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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Don
4Cornelius, who passed away on February 1, 2012; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Don Cornelius was born on September 27, 1936, in
6Chicago, and was raised in the Bronzeville neighborhood; after
7graduating from DuSable High School in 1954, he joined the
8United States Marine Corps, where he served for 18 months in
9Korea; and
 
10    WHEREAS, After his stint in the military, Don Cornelius
11worked at various jobs, including selling tires, automobiles,
12and insurance, and as an officer with the Chicago Police
13Department; he also married his high school sweetheart, Delores
14Harrison, and had 2 sons, Anthony and Raymond; in 1966, he quit
15his day job to take a 3-month broadcasting course; that same
16year, he landed a job as an announcer, news reporter, and disc
17jockey on Chicago radio station WVON; in 1967, he joined
18Chicago television station WCIU-TV and hosted a news program
19called "A Black's View of the News"; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Don Cornelius was best known as the creator of the
21nationally-syndicated dance/music franchise "Soul Train"; in
221970, he launched "Soul Train" on WCIU-TV as a daily local

 

 

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1show; the program entered national syndication and moved to Los
2Angeles the following year; he served as the host of the
3popular program from 1971 to 1993; following his departure from
4the show, he continued his work as a producer until 2006; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Through his origins as a journalist inspired by
6the civil rights movement, Don Cornelius recognized that, in
7the late 1960s, there was no television venue in the United
8States for soul music; as such he used the show to introduce
9many African-American musicians to a larger audience through
10their appearances on "Soul Train"; as writer, producer, and
11host of "Soul Train", he was instrumental in offering wider
12exposure to such musicians as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and
13Michael Jackson, as well as creating opportunities for talented
14dancers that would inspire subsequent television dance
15programs; he was also lauded for his show's uplifting community
16messages and social awareness; and
 
17    WHEREAS, In addition to his work on "Soul Train", Don
18Cornelius had a small number of film roles, most notably as
19record producer Moe Fuzz in 1988's "Tapeheads"; therefore, be
20it
 
21    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
22NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
23we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Don

 

 

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1Cornelius; and be it further
 
2    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
3presented to the family of Don Cornelius as an expression of
4our sympathy.