HR 20 (LSB 2624YH (6) 87)

HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 20

BY  GUSTAFSON, HOLT, CARLIN, ABDUL-SAMAD, and BENNETT

A Resolution recognizing the national significance of Actor John Wayne’s accomplishments and designating May 26, 2017, as John Wayne Day in Iowa.

   WHEREAS, John Wayne was born Marion Robert Morrison in Winterset, Iowa, on May 26, 1907; and
   WHEREAS, John Wayne was among the top Hollywood box office film stars for three decades and starred in 159 films; and
   WHEREAS, 83 of John Wayne’s films were Westerns, in which John Wayne personified for millions the nation’s frontier heritage; and
   WHEREAS, the John Wayne birthplace home in Winterset has been visited by more than 1 million visitors since first opening in 1982, including President Ronald Reagan, film screen legend Maureen O’Hara, all of John Wayne’s children, and guests from all 50 states and countless foreign countries; and
   WHEREAS, the Iowa Tourism Board and the Travel Federation of Iowa have honored the John Wayne Birthplace and Museum with the 2016 Outstanding Attraction Award; and
   WHEREAS, John Wayne received the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1969 for his role in the film “True Grit”; and
   WHEREAS, in honor of his enduring status as an iconic American, John Wayne was formally recognized by the United States Congress on May 26, 1979, when he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian honor; and
   WHEREAS, on June 9, 1980, John Wayne was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter as “an example and a symbol of true American grit and determination”; and
   WHEREAS, the mere mention of the name “John Wayne” produces images of courage and patriotism; NOW THEREFORE,

   BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That the House of Representatives recognizes the national significance of John Wayne’s accomplishments and designates May 26, 2017, henceforth as John Wayne Day in Iowa.