[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 203 (Monday, December 11, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1197]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO NORMAN LEAR

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 11, 2023

  Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my dear friend, 
renowned television producer and screenwriter, Norman Lear, who passed 
away on December 5, 2023.
  Norman Milton Lear was born on July 27, 1922 in New Haven, 
Connecticut. After attending Emerson College in Boston, he dropped out 
of college to enlist in the U.S. Army Air Force. During World War II, 
he served as a gunner and radio operator, and flew 52 combat missions 
over Europe, earning the Air Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters.
  Following his extraordinary military service, Mr. Lear worked in 
public relations before beginning a career as a freelance comedy 
writer, and eventually a television and film producer. Norman would go 
on to captivate over one hundred twenty million viewers weekly with his 
ground-breaking television show's of the 1970's and 1980's that dealt 
with consequential and critical issues such as race, social inequality, 
and sexuality. These iconic shows include All in the Family--which won 
many Emmy Awards--The Jeffersons, Good Times, and Maude.
  As a kid, his show's were a staple in our household, the kind of 
shows families across the country would watch together, laugh, and 
debate. As an adult, I was proud to get to know Norman as a constituent 
and as a friend. When I last spoke with him, on his 101st birthday, he 
still wanted to know what he could do, even then, to address the 
challenges facing the nation he was so proud to serve.
  Norman was always politically active, inspired by his uncle Jack and 
grandfather Shya's political involvement and view,``that a citizen can 
matter.'' In 1980, he wanted a more direct effect on social change, so 
he put his television career on hold to focus on political activism. In 
1981, Norman co-founded People for the American Way which sought to 
build a democratic society and defend constitutional values such as 
religious liberty, free expression and equal justice. In 1997, Norman 
and his wife, Lyn Davis Lear created the Lear Family Foundation, which 
supports a wide range of nonprofit organizations such as the Rainforest 
Alliance, American Civil Liberties Union, Ballet Hispanico and Planned 
Parenthood. In 2000, Mr. Lear provided an endowment for a public policy 
center that explored the intersection of commerce, entertainment, and 
society at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for 
Communicat and Journalism--the center was later dedicated as the Norman 
Lear Center. A few years later Norman founded a nonpartisan youth voter 
registration initiative called Declare Yourself. Additionally, in 2001, 
Norman and Lyn purchased one of the few surviving original copies of 
the Declaration of Independence and shared the nation's birth 
certificate with their fellow Americans by touring it in all 50 states 
during their Declaration of Independence Road Trip.
  Norman received professional awards and acknowledgement for his 
humanitarian achievements, far too many to list all here. These include 
the National Medal for Arts from President Clinton, several Emmy 
Awards, two Peabody Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Humanist Arts 
Award, Kennedy Center Honors, the Women in Film Lucy Award, and the 
National Hispanic Media Coalition's ``Media Icon'' Award. In addition, 
he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame and has a star 
on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  My heart goes out to Lyn and the rest of Norman's beautiful family. 
His legacy is without equal, and I ask all Members to join me in 
celebration of his life. America has lost a giant.

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