He was 17, and still a student at Abraham Lincoln High School, with no formal drama training.
Gossett replaced Bill Gunn as Spencer Scott in Broadway's Take a Giant Step, which was selected by The New York Times drama critics as one of the 10 best shows of the year.
His high school teacher had encouraged him to audition for a Broadway part, resulting in his selection for a starring role on Broadway in 1953 from among 200 other actors well before he entered NYU. Standing 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall, he was offered the opportunity to play varsity basketball during his college years at NYU he declined the basketball offer to concentrate on theater. Polio had already delayed his graduation.Īfter graduating from Abraham Lincoln High School in 1954, he attended New York University, declining an athletic scholarship. His stage debut came at the age of 17, in a school production of You Can't Take It with You when a sports injury resulted in the decision to take an acting class. He is an alumnus of Mark Twain Intermediate School 239 and Abraham Lincoln High School. Gossett was born in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York City, to Hellen Rebecca ( née Wray), a nurse, and Louis Gossett Sr., a porter.
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