1776 ( film ) - wikipedia 1776 ( film ) This article is about the film. For the Broadway musical, see 1776 ( musical ). For the book by David McCullough, see 1776 ( book ). For other uses, see 1776 ( disambiguation ). 1776 Theatrical release poster Directed by Peter H. Hunt Produced by Jack L. Warner Written by Peter Stone Starring William Daniels Howard Da Silva Ken Howard Donald Madden John Cullum Music by Sherman Edwards Cinematography Harry Stradling, Jr. Edited by Florence Williamson William H. Ziegler Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date November 17, 1972 ( 1972 - 11 - 17 ) Running time 141 minutes ( Theatrical ) 168 minutes ( DVD ) Country United States Language English Budget $6 million Box office $2,800,000 ( Rentals ) 1776 is a 1972 American musical drama film directed by Peter H. Hunt. The screenplay by Peter Stone was based on his book for the 1969 Broadway musical of the same name. The song score was composed by Sherman Edwards. The film stars William Daniels, Howard Da Silva, Donald Madden, John Cullum, Ken Howard and Blythe Danner. Portions of the dialogue and some of the song lyrics were taken directly from the letters and memoirs of the actual participants of the Second Continental Congress. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Musical numbers and soundtrack 4 Production 5 Political changes 6 Historical accuracy 7 Critical reception 8 Awards and honors 9 Home media releases 10 Comic book adaptation 11 See also 12 References 13 External links Plot While General George Washington is conducting the struggle against the British Empire on the battlefield, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia piddles away its time over trivial matters and continually refuses to begin debating the question of American independence. The leader of the independence faction is the abrasive John Adams of Massachusetts, whose continuous pushing of the issue has brought their cause to a complete standstill. John Dickinson of Pennsylvania leads the opposition that hopes for reconciliation with England. During his quieter moments, Adams calls up the image of his wife Abigail Adams, who resides in Massachusetts and gives him insight and encouragement ( these conversations are based on letters between the couple ). Dr. Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania suggests another colony that supports independence should submit a proposal. Richard Henry Lee of Virginia voluntarily rides off to Williamsburg, Virginia to get authorization from the Virginia Colony to propose independence. Dr. Lyman Hall arrives to represent Georgia, and immediately, he is interrogated by his fellow delegates regarding his views on independence ( with Dickinson framing it as `` treason '' ). Weeks later, Lee returns with the resolution, and debate on the question begins. However, in the midst of debate, Caesar Rodney falters because of his cancer and is taken back to Delaware by fellow delegate Thomas McKean, leaving the anti-independence George Read to represent Delaware. After heated discussions, the question is called without a majority of positive votes present. The New Jersey delegation, led by Reverend John Witherspoon, arrives just in time to provide a vote supporting independence. In a move intended to defeat the resolution, Dickinson calls for a vote requiring unanimity for passage. The vote ends in a tie between the colonies, New York abstaining as it does in every vote. It is ultimately decided in favor of unanimity by John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, who argues that any objecting colony would fight for England against independence. Stalling for time to rally support for the resolution, Adams and Franklin call again for a postponement, justifying their call by stating the need for a declaration describing their grievances. Once again tied and ultimately decided by Hancock, the vote is successfully postponed until such a document can be written. Hancock appoints a committee that includes Adams, Franklin, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Robert Livingston of New York, and Thomas Jefferson ( after Lee declines due to an appointment to serve as governor of Virginia ). Jefferson resists because he desires to return home to Virginia to see his wife, Martha, but the others present more compelling reasons to avoid the responsibility ; they opine that Jefferson 's diplomatic nature and superior writing skill are required to draft the declaration. Jefferson develops writer 's block due to missing his wife, so Adams sends for Martha : `` It simply occurred to me that the sooner his problem was solved the sooner ours would be. '' Upon meeting her, Adams and Franklin are quite taken with Martha. While maneuvering to get the required unanimity for the vote on independence, Adams, Franklin