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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, A Texas star has forever dimmed with the death of |
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actress Farrah Fawcett on June 25, 2009, at the age of 62; and |
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WHEREAS, Mary Farrah Leni Fawcett was born in Corpus Christi |
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on February 2, 1947, to James and Pauline Fawcett; growing up along |
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the Gulf Coast, she became part of a circle of lifelong friends who |
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called themselves "the Amigas"; she attended Catholic schools and |
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W. B. Ray High School, where she was voted "Most Beautiful" by her |
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classmates for three years in a row; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Fawcett went on to attend The University of |
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Texas at Austin, where she studied microbiology, painting, and |
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sculpture; again, she was voted one of the 10 most beautiful young |
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women on campus, and a publicist suggested she might try for a |
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career in Hollywood; and |
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WHEREAS, Moving to Los Angeles, Ms. Fawcett soon found work |
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in commercials and in episodes of such popular television programs |
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as I Dream of Jeannie, The Flying Nun, and The Six Million Dollar |
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Man; and |
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WHEREAS, During the early years of her career, Ms. Fawcett |
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famously posed in a red bathing suit for a poster, which became one |
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of the iconic images of the 1970s, selling 12 million copies, twice |
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as many as similar posters of Marilyn Monroe and Betty Grable |
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combined; the success of the poster led to her being cast as one of |
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the beautiful and athletic crime fighters in the television series |
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Charlie's Angels, and her performance in that role ensured her |
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lasting fame; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Fawcett later won critical acclaim in more |
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serious productions, including the mini-series Murder in Texas, the |
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television films The Burning Bed and Small Sacrifices, and the |
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off-Broadway play and film Extremities; she went on to tackle other |
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challenging roles, such as Nazi hunter Beate Klarsfeld and |
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photographer Margaret Bourke-White, and in 1997, she delivered a |
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strong performance as the wife of a preacher in Robert Duvall's film |
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The Apostle; and |
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WHEREAS, Throughout her life, Ms. Fawcett maintained her |
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strong ties to her childhood friends in Texas, hosting visits in Los |
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Angeles and New York, and returning to the Lone Star State for |
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reunions of the Amigas; she also maintained a long relationship |
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with the actor Ryan O'Neal, and together they were the parents of a |
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son, Redmond O'Neal, who was born in 1985; and |
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WHEREAS, Although Farrah Fawcett won worldwide recognition |
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early in her career for her charm, her beauty, and her leonine mane |
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of hair, she went on to earn respect and admiration for her work as |
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an actress, and images of this luminous woman will forever be |
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cherished by her loved ones and by her legions of fans the world |
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over; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas |
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Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the life of |
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Farrah Fawcett and extend sincere condolences to her loved ones: to |
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her son, Redmond James Fawcett O'Neal; to her father, James |
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Fawcett; to her longtime companion, Ryan O'Neal; and to her other |
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relatives and friends; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Farrah |
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Fawcett. |