With two Golden Globe Awards, one Tony Award, and two Academy Awards under his belt, Denzel Washington [1] definitely is an American treasure — not to mention one of Hollywood's sexiest and most charismatic leading men [2]. But unless you watched St. Elsewhere (in which the actor starred as Dr. Phillip Chandler), you probably forgot just how cute Denzel was back in the day before he became a household name in the early '90s. Though all you really have to do is look at his son, actor John David Washington [3], to see what Denzel looked like in his 20s and 30s, you should also check out the gallery for a trip down memory lane.

Carbon Copy (1981)

Carbon Copy (1981)

St. Elsewhere (1982-1988)

St. Elsewhere (1982-1988)

St. Elsewhere (1982-1988)

Goodbye Ain't Gone (1983)

A Soldier's Story (1984)

A Solider's Story (1984)

Power (1986)

Power (1986)

The George McKenna Story (1986)

The George McKenna Story (1986)

Denzel Washington in a Promotional Shot From the 1980s

Cry Freedom (1987)

Cry Freedom (1987)

Cry Freedom (1987)

For Queen and Country (1988)

For Queen and Country (1988)

For Queen and Country (1988)

The Mighty Quinn (1989)

The Mighty Quinn (1989)

Heart Condition (1990)

Denzel Washington at the 62nd Annual Academy Awards in 1990

Mo' Better Blues (1990)

Mo' Better Blues (1990)

Mo' Better Blues (1990)

Ricochet (1991)

Ricochet (1991)

Ricochet (1991)

Ricochet (1991)

Denzel Washington and Wife Pauletta at the 63rd Annual Academy Awards in 1991

Malcolm X (1992)

Malcolm X (1992)

Denzel Washington at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in 1993

Denzel Washington at the Premiere of Philadelphia in 1993

Much Ado About Nothing (1993)

The Pelican Brief (1993)

The Pelican Brief (1993)

Denzel Washington at the 67th Annual Academy Awards in 1995

Denzel Washington at the ShoWest Festival in 1995

Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)

Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)

The Crimson Tide (1995)

The Crimson Tide (1995)

Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston at the 27th Annual NAACP Image Awards in 1996

The Preacher's Wife (1996)

Courage Under Fire (1996)

Denzel Washington at the 28th Annual NAACP Image Awards in 1997

Denzel Washington at Mann's Chinese Theatre in 1998

Fallen (1998)

He Got Game (1998)

Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie at the Premiere of The Bone Collector in 1999

Denzel Washington at the Premiere of The Hurricane in 1999

The Hurricane (1999)