By Heather M. Butts, New York Amsterdam News
Acting and performing were part of Kevin Byrd’s life from an early age. “I came from a small town called Utica, New York … I was an actor, singer, and dancer at a very young age.” According to Byrd, “I got started in my career at the age of eight years old, my dad got me into this theatrical performing group, and that’s how I got started in 1989.”
Byrd spoke with the Amsterdam News in an interview about how important sharing his talents has been during his life.
“I just loved performing all my life. I love entertaining. I graduated at the age of 17 in 1998 from Proctor High School in Utica, New York, and . . .I came to New York when I was 17 years old. My mom dropped me off at Long Island University, and at 17, I wanted to be a star. I was in a singing group [and] I was the baritone/bass. . . the group went all the way up to Amateur Night at the Apollo. We won the Amateur Night at the Apollo.”
It was at this point in Byrd’s life that he made a commitment to acting. Byrd portrayed Lt. John R. Fox in the 2006 film Honor Deferred produced by Al Roker and starring Samuel Jackson. Lt. John R. Fox, a WWII hero who killed 100 German Soldiers in the War, died in action, and was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Clinton.
“I [then] studied acting … I just started pursuing a career as an actor. I did a little background work on Law and Order ….I graduated around that time after I did some theater, and I auditioned for this movie called Honor Deferred. I got a big break [portraying] Lieutenant John R Fox.”
Once Byrd starred in ‘Honor Deferred’, he began to explore the intersection of the arts and healthcare, specifically prostate, with his show “The Last Days” and his one-man show. Byrd recalled that one of the characters in his play was dying of prostate cancer, and this, along with family connections to prostate cancer, propelled him to be able to fully explore advocacy as it related to the disease and formalize that work. Byrd remembered how difficult it was to discuss prostate cancer decades ago. “27 years ago, [very few people] talked about prostate cancer.”
Byrd started an organization called the Brown Byrd Foundation with Blossom Brown. According to Byrd, the organization started with pamphlets and information, but grew. Byrd stated that he “started touring with ‘The Last Days’ and then with the one man shows, everywhere we went, the crowd just started getting bigger and bigger. . . it’s been over 25 years, almost 30 years.”
In April 2011, Byrd spoke to the Amsterdam News about the expansion of the tour, entitled “Kevin Byrd’s Interdenominational Tour to Cities Across America.” He partnered with Rabbi Edgar Weinsberg and stated at the time that “This disease is killing a lot of men, and this is a great way to serve the community more. I never thought the work would grow into this length . . .This is a really great team because it’s a combination of a young man and an older man fighting for the same cause.”
Byrd’s work has been recognized by various leaders, including President Bush, President Obama, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Byrd takes particular pride in being part of the efforts leading to February 2 being designated as Prostate Cancer Awareness Day. According to Byrd, “On this observance day, we remember those who died of prostate cancer. We wear a blue ribbon and have 90 seconds of silence to remember the men who died of prostate cancer. On February 2, 2009, we had about 35 different cities and states that joined at the time, and now that we established that day over 17 years ago, [over] 100 cities and states have joined [in] raising awareness of prostate cancer.”
Information about prostate cancer can be found on the Brown Byrd Foundation’s website: https://www.brownbyrdfoundation.org. For additional information regarding prostate cancer, the following resources include The American Cancer Society: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/prostate-cancer.html, and the New York City Department of Health: https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/health/health-topics/prostate-cancer.page.
This post appeared first on New York American News.