and Samuel Chase of Maryland visit the Colonial Army encamped in New Brunswick, New Jersey, at the request of General Washington, to help convince Maryland. When they return to Philadelphia, the declaration is read and then subsequently debated and amended. Jefferson agrees to most alterations to the document, much to Adams ' growing consternation. The debate reaches a head when the Southern delegates, led by Edward Rutledge of South Carolina, walk out of Congress when a clause opposing slavery is not removed. Adams remains adamant that the clause remain, but Franklin appeals to him to allow the passage to be removed so that they can first achieve the vote on independence and the formation of a nation, deferring the slavery fight to a later time. Adams leaves the final decision to Jefferson, who reluctantly concedes. After removing that clause, 11 of 13 colonies are now in favor. New York abstains yet again ( since its delegates have never been given specific orders by the disorganized New York legislature ). The question is therefore up to the Colony of Pennsylvania, whose delegation is polled at Franklin 's request. Franklin votes for the declaration, but Dickinson votes against. The outcome is now in the hands of their fellow Pennsylvanian Judge James Wilson. Wilson has always followed Dickinson 's lead, but in this case Wilson votes in favor of the declaration, securing its passage, so that he would not be remembered by history as the man who voted to prevent American independence. After receiving word of the destruction of his property from General Washington, Lewis Morris finally withdraws New York 's abstention and agrees to sign the document. Finally, with the Declaration of Independence ready to be signed, Hancock places his signature first, whereupon the others ( including New York ) affix theirs to the Declaration, establishing the United States on July 4, 1776. Cast Delegates William Daniels as John Adams ( MA ) Howard Da Silva as Benjamin Franklin ( PA ) Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson ( VA ) Donald Madden as John Dickinson ( PA ) John Cullum as Edward Rutledge ( SC ) David Ford as John Hancock ( MA ) Roy Poole as Stephen Hopkins ( RI ) Ron Holgate as Richard Henry Lee ( VA ) Ray Middleton as Thomas McKean ( DE ) William Hansen as Caesar Rodney ( DE ) Emory Bass as James Wilson ( PA ) Howard Caine as Lewis Morris ( NY ) Patrick Hines as Samuel Chase ( MD ) Daniel Keyes as Josiah Bartlett ( NH ) Leo Leyden as George Read ( DE ) Jonathan Moore as Lyman Hall ( GA ) James Noble as Reverend John Witherspoon ( NJ ) John Myhers as Robert Livingston ( NY ) Rex Robbins as Roger Sherman ( CT ) Charles Rule as Joseph Hewes ( NC ) William Engle as Button Gwinnett ( GA ) Others Blythe Danner as Martha Jefferson Virginia Vestoff as Abigail Adams Ralston Hill as Charles Thomson William Duell as Andrew McNair Stephen Nathan as Courier Musical numbers and soundtrack 1776 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album cover Overture `` Sit Down, John '' -- Adams, Congress `` Piddle, Twiddle and Resolve '' -- Adams `` Till Then '' -- Adams, Abigail `` The Lees of Old Virginia '' -- Lee, Franklin, Adams `` But, Mr. Adams '' -- Adams, Franklin, Jefferson, Sherman, Livingston `` Yours, Yours, Yours '' -- John, Abigail `` He Plays the Violin '' -- Martha Jefferson, Franklin, Adams `` Cool, Cool, Considerate Men '' -- Dickinson, The Conservatives `` Mama Look Sharp '' -- Courier, McNair, Leather Apron `` The Egg '' -- Franklin, Adams, Jefferson `` Molasses to Rum '' -- Rutledge `` Compliments '' -- Adams, Abigail `` Is Anybody There ? '' -- Adams Finale An original motion picture soundtrack album was released in 1972 by Columbia Records on the vinyl LP format. It contains all the musical numbers, with the exception of `` Cool, Cool Considerate Men '' and `` Compliments ''. The soundtrack also contains the edited versions of some of the musical numbers which were presented in full on the laserdisc and DVD releases. Although the Original Broadway Cast recording was released on CD in 1992, the film soundtrack was not. Production Jack L. Warner bought the film rights to the musical for $1.25 million. Many members of the original Broadway cast, including William Daniels, Ken Howard, John Cullum, and Howard Da Silva, reprised their roles for the film. Ralston Hill, Ron Holgate, David Ford, Charles Rule and others repeated their roles from the Broadway production, marking their only appearances in feature film. This was a decision Warner made himself after feeling he made a mistake by turning down Julie Andrews for the 1964 film adaptation of My Fair Lady in favor of Audrey Hepburn. 