet, March 4, 2002

For the first time in 30 years, three Black actors have been nominated for Oscars for leading roles.

Denzel Washington, Halle Berry and Will Smith have made history with their powerful performances in major movies this year.

This year also marks the first time two Black men have been nominated as Best Actor in the same year. And Berry is the first Black woman nominated in the Best Actress category since Angela Bassett in 1993 for her portrayal of Tina Turner in What's Love Got To Do With It.

Washington stars as a tough, corrupt cop in Training Day. Berry stars as a poor waitress struggling to keep her life together in Monster's Ball. And Smith portrays the world's most famous boxing legend, Muhammad Ali in Ali.

The last time three Black actors competed in the leading role categories for Oscars was in 1972 when Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield, who starred in Sounder, and Diana Ross, who starred as jazz legend Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues, were nominated. Tyson and Ross were nominated in the Best Actress category and Winfield was nominated as Best Actor. The film Sounder was also nominated as Best Film.

Washington says this year's nominations were based on merit.

"I am happy for Will and Halle. What I see more is that three good performances were recognized. I think that it would have been more significant if Halle and Will didn't get recognized. All these nominations should mean is that we deserve to be there."

With his new nomination, Washington has been nominated five times. He won an Oscar in 1990 as Best Supporting Actor for Glory. "It also feels good to me, like I am the elder statesman for the group, because I have been there before," he notes.

Washington received an Oscar nomination as Best Actor for his portrayal of leader Malcolm X in Spike Lee's 1992 blockbuster Malcolm X. He received another Best Actor Oscar nomination for 1999's The Hurricane, the true story of boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter who was imprisoned for a crime he did not commit. Washington also received a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his role as activist Steve Biko in Cry Freedom in 1989.

Washington describes his tough, bad guy character in Training Day: "I don't look at my character as unlikable ... just misguided. I guess in this case being bad has been good to me." He adds, "I pick roles that I like. I pick roles based on good scripts. I guess being the bad guy was a change, but I look at it in terms of the quality of the material."

Washington points out, "Any nomination is a good thing. It means the Academy and my peers recognized me. Now we have to leave it in the hands of the judges."

Smith told USA Today: "For the three of us to get nominated, it already feels like a victory. It feels historic. There have been many Black actors just as deserving as I am--or more so--but for whatever reason didn't get nominated."

Smith added, "That Hollywood even made Ali is a sign things are changing. This is a big-budget film about a controversial Muslim. When I was on the set and saw nearly the whole cast was Black, I couldn't help but smile. I was giggling through the whole thing."

Smith believes, "Succeed in a commercial film and it gives you the chance to do films that may not make $100 million at the box office, but are important stories that advance the culture."

Smith noted in USA Today that the academy likely ignores Black performances "because most of the 8,000 members are White, and you vote for what you associate with. If Black people are voting, then a Black person will probably win. If a Chinese person is voting, then a Chinese person will probably win. It's not racism. It's what we relate to." He hopes the nominations will encourage more minorities to join the Screen Actors Guild.

"I've been eligible for eight years, and I only joined last year," he said.

Berry also views their nominations as a step forward for Blacks in Hollywood. "Never in my life did I think I'd be nominated for an Oscar. Women of color are rarely seen at these kinds of things. What this means to me is that things are changing."

Only six Black performers have received the coveted award since the Academy of Motion Picture and Sciences began handing out Oscars in 1927. They are Hattie McDaniel, Sidney Poitier, Louis Gossett Jr., Denzel Washington, Whoopi Goldberg and Cuba Gooding Jr.

McDaniel became the first Black to win the prestigious film honor in 1939 for Best Supporting Actress in Gone With The Wind, and she was the first Black ever nominated.

More than two decades passed before another Black actor won an Oscar. Sidney Poitier was named the Best Actor in 1963 for his role in Lilies of the Field. He remains the first and only Black actor to win an Oscar as Best Actor.

The last Black actor to win an Oscar was Cuba Gooding Jr. as Best Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire in 1997.

NAACP President Kweisi Mfume, who has been pushing for more opportunities for Blacks in the entertainment industry, was pleased with the nominations.

"It's progress and we are certainly glad to see this," Mfume told JET. "I am happy about it, encouraged by it and would like to believe that this is the beginning of a new era. I'm hoping that given the climate and the new awareness that has been created around this issue of diversity, this won't be something that will be here today and gone tomorrow."