Senate Concurrent Resolution 567

(As Adopted by Senate and House)

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING VICKSBURG NATIVE CHARLES BURNETT UPON HIS RECEIPT OF THE 2003 GOVERNOR'S EXCELLENCE IN THE ARTS AWARD IN THE CATEGORY OF ACHIEVEMENT IN FILMMAKING.

WHEREAS, Vicksburg native Charles Burnett is the recipient of the 2003 Governor's Excellence in the Arts Award in the category of Achievement in Filmmaking; and

WHEREAS, in 1977, Charles Burnett wrote, directed and produced his first film. Though never commercially released, "Killer of Sheep" was declared a "national treasure" by the Library of Congress and was among the first 50 films placed in the National Film Registry; and

WHEREAS, moving to Los Angeles at a young age, Burnett graduated from high school and college in California. He earned a B.A. Degree in Theater Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles, and went on to earn his M.F.A. in Film Production; and

WHEREAS, in 1990, he wrote and directed "To Sleep With Anger", which won three 1991 Independent Spirit Awards and earned Burnett the National Society of Film Critics' 1990 Award for Best Screenplay. It also received a Special Jury Recognition Award at the 1990 Sundance Film Festival and a Special Award from the L.A. Film Critics Association; and

WHEREAS, his television debut "Nightjohn", a Disney Channel film, was called the "Best American Movie of 1996" in the New Yorker and received a 1997 Special Citation Award from the National Society of Film Critics; and

WHEREAS, in 1997, the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival honored Burnett with a retrospective of his work. He was the recipient of a 1988 MacArthur Foundation Fellowship. He also has received the Louis B. Mayer Grant, the Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for Arts Grant and a Rockefeller Grant; and

WHEREAS, Burnett is currently working on two PBS documentaries, one of which will combine fact with fiction to tell the tale of a boy in 1955 Vicksburg, Mississippi; and

WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we recognize the unique filmmaking talent of this Mississippian who has brought honor to his community and to the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Vicksburg, Mississippi, native Charles Burnett upon his receipt of the 2003 Governor's Excellence in the Arts Award in the category of Achievement in Filmmaking, and wish him success in his future projects.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Charles Burnett at induction ceremonies on February 28, 2003, and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.