46th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2003

RECOGNIZING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF BILL MAULDIN.

WHEREAS, Bill Mauldin, a two-time winner of the Pulitzer prize and one of the great editorial cartoonists of the last century, was born in New Mexico in 1921; and

WHEREAS, Bill Mauldin's candid portrayals of the average American foot solider in World War II through his characters "Willie" and "Joe" endeared him to countless real life troops while earning him a face-to-face rebuke from General George S. Patton; and

WHEREAS, the original sketch of one of Bill Mauldin's most famous cartoons of a grieving President Lincoln at the Lincoln monument following the assassination of President Kennedy has been placed at the Kennedy library at Harvard at the request of Jacqueline Kennedy; and

WHEREAS, Bill Mauldin lived life large, running for congress, appearing in two Hollywood movies and piloting a 747 jumbo jet; and

WHEREAS, during his final months of life, World War II veterans visited Bill Mauldin at a nursing home in California in a moving testimony to the impact he had on their lives and the lives of countless other members of "America's greatest generation"; and

WHEREAS, Bill Mauldin is survived by two former wives, including Christine Lund of Santa Fe, and sons Andy, David and Sam of Santa Fe; John of Albuquerque; and Bruce, Tim and Nat;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that Bill Mauldin be recognized for his accomplishments and great contributions to the morale of countless World War II troops.