J-Speaks: The Passing of a Young, Iconic Actor and Person

 

The world at the start of this past weekend said goodbye far too soon to one of the proudest and most wonderful actors of our current day, who played some of the most iconic African Americans in our history. He was a person who through his work and his humility earned the respect of the fans that watched him on the silver screen, to those that he worked with in those great films. Above all he was an incredible person who brought his best even though privately he was not at his best health wise as later revealed.

On Friday, the world suddenly said goodbye to actor and Howard University alum Chadwick Boseman, whose rose to superstardom as King T’Challa in the 2018 Marvel Movie “Black Panther” died after a four-year private battle from Stage IV colon cancer. He was 43 years old and is survived by his wife in singer Taylor Simone, who he secretly married in the months before his death. The two did not have any children.

“It is with immeasurable grief that we confirm the passing of Chadwick Boseman,” his family stated on Mr. Boseman’s Twitter page @chadwickboseman on Friday night at 10:1 p.m.

“Chadwick was diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer in 2016 and battled with it these last 4 years as it progressed to Stage IV. A true fighter, Chadwick persevered through it all, and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much. From ‘Marshall’ to ‘Da 5 Bloods,’ August Wilson’s Ma Rainey Black Bottom and several more, all were filmed during and between countless surgeries and chemotherapy.”

“It was the honor of his career to bring King T’Challa to life in ‘Black Panther. He died in his home with his wife and family by his side. The family thanks you for your love and prayers and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time.”

To put how big of news this was on social media into context, Twitter confirmed that this tweet from Boseman’s family was the most liked Tweet ever at 472.6K, with 82.2K people that tweeted about this news with the message “A tribute fit for a King. #WakandaForever.”

Boseman was first diagnosed with Stage 3 Colon cancer four years ago, that would develop into Stage 4 Colon cancer.

The last image of Boseman was taken on June 19 where he appeared frail as he was being pushed in a wheelchair wrapped in blankets outside of a Santa Monica, CA hospital.

He somewhat revealed what he was going through when he told Entertainment Tonight’s (ET’s) Kevin Frazier at the International Comic Con Convention in San Diego, CA in 2017 about the iconic African Americans he portrayed on the silver screen saying, “To be honest with you, I’m just trying to take care of myself in between. That’s the main thing.”

“It is difficult but, you know, would I rather be doing anything else? Nah.”

 

In his last interview with ET’s in November 2019, Boseman talked about the future of the “Black Panther” franchise saying while promoting his latest project then “21 Bridges” saying, “That’s none of y’all’s business man, you know? You talk about Marvel like some actors don’t see the script the whole time. So, can’t tell you that.”

On that day also, Hip Hollywood asked about Boseman’s much thinner physique, to which he said that he had been doing a lot of running.

Boseman looked very thin in when he took to Instagram in April posting a video in commemoration on what is typically Jackie Robinson Day in Major League Baseball (MLB), fans were very shocked and alarmed about his dramatic weight loss.

Because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic, the day honoring the late great Mr. Robinson took place last Friday.

He took that time to show his respect for Mr. Robinson saying while wearing a No. 42 dark blue baseball cap, “I can’t think of a better time to remember my hero.”

Two months later in June, Boseman was noticeably absent from Press Day for Academy Award winning director Spike Lee’s Netflix film “Da 5 Bloods.”

Lee, who also wrote the film said on YouTube that he had no clue that Boseman was ill when shooting in the spring of 2019, saying that he never complained and he was on set every single minute of filming. 

Over the weekend, many paid tributes to the actor who portrayed iconic African Americans in the late great baseball legend Jackie Robinson and the late great Supreme Court judge Thurgood Marshall.

The marquee at the famed Apollo Theater in paying respect to Boseman had the message “Rest in Peace Beloved Actor and Friend Chadwick Boseman.”

Actor and director Jordan Peele posted on his Twitter page @JordanPeele, “This is a crushing blow.”

Democratic Presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden tweeted @JoeBiden, “The true power of @ChadwickBoseman was bigger than anything we saw on screen. From Black Panther to Jackie Robinson, he inspired generations and showed them they can be anything they want—even superheroes. Jill and I are praying for his loved ones at this difficult time.”

