- The Guardian, Saturday 23 May 2009
Samuel L Jackson. Photograph: Patrick Fraser
I was brought up by my mum and my grandparents and my aunt in a segregated community in Chattanooga, Tennessee. We were Protestant and we always said prayers at bedtime and grace at every meal - so I grew up with a spiritual foundation. I still have a faith but I don't go to church much as I leave that up to my wife, LaTanya.
My mum, Elizabeth, was a factory worker and then later a supplies buyer for a state mental institution. I only saw my father twice in my life - once as a young child and then as an adult when my daughter was six months old. I was playing in a theatre near to my paternal grandmother's home and wanted to meet her because over the years she'd always remembered me. Then when I visited her he was there, too - but there was no way I thought of him as my father. We had a conversation and he said something like, "You can't talk to me that way, I'm your father," and I said, "No, you're not - we're just two people talking."
My maternal grandfather was much more of a father figure to me. He worked as a maintenance man and I'd go round with him in the evenings, helping him clean up offices. I liked being with him because he was always telling me stories. My grandmother was also very loving and would talk to me about what expectations I should have. But it was my aunt, who also lived with us, who got me into acting - she was a performing arts teacher and never had enough boys for the parts so she would get me to perform.
My family made it clear that my main job was to get an education. If I didn't get the right grades, I didn't get my allowance or I wasn't allowed to go to the movies. If I read three comics, then I had to read a classic next. They were loving even when they punished me. I hated the hedge outside our house, which they would use for switches for whipping. But afterwards they'd always hug me and explain why they had done it and then give me something to eat. I'm grateful they were strict because lots of my contemporaries never left Chattanooga.
Being an only child, I'm selfish. It had its benefits, such as liking my own space and being able to occupy myself well on my own. But I also felt a great pressure to do well as I was the only one carrying the hopes of my family. I knew I had to be the best kid I could be.
I met my wife, LaTanya Richardson, also an actor, at college and we share the same values. Our daughter, Zoe, 27, is like us in that she has a strong will, work ethic and sense of self. She works as a producer for a sports channel. Coming from a background where we've had to fight for our rights, LaTanya and I care very deeply about civil and human rights and feel that it is important to provide an education for the less fortunate and that's why we recently set up our own charitable foundation.
• Samuel L Jackson is hosting a star-studded golf day and ball on 11 June, in aid of The Samuel L Jackson Foundation and the Rainbow Trust Children's Charity. Visit soujar.com/events.html