OSCAR-WINNING ACTOR RICHARD DREYFUSS TO SPEAK AT ENDANGERED BATTLEFIELDS NEWS CONFERENCE
( Washington , D.C. ) Oscar-winning actor and education activist Richard Dreyfuss will be the keynote speaker at a news conference about endangered Civil War battlefields on Wednesday, March 18, 2009. Best known for his roles in films like American Graffiti, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and his Academy Award-winning turn in Mr. Holland’s Opus, Dreyfuss is also an avid student of history and has been involved in numerous documentary projects, including “The Great Battles of the Civil War” and “ Lincoln .”
Dreyfuss will be joining Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) President James Lighthizer at the news conference for the release of History Under Siege, the organization’s annual report on the nation’s most endangered Civil War battlefields and what is being done to rescue them. Also speaking at the event will be Dr. Libby O’Connell, chief historian at History, formerly The History Channel.
The news conference will be held at 10:00 a.m. in the First Amendment Lounge of the National Press Club. Copies of the report will be available at the event. Refreshments will be served.
Following the news conference, Dreyfuss and Lighthizer will visit the African American Civil War Memorial, located at 10th and U Streets, NW, Washington , D.C. , for a wreath-laying ceremony.
WHO: Oscar-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss, CWPT President James Lighthizer and historian Dr. Libby O’Connell
WHAT: News Conference and Wreath-Laying Ceremony
WHEN: Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 10:00 a.m.
WHERE: News Conference will begin at 10:00 a.m. in the First Amendment Lounge of the National Press Club, 529 14th Street, NW, Washington, D.C.
Wreath-Laying Ceremony will be held at the African American Civil War Memorial, 10th and U Streets, NW, Washington, D.C. at approximately 11:30 a.m.
CWPT is America ’s largest nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving our nation’s remaining Civil War battlefields. CWPT’s website is located at http://www.civilwar.org/.