Biden’s running mate and fellow Howard University alum Kamala Harris tweeted @KamalaHarris, “Heartbroken. My friend and fellow Bison Chadwick Boseman was brilliant, kind, learned, and humble. He left too early but his life made a difference. Sending my sincere condolences to his family.

Born in Anderson, SC on Nov. 29, 1976 to a nurse Carolyn and Leroy, who was a textile factory worker, Boseman’s journey into acting began in his junior year at T.L. Hanna High School where he wrote his first play, Crossroads, and it was staged following the death of a fellow classmate from a gunshot.

After graduating from T.L. High, Boseman attended the historically black college Howard University in Washington, D.C. where he graduated with his bachelor’s degree in Directing.

One of his professors at Howard was Phylicia Rashad, who we all come to know for her role as Claire Huxtable on the 1980s sitcom “The Cosby Show.”

Ms. Rashad was not only her student, but she became Boseman’s mentor, and he along with Academy Award winning actor Denzel Washington helped to raise funds for Boseman and some of his classmates for the opportunity to attend the Oxford Mid-Summer Program of the British American Drama Academy in London.

Boseman’s initial dream was to write and direct, and he first studied acting in order to learn how to relate to other actors.

After he returned to the U.S., Boseman graduated from the Digital Film Academy in New York, NY.

He then worked as a drama instructor in the Schomburg Junior Scholars Program that was housed at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, NY.

His first break into television came in 2003 in an episode of the NBC crime drama Third Watch. He also that year portrayed the role of Reggie Montgomery, the stepson to Susan Lucci’s famed character Erica Cane on the ABC daytime soap opera All My Children. He was fired from that role stating years later because he expressed his concerns to the producers about the racist stereotypes in the script. The role was subsequently re-cast and given to Boseman’s eventual co-star in “Black Panther” Michael B. Jordan, who ET learned that he is “struggling” and “trying to comprehend the loss…” While also figuring out the appropriate way to honor Boseman’s legacy.

“We had a chance to talk about it, and it was like we had a good laugh about it,” Jordan, who played the rival character N’Jadaka/Erik “Killmonger” Stevens in “Black Panther” said to “ET” back in 2018 about that time. “So, we were actually wondering when everybody else was going to figure it out.”  

Boseman’s other early work included roles on NBC’s Law & Order; CBS’s CSI: NY; and NBC’s ER. He also continued to write plays, where his script for “Deep Azure” was performed at the Congo Square Theatre Company in Chicago, IL, which was nominated for a 2006 Joseph Jefferson Award for New York. 

In 2008, Boseman moved to Los Angeles to fully pursing acting, and his first recurring role came on the now Freeform series Lincoln Heights, in the role as Nathaniel “Nate” Ray. He also appeared in his first feature film “The Express: The Ernie Davis Story.

Boseman’s first steady gig came in 2010 in another television series in the NBC mystery serial drama Person’s Unknown as Sergeant McNair.

Boseman’s first major break came in 2013 in the Warner Bros. biopic “42,” where he portrayed the baseball glass ceiling breaker and star Jackie Robinson.

While auditioning for the role though, Boseman had been directing an off-Broadway play in East Village, NY and considered giving up acting to pursue directing on a full-time basis.

Those plans changed when director of “42” Brian Helgeland chose Boseman for the role of Mr. Robinson after his second audition because he liked Boseman’s bravery.

“I can’t wait for my mom and dad to see it,” Boseman said to ET back in 2013. “I want them to see it at the premiere. My dad, you know, who is a baseball fan watching me play baseball.”

Boseman at the premiere, which was also his first big red carpet told ET that it was a little overwhelming calling it, “a lot.” He also said that he was “nervous” but he was taking it one thing at a time.

Boseman got the seal of approval from Mr. Robinson’s widow Rachel when she said that seeing him perform on the silver screen as her late husband was like seeing him again.

