Bill Text: TX HCR130 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Designating May 26 as John Wayne Day for a 10-year period beginning in 2015.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-17 - Signed by the Governor [HCR130 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HCR130-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Designating May 26 as John Wayne Day for a 10-year period beginning in 2015.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-17 - Signed by the Governor [HCR130 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HCR130-Introduced.html
84R31530 KSM-F | ||
By: Parker | H.C.R. No. 130 |
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WHEREAS, John Wayne is the prototypical American hero, | ||
symbolizing such traits as self-reliance, grace under pressure, | ||
resolve, and patriotism; and | ||
WHEREAS, Born Marion Robert Morrison on May 26, 1907, in | ||
Winterset, Iowa, he moved with his parents as a young boy to | ||
California; in 1916, while the family was living in Glendale, he | ||
began going by "Duke," a nickname that followed him throughout his | ||
life; and | ||
WHEREAS, In 1925, he began attending the University of | ||
Southern California on a football scholarship, playing offensive | ||
lineman; after breaking his collarbone in a surfing accident before | ||
his junior year, he withdrew from the university and found | ||
employment with Fox Film Corporation as a laborer moving set props | ||
and as an occasional extra in movies; and | ||
WHEREAS, While working at the studio, he met Wyatt Earp, who | ||
was serving as a consultant to Western film director John Ford, and | ||
he subsequently adopted some of Earp's mannerisms for his roles as a | ||
cowboy; and | ||
WHEREAS, The first film in which he appeared as the leading | ||
actor was The Big Trail, released in 1930; it was then that the | ||
studio gave him the screen name "John Wayne," which he would use for | ||
the remainder of his acting career; and | ||
WHEREAS, Starring in classic Western films such as | ||
Stagecoach, Red River, The Searchers, and True Grit, Wayne | ||
personified the archetypal cowboy who is rough-edged and | ||
plainspoken, but who is also capable of great warmth, kindness, and | ||
generosity; he won an Oscar in 1970 for Best Actor for his role as | ||
Rooster Cogburn in True Grit; and | ||
WHEREAS, Although best known for his Westerns, John Wayne | ||
starred in many movies in other genres, such as the World War II | ||
films Flying Tigers and Sands of Iwo Jima; and | ||
WHEREAS, Wayne was an avid supporter of the United States | ||
military and toured bases and hospitals in the South Pacific in 1943 | ||
and 1944 with the United Service Organizations; and | ||
WHEREAS, In The Alamo, his first film as a director, John | ||
Wayne played the role of Davy Crockett; the film won an Oscar | ||
nomination in 1961 for Best Picture; Wayne also directed and | ||
starred in The Green Berets, which was released in 1968 and which | ||
was set in Vietnam; and | ||
WHEREAS, Over the course of his acting career, John Wayne | ||
practically invented the Western hero by combining rugged | ||
masculinity with the courage to stand up to authority when | ||
necessary, the strength to match any opponent, and the | ||
determination to prevail against great odds; John Wayne endures as | ||
a cultural icon, and his films continue to appeal to new audiences; | ||
now, therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the 84th Legislature of the State of Texas | ||
hereby designate May 26 as John Wayne Day; and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That in accordance with the provisions of Section | ||
391.004(d), Government Code, this designation remain in effect | ||
until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally | ||
passed by the legislature. |