Aug. 3 is now Tony Bennett Day in America.
A resolution was unanimously passed in the Senate to honor the legendary singer, who died last week, on what would have been his 97th birthday.
“You only come across a Tony Bennett once in a lifetime,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said of the longtime New Yorker on Thursday.
“It didn’t matter if you were young or old or somewhere in between, it didn’t matter if you were a friend of a fan, just about everyone loved Tony — and Tony loved just about everyone.”
Schumer also noted that besides being an exceptional musician and accomplished painter, Bennett was “a very good human being,” as he served in World War II and marched with Martin Luther King Jr. in 1965.
“He was a lifelong champion of civil rights and marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma in 1965, at a time when the agents of most entertainers discouraged them from marching in these kinds of things because they might lose some fans,” the New York Democrat said.
“But Tony didn’t care, he believed in equality.”
Bennett, who grew up in Astoria, Queens, is remembered for the indelible mark he left on the Big Apple and the world.
On Sunday, two days after his death, Chuck Schumer first called for the decision at a press conference at Bennett’s bench in Central Park.
“Here is a man who sang about his heart while his soul was always here in New York,” he said.
“The King of Croon is beloved from coast-to-coast, his reach spanned genres and generations — but he is, and he will always be, a New Yorker who did so much good.”
A similar resolution was introduced in the House by Bennett’s longtime friend, Rep. Nancy Pelosi.
“This resolution appropriately honors Tony’s extraordinary legacy and celebrates his unsurpassed artistry and patriotic leadership,” the California Democrat said in a statement.
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