In a world of
ignorance, stupid and dangerous prejudices rush to fill the void, and
such was the case in 1930s Alabama, which is the setting of Harper Lee’s
Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and the beloved movie adapted from it,
To Kill a Mockingbird. This is a world in which it was unimaginable-
or all too imaginable and therefore terrifying- that a white woman could
lust after a black man. Any sexual contact between the two was presumed
rape on the man’s part. Against this popular prejudice stood the law-
administered by judges and purposefully detached from day to day
political whim.
In this story a
good man, a popular local lawyer, asks a jury of his peers to overcome
personal prejudice and uphold the law by embracing the evidence. All of
this is seen through the eyes of the lawyer’s young daughter, her
brother, and their playmate, innocents nurtured by the warmth of small
town Southern life. Their life revolves around school and the myth they
embrace about their mysterious neighbor in the scary house. As reality
overtakes youthful fantasy, they learn some of life’s harsher realities.
Gregory Peck’s won
his only Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of lawyer Atticus Finch. The
picture was nominated for five Academy Awards (Lawrence of Arabia
won Best Picture), including Best Supporting Actress for young Mary
Badham. This is the screen debut of the great actor, Robert Duvall. The
little girl, Scout, is a fictionalized version of author Harper Lee, and
her friend, Dill, is a fictionalized version of Harper Lee’s lifelong
friend, Truman Capote.
--Jed Dietz
Presented by:
Senator Barbara Mikulski
Biography:
Senator Barbara Mikulski’s career personifies the dictum: “think
globally, act locally.” Starting as a social worker and community
activist who helped divert Interstate 95 around Baltimore’s Inner
Harbor, Barbara Mikulski held a variety of elected positions before
running for the US Senate in 1986, and winning with 61% of the vote. In
addition to being the third highest-ranking Democrat in the Senate, Sen.
Mikulski has been very supportive of increased film production in
Maryland.
