Some entertainers are simply a part of our consciousness, like a long-lived relative. Actor Louis Gossett Jr. was just that. A favorite uncle, and an elder statesman who brought a dignity to life merely by his presence. Someone who always elevated the playing field, exhibited a grand demeanor, and whom you looked up to and admired. Gossett's career spanned 70 years, from his first acting role on Broadway in 1953's “Take a Giant Step,” to 1977's "Roots," all the way to the 2023 remake of "The Color Purple," Gossett infused the culture as often as he filled the screen. Of his 70 years in show business, Gossett told CBS News This Morning, "It's a miracle. It's a blessing."

Gossett took his final bow in this life on Friday. He was 87 years old.

"It is with our heartfelt regret to confirm our beloved father passed away this morning," the actor's family said in a statement. "We would like to thank everyone for their condolences at this time. Please respect the family’s privacy during this difficult time."

 An elder statesman in his own right, James Woods paid tribute to Gossett in an X post.

I loved Lou. We did The Choirboys in an ensemble, and then later starred together in Diggstown. That experience cemented a lifelong friendship. I had always admired his fabulous talent, but grew to admire his modest demeanor more. A true gentleman. #RIP https://t.co/Bho6P5AwSC

— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) March 29, 2024

A bit more on Gossett's storied career:

Louis Gossett Jr., who won a supporting actor Oscar for playing the hard-as-nails drill instructor in 1982’s “An Officer and a Gentleman” a few years after winning an Emmy for his role as the cunning Fiddler in “Roots,” has died, the AP reports. He was 87.

In Taylor Hackford’s “An Officer and a Gentleman,” Gossett’s Sgt. Emil Foley memorably drove Richard Gere’s character to the point of near collapse at a Navy flight school. Gossett was the first Black man to win the best supporting actor Oscar for that role.

In addition to “An Officer and a Gentleman” Gossett is best known for films “Enemy Mine” (1985), in which he played an alien forced to come to terms with his human enemy when he and an astronaut played by Dennis Quaid find themselves stranded on a planet, and “Iron Eagle” (1986), in which he played an Air Force veteran who helps a young pilot find his father, who has been shot down and captured.

Born in 1936 in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, Gossett was encouraged to act in high school. He made his stage debut at 17 in a school production of “You Can't Take It With You." Without formal training, Gossett attained a stage career, appearing on Broadway in the 1953 play, “Take a Giant Step,” which drama critics from The New York Times named one of the 10 best shows of the year. Gossett also appeared in the original 1959-60 production of Lorraine Hansberry's “A Raisin in the Sun.” Gossett reprised his role in "Raisin" in 1961, when it was produced as a feature film. Gossett set his sights on California, and more big and small screen roles followed. Gossett's profile was significantly raised with his powerful role of "Fiddler" in the 1977 miniseries "Roots." Gossett won an Emmy for his portrayal. But it was his role as "Gunnery Sgt. Emil Foley" in "An Officer and a Gentleman" that launched him into Hollywood stardom. The role was originally written for a white actor, but Gossett knew this was his shot not only at a substantive starring role but name recognition.

Originally, the script called for a white man to play the role of the hard-nosed gunnery sergeant, but somehow my incredible agent, Ed Bondy, got it for me. The second I'd officially landed the role of the drill instructor sergeant who whips his recruits into men by stripping them of their original identities and building them back up from scratch, ultimately turning them into marines, I knew I had to put myself through at least some degree of this all-encompassing transformation. If I was going to do this role, I would do it 100 percent right. 

And Gossett owned the role and dominated the screen.

He underwent rigorous training for the role, spending 10 days at a school for drill instructors at Camp Pendleton in California, where he marched, ran and practiced karate from 4:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.

He was thrilled to receive an Oscar nomination, but he was convinced the supporting actor prize would go to industry veterans Robert Preston (“Victor/Victoria”) or James Mason (“The Verdict”).

Gossett not only received audience and critical acclaim for the role, but he made history as only the second Black actor to win an Academy Award, and the first to win for Best Supporting Actor. Gossett said when his name was called on that night, his agent jabbed him in the chest, exclaiming, “They said your name!” 

“I got up as smooth as I possibly could, trying to figure out what I was going to say,” Gossett recalled in an interview with the Television Academy.

His speech, though unprepared, was gracious, understated, and paid homage to family and creative alliances.

 WATCH:

As is too often the case in Hollywood, Gossett fell into a period of addiction.

Gossett was disappointed that bigger film parts did not follow his Oscar victory.

“I was left with a lot of time on my hands” after the Academy Award, Gossett told The New York Times in 1989. “I thought I’d get a lot of offers — and they didn’t come.”

“I let myself become bitter, resentful,” he added. “I was my own worst enemy. I said to myself, ‘What more can I do? Where’s the light at the end of the tunnel?’ I started to self-destruct.”

He started to abuse alcohol, cocaine and marijuana. “I had an Oscar, an Emmy, and yet I had this big hole in my soul,” Gossett told the Times.

Eventually, Gossett entered a residential drug-treatment program in Los Angeles and stopped using drugs, according to the profile in the Times. The path to sobriety was “very humbling and necessary, a very positive time,” he said.

As Gossett strengthened and maintained his long career, it is the quality of his work and his own positive outlook on life for which he will be remembered as an elder statesman. Three years ago, Gossett said in an interview with ABC News, "We need each other quite desperately, for our mutual salvation."

Wise words. May he Rest in Power.