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Dec. 18--It wasn't wit, charm and good looks that got Denzel Washington where he is today. He credits the mentors in his life. So do Toni Morrison and Gen. Wesley Clark.
All three are part of Washington's new book, "A Hand to Guide Me" (Meredith Books, $24.95) which contains stories from 74 celebrities and achievers who describe mentors -- coaches, teachers, parents -- who inspired and helped them on their way to success. They are mostly obscure characters with no great accomplishments of their own, but they delivered an outsized impact by nurturing and developing some of the nation's leading artists, athletes, politicians and soldiers.
Former President Jimmy Carter recalls how a black woman who lived and worked on his family's farm in rural Georgia taught him about fishing and racial justice. Yogi Berra, the Hall of Fame baseball catcher, manager and author of malapropisms, thanks coach Bill Dickey for "learning me all of his experience." Gen. Colin Powell describes a network of aunts, uncles and neighbors who kept watch over him as he grew up.
Portions of the book's proceeds are being donated to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
Washington says he virtually grew up at the Boys Club in Mount Vernon, N.Y. His mother ran a beauty parlor and his father was pastor of two churches simultaneously, so the Boys Club was where young Denzel often was parked, keeping him off the streets and out of trouble.
Almost nothing in his childhood signaled his later success, he notes. An uninspired student and an athlete not as gifted as he would have liked, Washington got into acting almost accidentally, while majoring in journalism at Fordham University in New York.
Twenty-five years later, his film career includes two Academy Awards and three other nominations. He's acted alongside Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep and Angela Bassett, and he's played Malcolm X, Stephen Biko and Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.
So how did he have the will and moxie to chase and corner his dreams? At the Boys Club, he met Billy Thomas, who became his mentor. Thomas never gave an acting lesson, but taught Washington something more important: confidence and self-esteem, along with his "Boys Club swagger."Billy helped a lot of kids because he took an interest. He cared. And he made each of us feel like we had something to offer, like we were someone special. For my money though, Billy Thomas was the someone special," Washington writes.
Many of the book's contributors are larger than life, their talent so mysterious, their achievements so impressive that it seems implausible their success sprang from comparatively small and common acts of dignity and support.
Maybe that's because we tend to forget that none of us sprout fully formed into adulthood without the guidance and nurturing of others. And in this season of giving and giving thanks, "A Hand to Guide Me" could be a useful and cherished gift.
Gregory A. Patterson -- 612-673-7287 -- gpatterson@startribune.com
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Copyright (c) 2006, Star Tribune, Minneapolis
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