Later Years
Folsom died in 1987 in Cullman. His niece, Cornelia Wallace, the daughter of his sister, Ruby Folsom Ellis, was from 1971 to 1978 the second wife of his former rival, George Wallace.
A documentary film about Folsom entitled Big Jim Folsom: The Two Faces of Populism was produced in 1996 by Alabama filmmaker Robert Clem, and won the 1997 International Documentary Association/ABCNews VideoSource Award and the Southeastern Filmmaker Award at the 1997 Atlanta Film Festival.
In the 1997 TNT film George Wallace, directed by John Frankenheimer, Jim Folsom is played by Joe Don Baker, who was nominated for a CableACE award for his performance. Gary Sinise played Wallace.
Folsom's son James E. Folsom, Jr. (dubbed "Little Jim" though he is physically large but because of his father's nickname) is also a noted Alabama politician. He served as Alabama lieutenant governor from 1986 to 1993. He assumed the office of governor when Republican Governor Guy Hunt was removed from office after having been convicted of state ethics law violations. Folsom, Jr., ran for governor in 1994 but was defeated by Republican former Governor Fob James. He decided to re-enter state politics in 2006, qualifying for and eventually winning the lieutenant governor's position once again, having served from 2007 to 2011.
Jim Folsom, Sr., had nine legitimate children, two by his first wife and seven by his second wife. A number of extra-marital paternity claims have been alleged.
Read more about this topic: Jim Folsom
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