Actor Louis Gossett Jr. to address Lynn kids

LYNN – Academy award-winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. will be speaking to about 2,000 middle-school children at the Lynn Memorial Auditorium as part of his non-profit foundation?s initiative of promoting non-violence and racial tolerance.Lynn School Committee member and former city principal Vincent Spirito believes Gossett?s message will resonate with students because of all he?s accomplished and how he?s able to connect with kids.?I think it?s a very important message for Lynn kids, and not only for Lynn kids, but for all kids to hear,” Spirito said recently. “And they?ll hear it from an Academy Award-winning actor with all the trials he?s faced and all the times he?s been singled out simply because he is a black man.”Gossett won the Academy Award in 1982 for his role as Gunnery Sgt. Emil Foley in “An Officer and a Gentleman,” but first burst on the national scene for playing Fiddler in “Roots,” an epic mini-series about a black American family?s journey from slavery to freedom that captivated audiences in 1977.He also starred in “Iron Eagle,” in 1986, “Enemy Mine,” in 1985 and “The Principal” in 1987.Spirito says many of the students who will see Gossett on Nov. 9 at 10 a.m. – including all of Lynn?s public-school eighth-graders – might not know who the 74-year-old actor is, but they will be receiving a DVD about the star?s life, his movies and his Eracism Foundation.?He?ll open people?s eyes and his message of anti-violence is a great thing for the children to hear,” Spirito said.Author and Boston University professor Phyllis Karas, who co-wrote Gossett?s memoir, “An Actor and a Gentleman,” said she suggested the idea of bringing the actor to speak to North Shore kids to Spirito because of his “message of empowerment and anti-violence.”Karas said she was surprised to hear about all the racism Gossett suffered, even after earning fame as an actor.”Here?s an Academy-award winning actor and even he suffered so much racism,” she said. “But it never discouraged him.”The event will include all of Lynn?s eighth-graders, seventh-graders from Thurgood Marshall Middle School, Pickering Middle School, students from the KIPP Academy in Lynn and students from the Marblehead Veterans Middle School and the Cohen Hillel Academy in Marblehead, Spirito said.He stressed that Karen Madorsky, the Social Action Coordinator from the Cohen Hillel Academy, played a big role in bringing Gossett to the city.Spirito?s appreciation for Gossett has grown since reading his book, he said.?It?s amazing, the people he knows, the things he?s done,” Spirito said. “He knows just about every actor from the old days.”The Lynn School Committee member recounted a story from the book where Gossett talks about how he was supposed to go to a party at Sharon Tate?s house on the night she and several other people were killed by Charles Manson?s followers.?He was supposed to be there, but he decided to go home and take a shower first, and ended up falling asleep,” Spirito said.Spirito said Gossett has waived his normal $25,000 speaking fee in exchange for a small donation to his foundation and covering his transportation costs.In addition to the appearance in front of the students, Gossett will also appear at the Jewish Community Center of the North Shore in Marblehead on Nov. 7 at 5 p.m. Cost for the event is $25.Lynn Superintendent of Schools Catherine Latham said Gossett?s message of non-violence and persevering through adversity should resonate with the students who attend the event.?It?s a positive message and I think it?s good for the kids to hear that message from as many people as possible,” she said.