10 Iconic Performances That Weren't Even Nominated For An Oscar

5. Sidney Poitier - To Sir, With Love

Out of all the actors that have ever lived, Sidney Poitier has to be a front runner for the most dignified. There's just something about the way he carries himself that immediately makes him seem like someone who should be respected. As an actor who was working at a time when black people were rarely cast as authoritative figures, Poitier stood out as a beacon of hope. His performance in To Sir, With Love is no different. In it, Poitier plays an American teacher who struggles to control his classroom full of unruly East End teens, who are far more concerned with the latest dance crazes and their many real life problems to spend much time worrying about their schoolwork. Eventually, however, the fact that he is Sidney Poitier begins to have an effect on them, and they begrudgingly begin to respect and admire him. It might be a sentimental favorite, but most people would agree that the film is undoubtedly a classic. Not in the eyes of the Academy, though: Poitier was nominated for The Defiant Ones and won for Lilies of the Field, but didn't get so much as a nod for his work in this film.