In a message dated 11/17/01 12:06:11 AM Eastern Standard Time, NPeters102@aol.com writes: > The following was posted to another list re: one of Raleigh County's native > sons: > > WASHINGTON — Sen. Robert Byrd, often given to lecturing the Senate > about history, is about to make his movie debut as a Civil War > general. > The white-haired West Virginia Democrat will play the cameo role in > Gods and Generals, a Warner Bros. production being filmed for release > by early 2003. > His brief scene, in which aides said they did not expect him to speak, > will be filmed at the Antietam Civil War battlefield in Maryland on > Tuesday, his 84th birthday. > > The senator's aides said they do not know which general Byrd will play, > but he will appear in a scene with actor Robert Duvall, who is > playing Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The scene depicts activity > at Telegraph Hill, which was Lee's command post and an artillery > position during the Battle of Fredericksburg in Virginia. > > Byrd was invited to play the role by the film's director, Ronald > Maxwell, who has been spending time in West Virginia in recent months > scouting Civil War battlefields as possible filming locations, Byrd > aides said. > > The movie is based on the book of the same name by Jeff Shaara. It is > the prequel to the movie Gettysburg, which was based on The Killer > Angels by Shaara's father, Michael. > > Byrd's colleague, Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, filmed a scene for the same > movie several weeks ago in which he played a Virginia legislator. > > Byrd, who will not be paid for his role, did not serve in the military. > He worked as a ship welder during World War II, entered the West > Virginia state House in 1947, and has been in Congress since 1953. > > Thanks for writing. Sandy in Florida Maybe I'll catch up with my mail when I retire, in 2010! PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME VIRUS WARNINGS, JOKES, CHAIN LETTERS, ETC. Thanks I will gladly exchange genealogy information if you will kindly do the same.