BRAVEHEART SCREENWRITER RANDALL WALLACE NAMED GRAND MARSHAL FOR NEW YORK CITY’S 2005 TARTAN DAY PARADE

The National Tartan Day New York Committee, Inc., the organizing body for New York City’s annual Tartan Day Parade, is delighted to announce that New York Times best-selling author, movie director/screenplay writer (Braveheart, We Were Soldiers, Pearl Harbor) and proud American-Scot, Randall Wallace, will be New York City’s Tartan Day Parade Grand Marshal in 2005.

Dennis Hagerty, Parade Marshal and member of The National Tartan Day New York Committee, Inc. said of the selection: “New York City's Tartan Day Parade is rapidly growing as New York's leading event celebrating Scottish history and culture and reminding us of the many wonderful contributions Scots have made to the genesis and growth of our great country. In this, the 700th Anniversary year of William Wallace's heroic demise for the cause of freedom, it is with particular pride that the National Tartan Day New York Committee welcomes Randall Wallace as the City's 2005 Tartan Day Parade Grand Marshal.”

Randall Wallace, in accepting the honored position of New York City’s 2005 Tartan Day Parade Grand Marshal, said: “Americans of Scottish descent have given us their passion in literature, politics, industry, science, and in their fervent defense of liberty. I am deeply honored to celebrate this spirit as Grand Marshal of the 2005 Tartan Day Parade, especially in this year that marks the 700^th anniversary of the sacrifice of William Wallace in the name of freedom.”

The New York City Tartan Day Parade will take place at 2:00pm on Saturday, April 2^nd, 2005. The Parade steps-off at West 45^th Street, marching north on The Avenue of the Americas, otherwise known as 6^th Avenue, to 58^th Street. Nearly 30 Pipe Bands from three countries and nine States will march in the 7^th annual American-Scottish parade.

Randall Wallace has brought to page and screen numerous epic tales of love and war showcasing heroes admired for their determination, loyalty, and bravery. None of these is better known than Braveheart, for which he received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations and won the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay.

The success of Braveheart spurred Wallace to make his directorial debut in 1998 with The Man In the Iron Mask. Then, in 2001 he wrote the New York Times best-selling novel and the original screenplay for Pearl Harbor. 2002 saw Wallace adapting, producing and directing the critically acclaimed film We Were Soldiers, starring Mel Gibson. In tribute to the fallen soldiers of the Vietnam War, he co-wrote the haunting hymn, Mansions for the Lord, for the film’s credit sequence. The hymn has gained widespread use at military funerals and memorial services, including President Ronald Reagan’s State Funeral.

Wallace’s latest endeavor is the publication of his novel Love and Honor, by Simon & Schuster. The epic story of an American secret agent’s treacherous journey into the court of Imperial Russia’s Catherine the Great; the hardcover hit bookstores in September 2004 with the paperback due out this September. Wallace’s company Wheelhouse Entertainment will produce the film adaptation. For additional information on Mr. Wallace, please visit www.thewheelhouse.com.

Wallace is the founder of Hollywood for Habitat for Humanity, which is an entertainment industry partnership with Habitat for Humanity whose goal is to work towards the elimination of substandard housing worldwide. The organization has helped build more that 150 homes in Los Angeles, New York City, Virginia, Nepal, South Africa, Mexico, Egypt and Armenia.

The National Tartan Day New York Committee, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, consists of representatives from the following societies: The Saint Andrew’s Society of the State of New York, The New York Caledonian Club, The American-Scottish Foundation, Inc. and Clan Campbell. For additional information regarding the Parade or the members of NTDNYC, Inc., please visit www.tartanweek.com.

Tartan Day, April 6^th annually, came into existence in 1998, when the United States Senate passed Resolution 155 in recognition of the valuable contribution made by the Scots, or persons in America of Scottish descent, to the foundation, character and prosperity of America. The date was selected to commemorate April 6^th, 1320, when the Declaration of Arbroath, affirming an independent Scotland, was signed and presented to the Pope; it is believed that this document later became an inspiration behind the American Declaration of Independence.