Credits and References:

1) Morgan Freeman's views on racism and "Black History Month."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO214IFRW1M
Link description: This video features a short clip from a Morgan Freeman interview in which he briefly shows his stance on the issues of racism and about "Black History Month."

4) David Letterman interviewing Morgan Freeman about his role in the movie, The Bucket List, and about his inspiration for getting into the acting scene. The interview includes other various discussions involving his personal life.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVE3gZXKP6Q&feature=related

Link description: This is a video clip from a David Letterman show where Morgan Freeman was a guest, and was being interviewed on his role in the movie, The Bucket List. The interview contains topics from Freeman's inspirations to get into acting, to details of his personal life.


2) Another interview with Morgan Freeman about his views on racism.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL64gY79QkA&feature=related

Link description: This is an amateur interview with Morgan Freeman about his views on racism and how he feels that slavery really was.


6) Another brief interview with Morgan Freeman.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj11HbM75gU

Link description: This interview seems to be a paid advertisement, but it does have some information concerning the personal details about his life as he was planning to enter college so he could study acting.


5) An interview with Morgan Freeman on his role in the movie, Feast of Love.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-Gw8JFymCE

Link description: This interview shows Morgan Freeman’s stance on what he feels that love is. It also shows his role in the movie, Feast of Love.


3) A video of President George W. Bush at the Kennedy Center as Morgan Freeman was being honored.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXH8ww1XACE

Link description: A brief video of a speech, read by former President George W. Bush, that highlights the major and critical achievements of Morgan Freeman, and also the importance that Freeman has brought to the film industry as a pioneer African-American involved within it.


7) The trailer for the upcoming movie, Invictus, in which Morgan Freeman plays the role of Nelson Mandela.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6jJN_NjV-Y

Link description: This is the official movie trailer for the movie, Invictus, in which Morgan Freeman plays the role of Nelson Mandela. It is important to note that Freeman not only cares about this role, but he barely had to change his appearance in order to better suite the role. This is a clear depiction that Freeman cares for issues outside of the U.S. just as much as he does for issues within the U.S.

9) Freeman car accident
http://patdollard.com/2008/08/pictured-morgan-freeman-injured-in-smashed-vehicle-with-emerging-details-on-accident-which-nearly-killed-him/


8) Report: Morgan Freeman allegedly had affair with step-granddaughter E'Dena Hines
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thedishrag/2009/06/morgan-freemans-alleged-affair-with-stepgrandaughter-.html

10) List of films

IMDB.com

History and Introduction to Morgan Freeman

Born June 1, 1937 Freeman was sent to his paternal grandmother at a very early age and began school at a local elementary school in Charleston, Mississippi. He moved around with his family for quite some time before settling down in Chicago, Illinois. All throughout his moves and finding new schools, Freeman remained loyal to his interests of drama and acting. He was the star of many plays during elementary school and often participated in state fair exhibitions. Lauded as a child prodigy for his acting abilities, Freeman focused on fulfilling his goal of becoming an actor, but later opted out of taking a full scholarship to Jackson State University in Mississippi to join the US Air Force as a plane mechanic.
After his return from service, Freeman settled in between Los Angeles and New York, where he worked for the World's Fair as a dancer. He attended Los Angeles Community College and honed in on his skills as a performance actor. Little did he know that it would excel him to greater heights later in his life. In the early 1960s Freeman began working in broadway and ended up working for a network named PBS as a narrator.
His voice commanding, his demeanor authoritative, Freeman embarked on a great journey to lead roles in movies such as Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, and The Shawshank Redemption, all of which he received Academy Award nominations. Though he did not win an Oscar at that point in his life, Freeman continued into excellence through many more lead roles.

Beginning in the early 1980s, Freeman played in roles for movies such as Brubaker ('80), Eyewitness ('81), Teachers,and Harry & Son ('84), Marie, and That Was Then...This Is Now ('85), Street Smart ('87), Clean And Sober ('88), Glory, Driving Miss Daisy, Lean On Me, Johnny Handsome ('89), The Bonfire of the Vanties, The Civil War ('90), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves ('91), Unforgiven, The Power of One ('92), Bopha! ('93), The Shawshank Redemption ('94), Outbreak, Se7en ('95), Chain Reaction, Moll Flanders, Cosmic Voyage ('96), Amastad, Kiss the Girls ('97), Deep Impact, Hard Rain ('98), Nurse Betty, Under Suspicion (2000), Along Came A Spider ('01), The Sum of All Fears, High Crimes ('02), Bruce Almighty, Dreamcatcher, Levity, Drug War ('03), Million Dollar Baby, The Hunting of the President, The Big Bounce ('04), An Unfinished Life, War of the Worlds, March of the Penguins, Batman Begins, Unleashed ('05), Edison Force, The Contract, Lucky Number Slevin, 10 Items or Less ('06), Evan Almighty, Feast of Love, Gone, Baby, Gone, The Bucket List ('07), Wanted, The Love Guru, The Dark Knight ('08), Prom Night In Mississippi, Thick as Thieves, The Maiden Heist, and his upcoming film Invictus ('09).

He has played more roles in movies than any other black man in film for his time (1980 to the present).

His awards he has claimed or been nominated for include, Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play, The Mighty Gents (78). In 1997 Rhodes College awarded him an honorary degree. In 2003 he received the Crystal Globe award for outstanding artistic contribution to the world cinema at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. In 2005, Freeman won an oscar for his supporting role in the movie, Million Dollar Baby. In 2006 he attended the Cairo Film Festival as a guest of honor. And in 2008, Freeman was honored by the Kennedy Center for his incredible lifetime of film making.

