July 30

He is the first African-American to play Othello in a major movie, following in the footsteps of Lawrence Olivier and Orson Welles.

Laurence Fishburne was born in Augusta in 1961. His mother moved the family to Brooklyn, where Fishburne grew up. He’s been acting almost all his life, beginning with the soap opera One Life to Live when he was 10. Fishburne made his feature film debut at 14 and that same year acted in Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. After attending the High School of Performing Arts in New York, he appeared in numerous TV shows, films, and plays.

Among his three most memorable roles: as Cowboy Curtis on Pe-wee’s Playhouse, as Morpheus in The Matrix trilogy, and his Oscar nominated portrayal of Ike Turner in What’s Love Got to Do With It. Fishburne won a Tony for his work on Broadway, and an Emmy for television.

The award-wining actor, playwright, screenwriter, director, and producer was born on July 30, 1961, Today in Georgia History.