It’s that time of year again! Time for picnics, parades and fireworks! Yes, here in the US it’s Independence Day 2011, the 235th anniversary of the founding of the country. And after all the food and fun, what better way to finish the day than watch a movie celebrating our history or Americana in general? There are a lot of movies about the Founding Fathers and periods of history that define America, but one of my favorite movies celebrating Americana is The Music Man. I have a bit of a soft spot for this one since I appeared in a junior high production of the show as a River City townsperson (and I got to meet Shirley Jones at a special screening of the film a couple of years ago!), but the movie is a delightful celebration of small town America with wonderful performances from Robert Preston, Shirley Jones and a cast of great character actors from Buddy Hackett to Hermione Gingold. Nothing says “small town America” like a band playing “76 Trombones” while marching down the main street of River City, Iowa.
We’ve been taking suggestions from our friends on Facebook and Google+ for more movies that celebrate the holiday and we’d like you to select your favorite movie from the poll below. You can vote for up to three movies. Your favorite isn’t here? Feel free to leave a comment and let us know what we missed. Have a safe and happy 4th of July!
Clacked by Chuck Duncan 
on Jul 02, 2011 @ 15:04 EST5EDT
The American President is one of my all time movies.
Same here. Love it!
awesome my pick is near the top
I always watch Jaws on the fourth.
Mine isn’t mentioned. “Give’em Hell, Harry.”
*POST AUTHOR*
Now it has! :-)