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" The two lines from 'Roots' that stick out to me are, 'You no more in Africa. You in America now,' and what I said after Kunta escaped: 'What is it like to be free, Kunta? It must be something.' "

Louis Gossett, Jr.

You

Africa

America

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" We are born with freedom and hope, but often that's dashed because of our color. But in school, I'd already been taught that no one could tell me that you can't do something because you're black. "

Louis Gossett, Jr.

Hope

Freedom

" After the Academy Award, well, I was left with a lot of time on my hands. I thought I'd get a lot of offers - and they didn't come. "

" George Clooney and Brad Pitt, with those 'Oceans' films they do, they get to work together, make a whole lot of money, and make a major film statement. Imagine if once a year, myself, Denzel Washington, Laurence Fishburne, James Earl Jones, we did some relevant film together to make a statement. "

" I believe the gift of acting is a gift from God, my oath to God, and I want to make sure on a daily basis that it is honed and deeply spiritual... I want to believe that the audience believes that my acting comes from this special place. "

" It's presumptuous for us to think we are the only beings in the cosmos. "

Louis Gossett, Jr.

Presumptuous

Think

" I was down in Wilmington, Delaware, doing 'The Desk Set' with Shirley Booth. I was at the DuPont Hotel. I walked out, and there was this grill next door called the New England Grill. I loved seafood. They said very nicely, 'We don't serve colored people.' "

" Sometimes I believe that the reason I have been able to do such exemplary work on the screen is because this is the only place I can be free, neither censured nor judged. "

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Louis Gossett, Jr.

Italian

Adopted

" 'Avatar' was gorgeous. There are good stories in there, but when used in other movies they're similar to those violent video games. Characters using deadly weapons. The children follow these movies. "

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" I can do more than anyone suspects. I pride myself on my versatility. It took 32 years of difficult parts, second leads, villains and juveniles. The Oscar changed the quality of the roles I was being offered. "

" I am so grateful that the public has given me this gift. They look at me as a person - not as a race or a color. The word for it is freedom - to be accepted as me. "

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