1776 was also the only film of Donald Madden, who was not in the original Broadway cast. Exteriors were filmed at the Warner Ranch in Burbank, California, the former Columbia Pictures backlot, where they built an entire street of colonial Philadelphia. Most of the colonial sets were destroyed by a fire in the mid-1970s. The water fountain seen during the musical number `` The Lees of Old Virginia, '' with Ben Franklin, John Adams, and Richard Henry Lee, became known to television viewers as the fountain seen during the beginning credits of the TV series Friends. This fountain still exists directly across the street from the Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie houses. Interiors were shot at the old Columbia studio on Gower Street in Hollywood. 1776 was among the final films shot at Gower Studios before the Warner / Columbia merger in 1971. In its theatrical and original home video releases, the film was rated G ; following the restoration of various parts cut by producer Jack L. Warner, the DVD was rated PG. The Laserdisc version, out of print, contains additional footage and background music not contained on the DVD release. The 168 - minute version is considered director Peter Hunt 's preferred version, hence its `` director 's cut '' moniker. The film was the Christmas attraction at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. `` Cool, Cool, Considerate Men '' was cut from the film prior to its release and not included on the soundtrack recording nor on the first VHS tapes and laserdiscs. The footage, some of physically poor quality, was restored for the later laserdisc and DVD releases. Political changes According to the Los Angeles Times, `` The song ' Cool, Cool, Considerate Men ' depicts Revolutionary War -- era conservatives as power - hungry wheedlers focused on maintaining wealth. '' According to Jack L. Warner, the film 's producer and a friend of U.S. President Richard Nixon, Nixon requested to have the song removed from the film. Nixon apparently saw the song as an insult to the conservatives of his time, as it suggested that the conservatives were the ones who were hindering American Independence as they danced a minuet singing the song that included the stanza, Come ye cool, cool considerate set We 'll dance together to the same minuet To the right, ever to the right Never to the left, forever to the right. To further complicate things as mentioned above, the song is anachronistic, because the terms `` right '' and `` left '' in politics were not coined until the French Revolution. Warner 's attempt to comply with Nixon 's demands had initially been rebuffed by director Hunt during production, only for the song to be removed in post-production while Hunt was on vacation. Warner also wanted the original negative of the song shredded, but the film 's editor kept it in storage unaltered. Trailers were already released in theaters with the `` Considerate Men '' number as its centerpiece ; Warner had those trailers pulled and re-edited. Hunt later mentioned in a 2015 interview that Warner, on his deathbed, told a friend that he regretted editing the scene, believing that he had ruined the structure of the film as a result of those edits. It was only decades later that the song was restored to the film. When the Broadway musical was about to be presented to Nixon at the White House in 1970, before the film was made, his staff pressed the producers to cut the song then ; their request was denied. Historical accuracy According to The Columbia Companion to American History on Film, historical `` ( i ) naccuracies pervade 1776, though few are very troubling. '' Because Congress was held in secrecy and there are no contemporary records on the debate over the Declaration of Independence, the authors of the play created the narrative based on later accounts and educated guesses, inventing scenes and dialogue as needed for storytelling purposes. Some of the dialogue was taken from words written, often years or even decades later, by the actual people involved, and rearranged for dramatic effect. The film particularly distorts and omits the views of the mid-Atlantic Quaker population, represented by Dickinson. Although in the film Dickinson is portrayed as loyalist, and John Adams is seen making the points of objection about the tax abuses of George III of the United Kingdom, including regressive taxes and `` taxation without representation '', and all to fund wars and the King 's lifestyle, not to benefit the people, it was Dickinson 's Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania that had originally made these points. A supposed physical fight between Dickinson and Adams is portrayed, in which Dickinson calls Adams a `` lawyer '' as an epithet, which makes little sense since Dickinson was a lawyer himself. Also, despite the film 's heavy focus on John Adams, John Dickinson, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, only Martha Jefferson and Abigail Adams