[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 13245]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       A TRIBUTE TO NANCY WILSON

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 8, 2011

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I want to pay tribute to my dear friend 
Nancy Wilson, an American treasure. After nearly sixty years of 
performing, Nancy will officially retire September 10th in Columbus, 
Ohio where she began her career. I am deeply honored to call Nancy a 
friend and when I think of her, I am reminded of her sophistication, 
refinement, poise and grace.
  For years Nancy has been a trail-blazing artist whose work 
incorporated genres like jazz, R&B, and pop music. With a career that 
ranges from blues to Broadway musicals, she has proven herself to be an 
inspiration to many and has continually reinvented and refined her 
sound. Coupled with her engaging and charming stage presence, she has 
appealed--and continues to appeal--to generations of Americans and 
world audiences.
  Born in Chillicothe, Ohio in 1937, Nancy Wilson discovered her voice 
while singing in church choirs. When she was 15, she won a vocal 
contest and consequently starred in her own television show, Skyline 
Melodies. Later, Nancy was a regular guest on the TV variety shows of 
Johnny Carson, Andy Williams, Flip Wilson, Arsenio Hall, and others. 
Also well known as an actress, she has appeared in such television 
programs as I Spy, Room 222, Hawaii Five-0, The Cosby Show, New York 
Undercover, and the films The Big Score and Meteor Man. She once 
commented on her versatility as an artist, ``Each song is a little 
play, a little vignette.'' Nancy used her voice to address those who 
deal with the joys and heartaches of love through such songs as Guess 
Who I Saw Today, Save Your Love For Me, and Like in Love. She was also 
the host of the noted NPR series Jazz Profiles.
  Her extraordinary talents and brilliant career earned her Grammy 
Awards in 1964, 2005, and 2007; a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz 
Masters fellowship, the Oprah Winfrey Legends Award, an NAACP Image 
Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Earlier this year, the 
Smithsonian's National Museum of American History accepted two of her 
gowns into its National Collections. I was honored to have Nancy 
perform at the 1990 Congressional Black Caucus Foundation jazz Concert, 
entitled Salute to Women in Jazz.
  Nancy Wilson has championed many causes, including the Martin Luther 
King Center for Social Change and the National Heart Association. Nancy 
has also co-founded the Nancy Wilson Foundation, which takes inner city 
children on trips to rural America. She has received numerous awards, 
like the Essence Award and the Paul Robeson Humanitarian Award. She has 
been awarded honorary degrees from the Berklee College of Music and 
Columbus Central State College.
  Music lovers will truly miss her. There will only be one Nancy 
Wilson.

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