Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 19, 1993 TAG: 9304170231
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JERRY BUCK ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"It struck me as unusual that a father would be reunited with his son in San Quentin Prison," he says. "I wanted to do their specific story, but when I talked to probation officers I found out it wasn't that unusual. So the story is based on many people.
"I began to think about it and realized these gang kids have no father figure. The fathers came back from Vietnam, got into trouble, and the kids were raised by their mothers. I learned that more African-American men are in prison than college. That's a terrible phenomenon."
"Father & Son", which also stars Blair Underwood, Rae Dawn Chong and Tony Plana, is the story of two men who are paroled in each other's custody. The NBC movie will be televised tonight.
Gossett, who won an Oscar for "Officer and a Gentleman" and an Emmy for his portrayal of Fiddler in Alex Haley's "Roots," recently went to South Africa to star with Sean Connery in "A Good Man in Africa." Another movie, "Tucker & Flynn," is due to be released in several months.
In "Father & Son," he plays Leonard Clay, who's serving time for a murder he contends was in self-defense. Underwood is Jared Williams, a new young hotshot Clay ignores until he learns he's his son.
"I figure my character left when the boy was 4 or 5," Gossett says. "The boy grew up very angry at him. The only role models he had were the gang leaders with the gold chains.
"The movie opens in prison when the son causes trouble and the Aryan Brotherhood puts out a contract on him. The warden tells me he's my son, that he's due for parole, but I'm not.
"They cut my sentence and send us out in each other's custody. That's when the story starts. The boy's angry with his dad. That's a heavy premise. I feel guilty, but what do you say to the boy? An explanation isn't enough. It's very difficult for a man who's spent most of his life in jail to be tender. He might feel it, but he can't express it."
Gossett was in Los Angeles briefly between movie assignments and his busy schedule of lecturing and civic projects.
"They don't allow airline attendants to fly as much as I do," he says as he consumes coffee and cake he brought in a bag to his manager's home. "I've sort of semi-inherited Alex Haley's speaking tour. I don't use notes when I talk about black history. I put my hands in my pockets, make eye contact with people and pour out my heart and soul."
This September Gossett celebrates his 40th year in show business. He started on Broadway in 1953 in "Take a Giant Step." "It was my first lead, my first play. I was still in high school. I got a scholarship to New York University and continued to do television and theater. But I was torn between drama and basketball," he said.
He got an offer to play for the New York Knicks in 1959 and went to rookie camp in the Catskills and made most of the cuts. "There were a lot of hungry young players trying to get into the pros," he said. "The closer you get, the harder it gets. Then I said, `You know what - I'm not hungry enough.' I already had a job in `Raisin in the Sun.' "
Gossett starred opposite Sidney Poitier in Lorraine Hansberry's play on Broadway and reprised his role in the 1961 movie.
He went on to star in such movies as the recent "Diggstown," "The Deep," "Enemy Mine," the "Iron Eagle" trilogy and "Toy Soldiers." His other television projects include "Sadat," "A Gathering of Old Men," "Backstage at the White House," "The Josephine Baker Story," "Sudie and Simpson" and "Carolina Skeletons."
For his role as a boxer in "Diggstown," Gossett had to shed 35 pounds and train six hours a day, six days a week.
"It took me about 16 weeks," he recalls.
Gossett also has deals at Lifetime and Showtime channels for movies. The latter is for a western. He has in development another western in which he will play black U.S. Deputy Marshal Bass Reeves.
"FATHER & SON: Dangerous Relations" airs tonight at 9 on WSLS (Channel 10).
by CNB