[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 130 (Friday, October 7, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2082-E2083]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        BROCK PETERS IN MEMORIAM

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DIANE E. WATSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 7, 2005

  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker:
  Whereas, It was with great sadness and a deep sense of loss that word 
was received of the death in Los Angeles of Brock Peters on August 23, 
2005, one of America's most distinguished actors of stage and screen, 
whose deeds in life merit the respectful acknowledgement of his 
community and nation; and
  Whereas, he was born George Fisher on July 2, 1927 in New York City, 
the child of Sonny and Alma A. Fisher, following a year at the 
University of Chicago in 1944 and undergraduate study at the City 
College of New

[[Page E2083]]

York from 1945 to 1947, he worked as a YMCA and Parks Department 
instructor, hospital orderly and shipping clerk in New York while 
studying for the acting and singing career which was the object of his 
life-long dreams; and
  Whereas, Brock first took the stage at the age of 15 in the 1943 
Broadway production of Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, sang bass with the 
DePaur Infantry Chorus, joined a traveling cabaret act that played in 
American and Canadian clubs, and was among the first African Americans 
to break through in television when he sang on The Arthur Godfrey 
Talent Scouts in 1953; and
  Whereas, Brock's film career flowered when he breathed life into some 
of the most memorable roles in American cinema, playing ``Sergeant 
Brown'' in Otto Preminger's Carmen Brown in 1954 and ``Crown'' in the 
1959 film version of Porgy and Bess, yet these villainous portrayals 
nearly stalled Brock's career until he garnered his most famous role in 
1962, that of the innocent but falsely accused ``Tom Robinson'' 
vindicated by Gregory Peck's Oscar-award winning performance in To Kill 
A Mockingbird, henceforth Brock's film characters varied between the 
noble and the notorious, including ``Johnny'' in 1962's The L-Shaped 
Room and ``Rodriguez'' in 1965's The Pawnbroker, and more than a dozen 
other films including The Incident (1967), Soylent Green (1972), Lost 
in the Stars (1974), Two-Minute Warning (1976), Star Trek IV (1986) and 
Star Trek VI (1991), in between which Brock had a significant 
television career, playing featured or recurring roles in Roots: The 
Next Generation (1979), Battlestar Galactica (1979) and the musical 
Polly! (1989) as well as scores of guest show appearances and film 
voice-overs, yet Brock never abandoned live theater, where he starred 
in such hits as Othello (1963), My Children, My Africa (1990), and the 
stage versions of The Great White Hope (1971), Driving Miss Daisy 
(1989) and Lost in the Stars; and
  Whereas, having married Delores ``DiDi'' Daniels in 1961, the couple 
sustained a tireless parallel career as advocates for African American 
drama and craftsmanship, together founding Delbro Enterprises which 
produced Five on the Black-Hand Side (1973), and the PBS documentary 
This Far by Faith (1975), and directing an actors studio specializing 
in African and African American theater, Brock also became a co-founder 
of the Dance Theater of Harlem; such artistic leadership garnered 
numerous honors for Brock Peters including Presidency of the California 
Arts Commission, induction in the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, the 
Best Actor in a Musical Award from the Drama Desk and Outer Critics 
Circle Awards, nomination for a Tony Award, and receipt of awards from 
the National Film Society and the Screen Actors Guild, and;

  Whereas, Brock Peters, preceded in death by his beloved wife DiDi in 
1990, leaves to cherish his memory his beloved daughter Lisa Jo Peters 
and a host of family, friends, colleagues and fans; Now, therefore, be 
it
  Resolved, by U.S. Representative Diane E. Watson, that the 
outstanding artistic achievements and exemplary civic contributions of 
Brock Peters be Saluted and Memorialized in the Annals of the Congress 
of these United States of America, with most sincere condolences to his 
bereaved family and prayers that his soul may now rest in eternal 
peace.
  Attested this 27th Day of August in the Year 2005.

                          ____________________