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H. 3351
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Reps. Cobb-Hunter, Weeks, McLeod and Whipper
Document Path: l:\council\bills\dka\3179sd11.docx
Introduced in the House on January 19, 2011
Introduced in the Senate on February 2, 2011
Last Amended on January 10, 2012
Currently residing in the House Committee on Invitations and Memorial Resolutions
Summary: Eartha Kitt
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/19/2011 House Introduced and read first time (House Journal-page 6)
1/19/2011 House Referred to Committee on Invitations and Memorial
Resolutions (House Journal-page 6)
1/26/2011 House Committee report: Favorable Invitations and Memorial
Resolutions (House Journal-page 3)
1/27/2011 House Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Weeks
2/1/2011 House Member(s) request name added as sponsor: McLeod
2/1/2011 House Read second time (House Journal-page 12)
2/2/2011 House Read third time and sent to Senate
(House Journal-page 28)
2/2/2011 Senate Introduced and read first time (Senate Journal-page 13)
2/2/2011 Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary
(Senate Journal-page 13)
3/9/2011 Senate Committee report: Favorable Judiciary
(Senate Journal-page 13)
3/10/2011 Scrivener's error corrected
1/10/2012 Senate Amended (Senate Journal-page 51)
1/10/2012 Senate Read second time (Senate Journal-page 51)
1/10/2012 Senate Roll call Ayes-31 Nays-11 (Senate Journal-page 51)
1/11/2012 Senate Read third time and returned to House with amendments
(Senate Journal-page 13)
1/18/2012 House Debate adjourned until Tues., 01-24-12
(House Journal-page 20)
1/24/2012 House Debate adjourned until Wed., 01-25-12
(House Journal-page 27)
1/25/2012 House Committed to Committee on Invitations and Memorial
Resolutions (House Journal-page 31)
1/25/2012 House Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Whipper
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
1/19/2011
1/26/2011
3/9/2011
3/10/2011
1/10/2012
AMENDED
January 10, 2012
H. 3351
S. Printed 1/10/12--S.
Read the first time February 2, 2011.
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 53-3-75 SO AS TO DECLARE JANUARY SEVENTEENTH OF EACH YEAR AS "EARTHA KITT DAY" IN SOUTH CAROLINA IN HONOR OF THE LATE EARTHA MAE KITT, NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN ACTRESS, SINGER, AND NATIVE SOUTH CAROLINIAN.
Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. (A) The late Eartha Mae Kitt was a nationally and internationally know actress, singer, and cabaret star who was born in the town of North, South Carolina, a small community in Orangeburg County, on January 17, 1927. Her mother was of Cherokee and African-American descent and her father of German or Dutch descent. She was raised by Anna Mae Riley, an African-American woman whom she believed to be her mother. After Riley's death, she was sent to live in New York City with Mamie Kitt, who she learned was her biological mother. She had no knowledge of her father, except that his surname was Kitt and that he was supposedly a son of the owner of the farm where she had been born.
(B) Ms. Kitt began her career as a member of the Katherine Dunham Company in 1943 and remained a member of the troupe until 1948. A talented singer with a distinctive voice, she had many hits including her most recognizable hit, "Santa Baby", which was released in 1953. Ms. Kitt's unique style was enhanced as she became fluent in the French language during her years performing in Europe. Her English-speaking performances always seemed to be enriched by a soft French feel. She had skill in other languages too, as she spoke four languages and sang in seven, which she effortlessly demonstrated in many of the live recordings of her cabaret performances.
(C) In 1950, Orson Welles gave Ms. Kitt her first starring role as Helen of Troy in his staging of "Dr. Faustus". Orson Welles and Ms. Kitt were very close professionally and he once referred to her as the "most exciting woman in the world". Throughout the rest of the 1950s and early 1960s, Ms. Kitt would record, work in film, television, and nightclubs, and return to the Broadway stage in "Mrs. Patterson" during the 1954-1955 season, and in "Shinbone Alley" in 1957. Also, in the 1960s, the television series "Batman" featured her as Catwoman after Julie Newmar left the role, and is perhaps her most famous television role.
(D) In 1968, during the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson, she encountered a professional setback after she made anti-war statements during a White House luncheon. Ms. Kitt was invited to a White House luncheon and was asked by Lady Bird Johnson about the Vietnam War. She replied, "You send the best of this country off to be shot and maimed. No wonder the kids rebel and take pot." There was extreme public reaction to Ms. Kitt's statements, both pro and con, and for a period of time thereafter, she devoted her energies primarily to performances in Europe and Asia.
(E) Eartha Kitt was throughout her career a favorite of international audiences. She became a cultural icon among many audiences outside the United States through her famous Monty Python sketch "The Cycling Tour", which she performed before an enthusiastic crowd in Moscow, where an amnesiac believes he is first Clodagh Rodgers, then Trotsky, and finally Ms. Kitt. She was also widely followed in the United Kingdom as a recording artist. In 1984, "Where Is My Man", the first certified gold record of her career, reached the Top 40 on the UK Singles Chart where it peaked at #36. Her 1989 follow-up hit "Cha-Cha Heels", featuring Bronski Beat, received a positive response from UK dance clubs and reached #32 in the charts in that country.
(F) In her personal life, she married John Williams McDonald, an associate of a real estate investment company on June 6, 1960. They divorced in 1965. Their only child, a daughter named Kitt, was born on November 26, 1961. Kitt McDonald married Charles Lawrence Shapiro in 1987 and had two children, Jason and Rachel Shapiro. A long-time Connecticut resident, Ms. Kitt lived in a converted barn on a sprawling farm in the Merryall section of New Milford for many years and was active in local charities and causes throughout Litchfield County. In 2002, Ms. Kitt moved to the southern Fairfield County, Connecticut town of Weston, to be near her daughter's family where she died from colon cancer on Christmas Day, 2008.
(G) The members of the General Assembly believe it would be a fitting tribute to her memory and career, and an example to young South Carolinians of what a person with talent, drive, and ambition can achieve regardless of circumstances, if her birthday were officially recognized as "Eartha Kitt Day" in South Carolina each year.
SECTION 2. Chapter 3, Title 53 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 53-3-75. January seventeenth of each year, the birthday of the late actress, singer, and native South Carolinian Eartha Mae Kitt, is declared to be 'Eartha Kitt Day' in South Carolina."
SECTION 3. A. The General Assembly finds that:
(A) Ronald Wilson Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in Tampico, Illinois and died on June 5, 2004 in Bel Air, California.
(B) Ronald Reagan served in the U.S. Army Reserve from April 1937 until December 1945.
(C) Ronald Reagan was a man of humble background who worked throughout his life serving freedom and advancing the public good, having been employed as an entertainer, union leader, corporate spokesman, Governor of California, and President of the United States.
(D) Ronald Reagan often visited the Palmetto State and was highly respected by many South Carolinians.
(E) Ronald Reagan enjoyed support from Republicans, Democrats, and Independents during his dynamic career in politics.
(F) Ronald Reagan served with honor and distinction for two terms as the 40th President of the United States of America from 1981 to 1989. He won two successive contests by margins in the Electoral College unsurpassed in the history of American presidential elections.
(G) Ronald Reagan's commitment to our Armed Forces contributed to the restoration of pride in America and her values and prepared America's Armed Forces to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
(H) Ronald Reagan's vision of "peace through strength" led to the end of the Cold War.
B. Chapter 3, Title 53 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 53-3-145. February sixth of each year, the birthday of the late President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, is declared to be 'President Ronald Reagan Day' in South Carolina."
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
This web page was last updated on Tuesday, December 10, 2013 at 10:17 A.M.