That time when Sidney Poitier & Harry Belafonte’s bromance was sensually caught on camera

As legendary performers, civil rights fighters, and artists who fought to break out of Hollywood’s stereotypical roles for Black men, Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte were destined to become fast friends.

But before Poitier took home his historic Oscar for Best Actor in 1963, and before Belafonte secured EGOT status, the two men were best friends trying to make their way in the New York theater scene of the 1940s.

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It all started in the mid-1940s at the groundbreaking American Negro Theater, where both men found jobs in their early 20s. Poitier was moonlighting as a janitor and taking acting classes when he could, and Belafonte found work as a stagehand. The two quickly found each other, creating a strong bond that would never weaken during eight decades of friendship and activism.

“Not only were they the same age,” wrote New York Times Opinion columnist Charles M. Blow in a 2017 appreciation, “they were both born to parents of West Indian heritage, enabling them to see the absurdity of racism in America from within and without and to bring a quasi-Pan-African sensibility to the African-American experience.”

For both men, it was one of those life-saving friendships that comes along at just the right moment. The two shared their ambitions, their struggles, and even theater tickets back when they were both too broke to afford them.

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As Poitier and Belafonte both gained critical success in Hollywood in the ’50s and ’60s, their commitment to the Civil Rights movement bound them even closer together.

Not only did Belafonte and Poitier risk the wrath of Klansmen while stewarding 70 grand (in cash!) to the Freedom Summer campaign in 1964, they both had a hang in organizing the March on Washington after Martin Luther King Jr.’s passing.

Their friendship was bound by activism and a desire to subvert the oppressive status quo for Black men in Hollywood. In 1972, the two cemented their legendary friendship onscreen in the iconic Black western Buck and the Preacher.

Both men lived well into their 90s, dying within a year of each other. They lived to see the world change for the better, in large part because of their hard work in changing the conversation around what Black men could do and be onscreen. And through it all, they stayed in each others’ corner.

One photo in particular, taken by the legendary Gordon Parks at the opening of queer playwright Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun in 1959, captures the deep intimacy of their friendship perfectly. Poitier originated the role of Walter Lee Younger and went on to star in the film adaptation.

The looks on both of their faces says everything: these are two men who are devoted to each other, and who have been through so much together. It’s also just… really hot!

We’re not suggesting anything spicy happened between these two, but we can also dream!

If you want to learn more about Belafonte and Poitier’s legendary friendship, the recent documentary Sidney is a great place to start.

Check out the trailer below.

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