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Black love is radiating all over the latest cover of People magazine with two of Hollywood's cherished icons, Samuel L. Jackson and LaTanya Richardson, revealing the secrets to their 41-year marriage.
The movie star and Tony-nominated Broadway actress met on the campuses of Morehouse and Spelman in Atlanta in "made a pact to stay together" no matter from day one.
"In the beginning, we always said the most revolutionary thing that Black people could do was stay together, raise their children with the nucleus of having a father and a mother, since everybody likes to pretend that's not the dynamic of the African American family. That it's just children out here being raised by women, which we know is false," Richardson said.
"In order to change that narrative, we made a decision to say, 'We are going to stay together no matter what. We'll figure it out.'"
And they have stuck by each other's side through it all, though it wasn't always easy. The Pulp Fiction actor became addicted to drugs and credits his wife for getting him into rehab in the early 90s. He's been in recovery for more than 30 years.
"She gave me the chance to be the man I was supposed to be," Jackson explained. After leaving rehab, he saw his career take off after his role in Spike Lee's 1991 Jungle Fever.
Since then, he's taken on blockbuster roles in The Incredibles, Star Wars, The Avengers, and countless others, bringing in a whopping $18.5 billion at the box office globally.
Part of their family traditions include pausing busy schedules every July to take their daughter, Zoe, and friends on a boat. Jackson says there's only one rule on this annual family trip: "Don't wake anybody up. You sleep when you sleep. Then we come together and eat."
Check out the full exclusive interview by clicking HERE.
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