Jesse Boyce Holleman (February 26, 1924 – November 21, 2003) was an American

war veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in an occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in the armed forces. A topic of interest for resea ...

, attorney,

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, and

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. Boyce Holleman was born in Fruitland Park, MS, to a family that made their living in timber and construction. As a

Naval Aviator Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompas ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was shot down while making a bomb run during the invasion of

Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...

and spent 14 months recovering from severe injuries. He achieved the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was awarded the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

. Holleman attended Perkinston Junior College, now

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (MGCCC) is a Public college, public community college with its main campus in Perkinston, Mississippi. It was founded as Harrison County Agricultural High School in 1912. MGCCC has three campuses and sev ...

, at Perkinston, MS and the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...

Oxford, MS Oxford is the 14th most populous city in Mississippi, United States, and the county seat of Lafayette County, southeast of Memphis. A college town, Oxford surrounds the University of Mississippi or "Ole Miss". Founded in 1837, the city is nam ...

. After graduating from the

University of Mississippi School of Law The University of Mississippi School of Law, also known as Ole Miss Law, is an ABA-accredited law school located on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi, United States. Established in 1854, the School of Law offers t ...

in 1950, Holleman established his legal practice in Wiggins and moved his family to Gulfport, MS in 1967. Holleman was elected to the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected for ...

in 1947, at the age of 23, and served until 1953 when he was appointed to the position of

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for the

Mississippi Gulf Coast The Mississippi Gulf Coast, also known as Mississippi Coast, Mississippi Gulf Coast region, Coastal Mississippi, and The Coast, is the area of Mississippi along the Mississippi Sound at the northern extreme of the Gulf of Mexico. Geography At t ...

. As District Attorney, Holleman survived an assassination attempt by the Dixie Mafia. During his tenure as District Attorney, Holleman fought to overturn a crooked election, taking this battle all the way to the

State Supreme Court In the United States, a state supreme court (known by other names in some states) is the highest court in the state judiciary of a U.S. state. On matters of state law, the judgment of a state supreme court is considered final and binding in ...

. He was re-elected five times as District Attorney, retiring in 1972, to return to the private practice of law. When reflecting on his life, Holleman said that he wanted to be remembered, first and foremost, as a lawyer. Holleman served as Attorney for the Harrison County Board of Supervisors and

School District A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public Primary school, primary or Secondary school, secondary schools or both in various countries. It is not to be confused with an attendance zone, which is within a school dis ...

for 18 and 15 years, respectively. In 1969 and 1970, he was elected President of the

State bar association A state bar association is a bar association that represents or seeks to represent the attorneys practicing law in a particular U.S. state. Their functions differ from state to state, but often include administration of the state bar examination fo ...

in Mississippi. In 1995, he received the Outstanding Achievement in Law Award from the Mississippi State Bar Association. An autobiographical video, titled ''Trailblazers of the Mississippi Legal Frontier'', was produced to document his legal career. In 1975, Holleman began an acting career, which led him to perform on stage, in movies, and in television series. Holleman had a starring role in '' The Ponder Heart'', a movie based on a book by

Eudora Welty Eudora Alice Welty (April 13, 1909 – July 23, 2001) was an American short-story writer, novelist and photographer who wrote about the American South. Her novel '' The Optimist's Daughter'' won the Pulitzer Prize in 1973. Welty received numerou ...

and was an active 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 ...

. In 1976, Holleman was interviewed about his distinguished legal career as part of the Mississippi

Oral History Oral history is the collection and study of historical information from people, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people who pa ...

Program. Following his death from cancer, Holleman was buried in ''Floral Hills Memorial Gardens'', Gulfport, Mississippi.

Partial filmography

*'' The Beast Within'' (1982) - Doc Odom *'' Stone Cold'' (1991) - County Judge *'' A Simple Twist of Fate'' (1994) - Politician #1 *''Cries of Silence'' (1996) - Judge Ladner

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holleman, Jesse Boyce 1924 births 2003 deaths Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives People from Forrest County, Mississippi Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College alumni University of Mississippi School of Law alumni 20th-century American male actors Male actors from Mississippi American male stage actors American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century members of the Mississippi Legislature