As for other black men in film that could be remotely compared to the success of Freeman, I can only draw two names. Denzel Washington, and Will Smith. Both of which have come to know very prominent roles within their careers as actors.

Concluding the introduction to Morgan Freeman, I would like to say that without Morgan Freeman around to star in so many roles, who would have been the person playing "God" in Bruce Almighty and Evan Almighty, or who would have been the voice that narrated The March of the Penguins, etc. I doubt anyone else could have facilitated those roles in the manner in which Freeman did so well. We should all be so thankful to have been alive to see his films.

"Don't sue me bro!"

Pictured below is the wreckage of what was a 1997 Nissan Maxima. According to the article found here, Freeman was apparently driving when he lost control over the car, and ran off the road flipping several times. The passenger to the vehicle, Demaris Meyer, later sued the oscar winning actor claiming, he "negligent in his driving."




If there is one thing I love about this world we live in, it is that you can sue anyone, for anything. This is the classic case of "here drive my car, if you wreck it it's okay because I'll just sue you can get a new one." I say to hell with those types of people. The DUI tests that the state troopers ran were valid and all came back negative for even a smidgen of alcohol. So it must have been truly just a simple mistake or perhaps since it was in Mississippi, there could have been some creature roaming the road that night which caused Freeman to lose control over the vehicle. However, the fact remains that the lady should've had insurance (assuming she must have), but there was no need to sue Freeman. Other than the fact that he is a celebrity with "superstar" status, she had no other motives for getting money out of the poor fella.

"El Divorcio"

Or for those who might not know what that means, The Divorce. According to news articles surfacing around the highly publicized divorce papers filled out by Freeman's wife of 25 years, there was a second story to be told. A story, that would shake the Freeman foundation and possibly hurt his credibility as an actor. Though the reports have not been confirmed, Morgan Freeman is said to have been having a decade long affair with his step-granddaughter (pictured below with Freeman at The Dark Knight premiere).




I for one cannot believe these sort of allegations, but if proven to be true then all I could do is sympathize for Freeman because now this one mistake would tarnish his entire reputation as an actor and as a philanthropist interested in women's rights. After reading many articles highlighting how the alleged affair began nearly a decade ago, I began to wonder the legitimacy of their sources and thought to myself, How could Morgan Freeman, the voice that lulled me to sleep at night as a youngster, have cheated on his wife with his granddaughter? Even though there is no direct blood line tying the two together, it still is a bit obscure that he would draw such attraction to a family member. He practically raised this girl. But then again, he is only human and even though his actions might warrant some sort of penalty via his divorce, I still believe that he is 99% great guy and demands more respect than he does disappointment.


Read more at here.

"Third World Actor"

I was extremely pleased when I heard about the studio's decision to place Morgan Freeman in the role of Nelson Mandela. He went from former citizen, turned activist, to prisoner, and eventually the first President of South Africa. The story is one of huge importance when it comes to Human Rights, Democracy, and Patriotism. Mandela's love for his nation did not wavier one bit through his 27 year stint in prison after being convicted of conspiracy and sabotage. After his release, Mandela helped spearhead the transition to a more peaceful democratic society, and eventually was elected as the first ever President of South Africa. I hardly see the difference (in looks) between Mandela and Freeman as he slips into the role of the ex-President with the upcoming release of the film, Invictus.

For your enjoyment, and in high definition quality.




I for one cannot wait to see this movie. Not only for the political reasoning behind the film, but also because I know that there is no other black actor in film currently other than Denzel Washington, or perhaps Will Smith who could carry the weight of the "Mandela Persona" on their backs and come out with what seems to be possibly an oscar winning performance. Only time will tell.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE PEOPLE, of Los Angeles Community College

Los Angeles City Foundation is just one of the many facets of Freeman's philanthropic strong-arm, but it is one that he holds most dear to his heart because it is the foundation that supplies scholarships and appropriation funding for LACC, or Los Angeles Community College, where Freeman attended school and eventually perfected his acting skills enough to begin landing jobs.




Not many people know about Freeman's giving abilities; hell, I couldn't name more than zero organizations off the top of my head (before I researched the topic) that he donates to. However, according to looktothestars.org Freeman has donated to more than a dozen well known philanthropies, including: 21st Century Leaders, National Parks Conservation Association, Oceana, and The Red Cross. His major interests for philanthropy include AIDS, Animals, Cancer, Children, Conservation, Disaster Relief, Education, Environment, Voter Education, Human Rights, Women's Rights, and many more. I say to him now, Thank you for your dedication to furthering your society!

Interview me? It's just a movie!

How tiresome of having to go on and off of talk shows this poor individual must be, nevertheless he remains quite vigilant for the positive face time he can get from these types of interviews. In this first interview, David Letterman of the "Late Show" asks some questions about Freeman's role in the movie, The Bucket List.




I like how Freeman makes himself vulnerable by opening up details about his personal life and critiquing himself about his ability to write well, but not to ride horse well. He admits to having two distinct voices that he uses in his roles for movies. All I can think of now is before he dies, will he create a new style of voice to soothe babies with? I remember falling in love with his soothing voice when I was a youngster, only about 3 years old, in his roles as a freed slave that became a leader in Glory, and his role as a servant that became a friend in Driving Miss Daisy.


This next interview is from "The Inside Reel" and in it Freeman allows insight as to what his thoughts about emotion, reaction, and love are. It is an interview over his role in the movie, Feast of Love.





I find it funny that when a director approaches Freeman about playing a part in a movie, for the most part, they always tend to ask him for his expertise with how his character should look, talk, act, etc. and Freeman has proven through his numerous roles over the past four decades that he can deliver. I am eager to see what roles directors will have for him in the upcoming years.