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Filmmaker Steven Spielberg to speak in Gettysburg Nov. 19
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Renowned film director Steven Spielberg will be the keynote speaker at a ceremony in Gettysburg on Nov. 19, the anniversary President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.
Mr. Spielberg, who created such well-known movies as "Jaws," "E.T.", and "Saving Private Ryan," will speak at the Soldiers National Cemetery, where thousands of soldiers who died in the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863, are buried. Lincoln first honored them with his address on Nov. 19, 1863.
Mr. Spielberg's visit to Gettysburg will also mark the release of his latest film, called "Lincoln," which was written by Tony Kushner, winner of a Pulitzer Prize, and partly based on Doris Kearns Goodwin's biography of the 16th President. The film will focus on Mr. Lincoln's final months in office.
"It is an honor to be asked to speak at such a hallowed place on the anniversary of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address," Mr. Spielberg said in a statement. "I look forward to visiting Pennsylvania and commemorating this important moment in our nation's history."
Mr. Spielberg's appearance will be the first of dozens of events that officials from the town of Gettysburg and surrounding Adams County, along with the National Park Service, plan over the next year to mark the 150th anniversary of the bloody conflict in Gettysburg, considered the turning point of the Civil War. Thousands of visitors are expected in and around Gettysburg as the anniversary draws closer.
First Published October 2, 2012 2:17 pm