When Boseman passed as mentioned on Friday, it was on the same day that MLB recognized as Jackie Robinson Day, and on the 57^th Anniversary of the March on Washington

“We are devastated by the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman,” Major League Baseball (MLB) tweeted @MLB. “His transcendent performance in “42” will stand the test of time and serve as a powerful vehicle to tell Jackie’s story to audiences for generations to come.” 

A few weeks before “42” premiered in theaters, the indie movie that Boseman also starred in “The Kill Hole” was released.

In 2014, Boseman took on the role of the “Godfather of Soul” in the James Brown biopic “Get on Up,” where he did some if not all his own dancing.

Two years later, Boseman played the role that brought him to mainstream prominence as the Marvel Comics character T’Challa/Black Panther first in “Captain America: Civil War,” in his first of a five-picture deal with Marvel.

“I didn’t have enough time with Chadwick. I mean that’s a statement that I know everyone’s making, and everyone can make because he was here far too short of time,” Don Cheadle, who played James “Rhodey” Rhodes/War Machine said of his colleague in “Avengers: End Game.” “He was consistently funny and thoughtful, and genuine, and generous.”  

Fellow colleague in “Avengers: End Game” Scarlett Johansen, who played Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow called Boseman a “deeply kind” person who was gentle, very present, and thoughtful to everyone, which were upfront in his work on screen.

Mark Ruffalo, who played the Hulk in “Avengers: End Game” called Boseman a “historical figure” as the Black Panther, who was also a “good and decent” human being.

In 2017, Boseman played the aforementioned Supreme Court Justice and fellow Howard University alum Thurgood Marshall in “Marshall.”

During production of the film, Boseman grew incredible close to co-stars Sterling K. Brown and Josh Gad, who poured out all their emotions about the passing of their colleague.

“He was just a good dude,” Brown said of Boseman on Instagram.

Gad, shedding tears said on his Instagram concurred saying of Boseman, “There aren’t words to express what an amazing human being Chadwick Boseman was.”

In 2018, Boseman headlined Marvel’s “Black Panther,” with the movie focusing on Boseman’s character King T’Challa and his home country of Wakanda in Africa.

This movie was hyped to a point that it became a worldwide phenomenon, where everyone was talking about from kids, tweens, teens, young adults to adults.

It especially struck a chord with African Americans who for the first time saw a superhero that looked like them. Who had the heart, determination, and charisma that made you stand up, and take be special? That allowed you to dream to be more than your circumstances.

It also hit a lot of those young kids to their core when they learned of the hero, who they saw on the silver screen passing suddenly on Friday.

Many parents posted photos on social media of their kids dressed as the Black Panther in remembrance of their hero.

There was the image of 5-year-old Carter of Greenville, SC with the Wakanda Forever pose in front of his action figures surrounding the figure of the Black Panther.

Carter’s mother said that when he watched “Black Panther” quote “…saw that he could be someone strong and powerful.”

There was another image of 7-year-old Kian Westbrook from St. Louis, MO who created a memorial for his hero with his Marvel action figures looking on. His mom said, “Seeing a superhero on a movie screen that looked like him meant everything.”

An image from the Instagram page @asnegasdoziriguidumoficial of a young man sitting in tears with “Black Panther” action figures to his left showing the “Wakanda Forever” sign.   

“It’s fun to watch just what it means to people,” Boseman said of the impact “Black Panther” has had on those who watched it. “At times in my head I will be like, ‘Well, what does this do for the world like actually? What is it, you know, is it actually valuable in this climate?’ And I would have to say, yes. It actually is. Not because it makes people escape. I think when done right, it gives people hope.”

According to “Black Panther” producer Nate Moore, it was Boseman’s performance in “42” that really made him and those involved in the movie to take a second look for the staring role.

“There’s such an honor and dignity to the way that he played Jackie Robinson that we knew we needed for the character of T’Challa, the prince of Wakanda,” Moore said.

Producer of “Black Panther” Kevin Feige concurred saying that Boseman was an “amazing actor” who everyone on the film thought would fit like a glove the Marvel Comics Universe.

He sure did as “Black Panther” became one of the highest-grossing films of the year in the United States in 2018 at $1.3 billion.

