Louis Gossett Jr. (born May 27 1936) is an American actor.

He was born in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn in 1936 and went to the Abraham Lincoln High School where he was class president and academic as well as athletic achiever. A sports injury left him with no choice but to take an acting class, and at 16 he made his stage debut in the school's production of You Can't Take It With You.

After school he attended the New York University where he became a star Basketball player chosen to play for the New York Knicks. However, his true vocation was acting and he took a big step into the world of cinema in the Sidney Poitier vehicle A Raisin in the Sun.

Since then he has gone on to star in numerous film productions such as The Deep, Jaws 3-D, Enemy Mine, Iron Eagle and The Punisher to name but a few and TV. It was his role as Sargeant Emil Foley in the 1982 film An Officer and a Gentleman which showcased his enormous talent and garnered him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

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