Donald Wildmon Dies: Led Film, TV Boycotts For American Family Assn., Was 85

Donald E. Wildmon, known for leading the American Family Association in its various boycotts relating to sexuality and gay themes on American television and in the arts, passed away on December 28 in Tupelo, Mississippi at the age of 85. The cause of death was stated to be Lewy body dementia, as per the American Family Association's announcement.

Wildmon spearheaded groups which placed full page ads criticizing NYPD Blue, a 1990s police drama, for its "steamy sex scenes". He also initiated a protest against a Hollywood studio regarding the movie The Last Temptation of Christ by Martin Scorsese. In 1982, he urged national brands to pull their ads from Sister, Sister, an NBC TV movie penned by Maya Angelou, alleging that the film portrayed Christians negatively. Wildmon also campaigned against the National Endowment for the Arts because of its funding for works deemed obscene by many conservatives.

Wildmon, who was also a pastor, is the founder of the National Federation for Decency, which was rebranded later as the American Family Association. He leaves behind his wife Lynda Bennett Wildmon, three children - Tim, Angela, and Mark Wildmon, and Donna Wildmon Clement, a sister named Louise Yancy, and a legacy of six grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.