Boseman reprised the role that sealed his iconic legacy in “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: End Game,” which were released in 2018 and 2019 respectively, and were the highest grossing films of 2018 and 2019, with Endgame becoming the highest-grossing movie of all-time.

It was not just the fans that admired what Boseman did in the role of T’Challa but the fellow actors that he worked on screen with, especially those that were a part of the Marvel Universe, particularly in “Black Panther.”

Letitia Wright, who played Shuri, T’Challa’s 16-year-old sister in the movie said that Boseman as an actor has a lot of “depth,” and that it was “amazing” as an audience member to look into his eyes on screen and see what was happening.

Lupita Nyong’o, who played T’Challa’s former lover and was an undercover spy for Wakanda said that Boseman as T’Challa was “regal and grounded,” and brought a gravitas to the character, where he wore the crown of the character with “dignity.”

Director of “Black Panther” Ryan Coogler said that a lot of the things that made up King T’Challa were also the makeup of Boseman that he is extremely knowledgeable, athletic, and very into martial arts.

Jordan, who said he has known Boseman since he was 17 years old when they were both starting their acting journeys in New York thought he did an “incredible” job in the lead role of “Black Panther” because he was “true” to the character.

Veteran actress Angela Bassett, who played the mother of Boseman and Wright’s character in the film Ramonda, Queen Mother of Wakanda said she had a “great time” working with Boseman, and she really respected him as an actor from his previous work.

“So, when I looked at him with proud eyes, you know, they were as mother and also as comrade and colleague,” Mrs. Bassett said.

“He’s had a lot of experience playing roles that come with a lot of weight, you know. So, I think he as a person, he as a guy has a lot of weight to him,” Coogler added. “I think he brings all of that stuff to the role, not to mention that he’s incredibly gifted as an actor and as a performer. And also has as a storyteller in his own right.”

He also had the perspective of what this film meant to a lot of people, especially the African American community, which he stated at The 25^th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Jan. 27, 2019 TNT.

“To be young, gifted, and black, we all know what it’s like to be told that there is not a place for you to be featured. And that is what we went to work with every day,” Boseman said that night on stage at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA alongside Mrs. Basset, Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Jordan.

Boseman also in 2019 starred and also was a producer in Brian Kirk’s American action thriller “21 Bridges,” where he played NYPD detective Andre Davis, who shuts down the eponymous 21 Bridges of Manhattan, NY in search of two suspected cop killers.

On Monday, Netflix was scheduled to preview what may have been Boseman’s final film “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” alongside actress Viola Davis of ABC’s recently completed series by Shondra Rhimes “How to Get Away with Murder.” The preview of the movie has been delayed.

As good of an actor as Boseman was, he was just as good as many of his colleagues in the Marvel franchise have said off camera.

If there was one positive that came out of this tragedy is that there was a raise in awareness of how people took stock in seeing how they can prevent cancer from happening to them.

According to ABC News, Colorectal cancer is the second deadliest cancer in the United States that disproportionately affects communities of color.

The American Cancer society told ABC News that their website saw an 8,000 percent in traffic to their Colorectal cancer signs and symptoms page.

Paul Rudd, who played Ant Man in “Avengers: End Game” said of Boseman’s character T’Challa, “The guy who played him is an even bigger hero in real life.”

To bring perspective to what Rudd just said about his Marvel colleague, Boseman would visit children at St. Jude Children’s Hospital that were fighting cancer, while he quietly battled it on his own.

Boseman specifically became a real life here to two young children that were also battling cancer.

In a Sirius XM interview alongside Jordan, Nyong’o, Gurira and director Coogler, Boseman said throughout the filming of “Black Panther” he was in constant communication with the children that were in a terminally ill state from the cancer.

“Their parents said, ‘They’re just trying to hold on till this movie comes out,” Boseman said while fighting tears. “And when I found out that they-Yeah, it means a lot.”  

What allowed him to battle this grave disease and still be the epic actor that he became was having great perspective on what he did and who he was at his core.

“I’m just praying. It’s not me,” Boseman told ET’s Brooke Anderson at the 2014 Oscars.

