I was 11 years old then Herb -- and I remember, to this day, sitting on the linoleum floor in the front room of our redlined, downtown Charleston SC apartment, watching all three of these movies on our little black & white TV.

I was eight when he won his Oscar for "Lillies of the Field," which I distinctly remember because of the nuns (my parents' two and a half jobs ensured we got the "best education" we could at the segregated Catholic school run by the Jesuits with all Black nuns from the Oblate Sisters of Providence out of Baltimore, as well as some lay Black teachers from our neighborhood) -- they talked to us about that Oscar for weeks!

Thanks for this beautifully written piece that brought back SO many memories (some good, some bad!).