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1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to |
3 | | learn of the death of Robert Guillaume of Los Angeles, |
4 | | California, who passed away on October 24, 2017; and
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5 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume was born Robert Peter Williams in |
6 | | St. Louis to Zoe Bertha Edwards on November 30, 1927; he was |
7 | | raised by his grandmother, Jeanette Williams; he attended a |
8 | | Roman Catholic high school, where he sang in the choir; he |
9 | | joined the United States Army in 1945 and was honorably |
10 | | discharged in 1947; he then enrolled at St. Louis University to |
11 | | study business on the G.I. Bill; he later studied singing and |
12 | | theater at Washington University in St. Louis; he married |
13 | | Marlene Scott in 1955 and they later divorced; he married Donna |
14 | | Brown in 1985; and
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15 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume moved to Cleveland to play Billy |
16 | | Bigelow in the musical "Carousel" at Karamu House, a |
17 | | historically black theater, in the 1950s; it was there that he |
18 | | adopted the surname Guillaume, which was inspired by his |
19 | | grandfather's tales of his family's French heritage; he left |
20 | | Cleveland to tour with the musical "Free and Easy"; soon |
21 | | afterward, he moved to New York, and his stage career |
22 | | flourished; and
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| | SR1068 | - 2 - | LRB100 15499 ALS 30523 r |
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1 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume acted in several plays, |
2 | | including a revival of "Porgy and Bess," a Broadway revival of |
3 | | "Purlie," and the musical revue "Jacques Brel is Alive and Well |
4 | | and Living in Paris"; he also starred in the Los Angeles |
5 | | production of "The Phantom of the Opera" and an all-black |
6 | | Broadway revival of "Guys and Dolls"; and
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7 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume landed the part of Benson in |
8 | | "Soap" in 1977; his portrayal of a black domestic worker with a |
9 | | sharp tongue and dignified mien earned him an Emmy Award for |
10 | | best supporting actor in a comedy series in 1979; after his |
11 | | Emmy win, Guillaume's character, Benson, got his own series, |
12 | | and he won an Emmy Award for outstanding lead actor in a comedy |
13 | | series; that same year, he also portrayed the Reverend Dr. |
14 | | Martin Luther King Jr. in "Prince Jack" and the abolitionist |
15 | | Frederick Douglass in the television miniseries "North and |
16 | | South"; two short-lived television shows followed, "The Robert |
17 | | Guillaume Show" and "Pacific Station"; he later went on to a |
18 | | role in Aaron Sorkin's "Sports Night"; and
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19 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume, along with his wife Donna, |
20 | | founded the Confetti Entertainment Company, which created |
21 | | read-along books for children with his voice as the narrator; |
22 | | this marked the beginning of a voice career, and he was cast as |
23 | | Rafiki in "The Lion King"; he went on to play Rafiki in the |
24 | | sequels and won a Grammy Award for his narration of a |
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1 | | read-along book in "The Lion King" series; the Confetti |
2 | | Entertainment books were transformed into the HBO series |
3 | | "Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child," with |
4 | | Guillaume retelling classical fairy tales with a multicultural |
5 | | focus; and
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6 | | WHEREAS, After suffering a stroke in 1999, Robert Guillaume |
7 | | became an advocate for health awareness, encouraging people to |
8 | | know the symptoms of a stroke and to get their blood pressure |
9 | | and cholesterol tested regularly; he traveled as a spokesman |
10 | | for the American Stroke Association and made appearances for |
11 | | the American Heart Association; and
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12 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume's television career was diverse |
13 | | and spanned many decades; his penchant for playing |
14 | | distinguished characters resolutely defied racial stereotypes; |
15 | | and
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16 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume was preceded in death by his son, |
17 | | Jacques; and
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18 | | WHEREAS, Robert Guillaume is survived by his wife, Donna; |
19 | | his daughters, Patricia Carpenter and Melissa and Rachel |
20 | | Guillaume; his son, Kevin; his four grandchildren; his five |
21 | | great-grandchildren; and his one great-great-granddaughter; |
22 | | therefore, be it
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| | SR1068 | - 4 - | LRB100 15499 ALS 30523 r |
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1 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL |
2 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of |
3 | | Robert Guillaume and extend our sincere condolences to his |
4 | | friends, family, and all who knew and loved him; and be it |
5 | | further
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6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
7 | | presented to the family of Robert Guillaume as an expression of |
8 | | our deepest sympathy.
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