The iconic actor’s life story included two marriages and six daughters with two different women—his first marriage lasted more than a decade, and his second endured until his passing.
Sidney Poitier’s second wife, Joanna Shimkus, once remarked that they were “destined” to be together. Their remarkable, decades-long interracial marriage—marked by mutual love and respect—resulted in two daughters, showcasing a union that withstood life’s challenges.
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Yet before sharing his enduring bond with Shimkus, Sidney experienced a different chapter. His initial marriage, along with a nearly ten-year affair, unfolded during the same era in which he left a groundbreaking impact on Hollywood.
Sidney Poitier and Juanita Hardy pictured with Willy Brandt in 1960, in Berlin, Germany. | Source: Getty Images
Renowned for his guarded private life, Sidney offered rare insights into his first marriage to Juanita Hardy in the book “Sidney Poitier: Man, Actor, Icon.” He met Hardy at a time when he felt emotionally depleted—turning to parties, dating, and material comfort in search of fulfillment.
Initially uncertain she could provide stability, he found she was, in fact, the first woman to do so. Hardy had her own career in entertainment—modeling for Sepia and Ebony magazines, dancing, and studying at Columbia University.
Their paths first crossed in the early 1950s, and Sidney encountered her again at a nightclub soon after, bluntly telling her, “I’ll never marry a girl like you!” Perplexed by his comment, Hardy discovered he assumed she was “unstable” because of her beauty and the many different friends who surrounded her.
Within a week, Sidney asked her on a date, and only a month later, he was calling her his “future wife.” The pair wed in 1950. “I had faith in myself and faith in the future—enough of each to marry a beautiful young girl,” he once reflected.
Two years into their marriage, in 1952, their first daughter, Beverly Poitier, was born, while Sidney was still juggling acting and work at a barbecue restaurant. “Times were so tough that I used to take milk from the restaurant home for my kid,” he admitted.