He added later on in 2014 to “ET”, Boseman said of his profession, “At the end of the day, acting is acting. You can look at with a glass half full or glass half empty. So, I chose to look at with a glass half full.”

As private as he was about his battle with cancer, he was especially private about his personal life, especially with his aforementioned longtime mate Taylor. But during the 2019 NAACP Image Awards, the two shared a public moment affection where he said after winning the Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture Award, “Simone, you’re with me every day. I have to acknowledge you right now. Love you.”

Taylor was by her husband’s side in his last public appearance on Feb. 16 at the NBA All-Star Game in Chicago, IL.

While Boseman rose to great heights as an actor because of his talent and commitment to his craft, his career might have taken a different path had it not been for what the aforementioned Ms. Rashad and two-time Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington paying for him to attend the previously mentioned Oxford Mid-Summer Program of the British American Drama Academy in London.

When Boseman was promoting “Black Panther” on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon back in 2018, he said that he met Mr. Washington at the New York premiere of the Marvel film and he told him that he was one of the student he paid for to go to school, to which he said, “Oh, so that’s why I’m here. You owe me money.”

Washington said of that moment meeting Boseman when he appeared on CBS’s The Late Show with Steven Colbert, “I like the movie ‘Black Panther’, yeah, Wakanda Forever, but where’s my money?”

In this moment in our nation’s history as thousands from all backgrounds protest in demand for social justice, Chadwick Boseman played a significant role in defining the current culture. He played some of greatest African Americans in our nation’s history from Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, James Brown, and then made history as King T’Challa, the first black superhero as the lead of his own movie.

It was sad when at the start of this past weekend we suddenly said goodbye to a gentleman who made us see the world for how it should be. A gentleman who was an inspiration to kids, tweens, and teens of all backgrounds, especially minorities that they can be special and that they have the right to dream as big as they want to. A gentleman who gained the respect of other prominent figures like our country’s first African American President and First Lady, and the Queen of Talk shows.

“Chadwick came to the White House to work with kids when he was playing Jackie Robinson. You could tell right away that he was blessed. To be young, gifted, and Black; to use that power to give them heroes to look up to; to do it while in pain-what a use of his years,” Mr. Obama tweeted on Saturday.

Mrs. Obama echoed those same feelings on her Instagram @michelleobama, “I’ll always remember watching Chadwick in 42. Barack and I were alone in the White House, on a weekend night with the girls away. I was so profoundly moved by the rawness and emotion in the barrier-breaking story. And not long after, when he came to meet with young people in the State Dining Room, I saw that Chadwick’s brilliance on screen was matched by a warmth and sincerity in person.”

“There’s a reason he could play Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, and King T’Challa with such captivating depth and honesty. He, too, knew what it meant to truly persevere. He, too, knew that real strength starts inside. And he, too, belongs right there with them as a hero-for Black kids and for all of our kids. There’s no better gift with which to grace our world.” 

“The way he handled his life and managing cancer with such humility and grace and dignity lets us all know that he truly was a superhero,” the great Oprah Winfrey said.

Information and quotations are courtesy of 8/29/2/2020 https://www.newsday.com story by “The Associated Press,” “‘ Black Panther’ Star Chadwick Boseman Dies at 43;” 8/30/2020 https://www.vulture.com story, “Hollywood Mourns the Death of Black Panther and Da 5 Bloods Star Chadwick Boseman,” by Halle Kiefer; 8/30/2020 10 p.m. ABC News Special: “Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King,” with Robin Roberts and Deborah Roberts; 8/31/2020 6:30 p.m. edition of “ABC World News Tonight with David Muir,” hosted by Tom Llamas; 8/31/2020 7:30 p.m. edition of Entertainment Tonight on WCBS 2 with Kevin Frazier and Nichselle Turner; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurgood_Marshall; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Panther_(film)#Cast; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avengers:_Endgame#Cast; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/42_(film);  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/25th_Screen_Actors_Guild_Awards; Chadwick Boseman’s Twitter page @chadwickboseman; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chadwick_Boseman.