Victor Stephen Gilliam (July 21, 1953June 17, 2020) was an American politician and actor who served as a member of the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 65,000. The House meets in the west wing of the ...

from 2007 to 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Gilliam resigned in 2017 due to health problems. After serving as a legislative aide from 1976 to 1981, he unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the Oregon House of Representatives. In 2007, he was appointed to fill the vacancy created by

Mac Sumner Macon Ernest "Mac" Sumner Jr. (March 27, 1940 – May 7, 2007) was an American politician who served in the Oregon House of Representatives from 2005 until 2006. Early life Sumner was born in Sedalia, Missouri in 1940 and moved to Oregon at ...

's resignation and served until his own resignation in 2017. Gilliam was also an actor who appeared in multiple television shows.

Early life and education

Victor S. Gilliam was born on July 21, 1953 in

Dover, Ohio Dover is a city in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States, along the Tuscarawas River. The population was 13,112 at the 2020 census. It is located approximately south of Cleveland, west of Pittsburgh, and northeast of the state capital of Col ...

. In 1975, he graduated from

Warner Pacific University Warner Pacific University is a Private university, private Christianity, Christian university in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1937, the university is Higher education accreditation in the United States, accredited by the Northwest Commission on ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He then earned a Master of Education from the University of South Carolina in 1982. On May 14, 2016, he was awarded an honorary

Doctor of Law A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL ...

degree.

Career

From 1976 to 1981, Gilliam worked as a legislative aide to United States Senator Mark Hatfield. In 1980, he criticized President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

's support for military registration of people aged 19 and 20 as "a quick fix, a reaction, a hysterical voice saying that something has to be done." Gilliam was an actor and a member of the

Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...

. From 1984 to 1985, he served as the director of alumni relations at

Willamette University Willamette University is a private liberal arts college with locations in Salem and Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest college in the Western United States. Originally named the Oregon Institute, the school was an unaffiliated ...

Oregon House of Representatives

Elections

During the 1986 elections Gilliam ran for the Republican nomination for the

from the 31st district. During the campaign he was endorsed by the ''

Statesman Journal The ''Statesman Journal'' is the major daily newspaper published in Salem, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1851 as the ''Oregon Statesman'', it later merged with the ''Capital Journal'' to form the current newspaper, the second-oldest in Orego ...

'' editorial board. In the Republican primary he was defeated by Al Riebel. In 1987, Gilliam announced that he would seek the Republican nomination in the 31st district, but was defeated by Gene Derfler. In 2006, state Representative

announced his resignation due to his lung cancer. On December 27, Gilliam was selected to replace Sumner as representative from the 18th district by the county commissioners of

Marion Marion may refer to: People *Marion (given name) *Marion (surname) *Marion Silva Fernandes, Brazilian footballer known simply as "Marion" *Marion (singer), Filipino singer-songwriter and pianist Marion Aunor (born 1992) Places Antarctica * Mario ...

and Clackamas counties.

Tenure

On January 8, 2007, Gilliam was sworn into the Oregon House of Representatives and was appointed to serve on the consumer protection, and the human services and women's wellness committee during the 2007–2009 legislative session. In 2007, Gilliam voted against legislation that would allow

domestic partnership A domestic partnership is a legal relationship, usually between couples, who live together and share a common domestic life, but are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive benefits that guarantee r ...

s for same-sex couples, and legislation that would prohibit discrimination against LGBT people in housing, employment, and access to public places. In 2013, he was one of five Republicans in the House of Representatives to vote in favor of allowing illegal immigrants to receive driver licenses.

Death

In 2014, Gilliam and Brian Clem participated in the

Ice Bucket Challenge The Ice Bucket Challenge, sometimes called the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, is an activity involving the pouring of a bucket of ice water over a person's head, either by another person or self-administered, to promote awareness of the disease amyo ...

to raise donations for research into

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

. In November 2015, he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. On January 30, 2017, Gilliam resigned from the House of Representatives due to the symptoms of the disease worsening. Gilliam died on June 17, 2020, aged 66.

Filmography

Electoral history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilliam, Vic 1953 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American politicians American actor-politicians Deaths from motor neuron disease Franklin High School (Portland, Oregon) alumni Male actors from Oregon Republican Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives People from Silverton, Oregon People from Dover, Ohio Place of death missing University of South Carolina alumni Warner Pacific University alumni