‘He touches my soul’
Denzel Washington returns to Hill District with $5M for August Wilson House
Oprah Winfrey gave $1 million, Tyler Perry gave $1 million, and Shonda Rhimes, Spike Lee, Samuel L. Jackson and filmmaker and Pittsburgh native Antoine Fuqua also contributed, allowing a “determined” Denzel Washington to bring $5 million and give a giant boost to the restoration of the August Wilson House.
The two-time Academy Award-winning actor — who also directed and starred in the filmed-in-Pittsburgh adaptation of August Wilson’s “Fences” — was in the Hill District on Wednesday to announce the completion of his fundraising efforts and “to be in some small way a part of this monument,” he said of the late playwright’s childhood home at 1727 Bedford Ave.
“I love August Wilson. He touches my soul in a way that no one else ever has,” the actor said. “This is just like coming home to me. I feel so comfortable here and it’s like seeing old friends and reconnecting from when we were filming here. And so I thank you in advance for keeping him alive.”
For his part in keeping Mr. Wilson’s legacy alive, Mr. Washington said he was “thankful, grateful and humbled, and I’m determined.”
Mr. Washington arrived in the Lower Hill a half-hour before the “ground-blessing” ceremony to herald new construction at the August Wilson House. He was swarmed by admirers and project stakeholders, including family members of the late playwright —Mr. Wilson’s daughter, Sakina, and brother, Richard Kittel. Mr.