Hailing "the brightest beacons in American arts and culture," President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the nation's most prestigious humanities award to Center director Bill Ferris. Ferris, one of five recipients of the 1995 Charles Frankel Prize in the Humanities, was presented the award October 5 on the White House South Lawn. The Frankel Prize honors Americans who have had outstanding success in bringing the insights of the humanities to wide public audiences.
The awards are given in conjunction with the National Medal of Arts, whose 13 recipients were also announced during the ceremony. In announcing the 17 recipients of the two awards, Clinton said "they are genuine examples of the American ideal and their work as a whole is a national treasure." (See complete list of winners below.)
The Charles Frankel Prize, originated by the National Endowment for the Humanities in 1989, honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the public's understanding of history, literature, philosophy, and other humanities disciplines. The award goes to each of up to five Americans selected annually for their achievements in stimulating public reflection about the ideas and themes in the humanities through museum, library, or classroom programs; scholarship; documentary film making; philanthropy; or other means.
The award commemorates Charles Frankel (1917-1979) whose life and work exemplify the integration of scholarship and public service. Frankel was the first director of the National Humanities Center at Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Each year the Frankel Prize winners are chosen from nominations received by NEH from state humanities councils, museums and historical societies, libraries and archives, public television and radio stations, and colleges and universities. The National Council on the Humanities, the group of 26 citizens appointed by the President to advise the Endowment, reviews the nominations and makes recommendations to the President, who makes the final selection.
In making the awards, President Clinton said, "Bill Ferris leads the sort of life I'd like to lead if I had another one to live. He lives in the deep South; he writes funny, wonderful books; and he's still trying to find out if Elvis is alive. He's probably done more than anyone else to bring national recognition and understanding to the field of Southern studies. I want to thank him for bringing the culture and music of my homeland to all Americans."
William R. Ferris, scholar and director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture
Charles Kuralt, CBS correspondent and author, New York, New York
David Macaulay, author and illustrator, Warren, Rhode Island
David McCullough, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian, West Tisbury, Massachusetts
Bernice Johnson Reagon, performer, museum curator, and historian, Washington, D.C.
Licia Albanese, opera singer, New York, New York
Gwendolyn Brooks, poet, Chicago, Illinois
Gerald and Iris Cantor, patrons, Beverly Hills, California
Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, actors, New Rochelle, New York
David Diamond, composer, Rochester, New York
James Ingo Freed, architect, New York, New York
Bob Hope, entertainer, North Hollywood, California
Roy Lichtenstein, painter and sculptor, New York, New York
Arthur Mitchell, dancer and choreographer, New York, New York
William S. Monroe, bluegrass musician, Goodlettsville, Tennessee
Urban Gateways, arts education organization, Chicago, Illinois
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