and their marriages are depicted, despite Dickinson 's wife, Mary Norris Dickinson, being the only one of these spouses actually present in Philadelphia during the convention. ( Franklin 's common law wife, Deborah Read, had died a year or so earlier. ) Although the film initially uses actual correspondence between Abigail Adams and John Adams as a basis for dialogue, it romanticizes her views in later scenes. The film also fictionalizes the Martha Jefferson relationship in particular, depicting her as coming to the convention, when she had actually just suffered a miscarriage and was also dealing with complications of gestational diabetes and was an invalid in Virginia. The omission of Mary Norris and Dickinson 's marriage to her is also particularly distorting as Quaker marriages such as that of Dickinson and Norris were more egalitarian than those of some of the other founding cultures ( including the patriarchal Puritan - style Adams marriage, to which Abigail Adams objects in her letters quoted in the film ) and were by definition not bound to gender stereotypes. Another departure from history is that the separation from Great Britain was accomplished in two steps : the actual vote for independence came on July 2 with the approval of Lee 's resolution of independence. The wording of the Declaration of Independence -- the statement to the world as to the reasons necessitating the split -- was then debated for three days before being approved on July 4. The vote for independence did not hinge on some passages being removed from the Declaration, as implied in the film ( and the play ), since Congress had already voted in favor of independence before debating the Declaration. For the sake of drama, the play 's authors combined the two events. In addition, some historians believe that the Declaration was not signed on July 4, as shown in 1776, but was instead signed on August 2, 1776. Others point out that the final, official copy of the document was signed by the delegates not on a single date, but over several weeks and months, commencing in July but not being completed until as late as September. The authors of 1776 had the delegates sign the Declaration on July 4 for dramatic reasons. The Liberty Bell in 1776 is shown being rung as the delegates were signing the Declaration on July 4 ; however, this was also for dramatic effect. Independence Hall 's wooden steeple was structurally unstable, and the Liberty Bell was silent, having been lowered into the upper chamber of the brick tower. A smaller bell, used to toll the hours, may have rung on July 8, for the public reading of the Declaration. Many characters in 1776 differ from their historical counterparts. Central to the drama is the depiction of John Adams as `` obnoxious and disliked. '' According to biographer David McCullough, however, Adams was one of the most respected members of Congress in 1776. Adams 's often - quoted description of himself in Congress as `` obnoxious, suspected, and unpopular '' is from a letter written 46 years later in 1822, after his unpopular presidency had likely colored his view of the past. According to McCullough, no delegate described Adams as obnoxious in 1776. Historian Garry Wills earlier made a similar argument, writing that `` historians relay John Adams 's memories without sufficient skepticism '', and that it was Dickinson, not Adams, who was advocating an unpopular position in 1776. For practical and dramatic purposes, the work does not depict all of the more than 50 members of Congress who were present at the time. This version of John Adams is, in part, a composite character, combining the real Adams with his cousin Samuel Adams, who was in Congress at the time but is not depicted in the play. Although the play depicts Delaware 's Caesar Rodney as an elderly man near death from skin cancer ( which would eventually kill him ), he was just 47 years old at the time and continued to be very active in the Revolution after signing the Declaration. He was not absent from the voting because of health ; however, the play is accurate in having him arrive `` in the nick of time, '' having ridden 80 miles the night before ( an event depicted on Delaware 's 1999 State Quarter ) unaided, instead of with the help of another delegate. Further, Richard Henry Lee announces that he is returning to Virginia to serve as governor. He was never governor ; his cousin Henry Lee ( who is anachronistically called `` General ' Lighthorse ' Harry Lee, '' a rank and nickname earned later ) did eventually become governor ( and the father of Confederate general Robert E. Lee ). John Adams was also depicted as disliking Richard Henry Lee, but according to McCullough, Adams expressed nothing but `` respect and admiration for the tall, masterly Virginian. '' He did dislike Benjamin Franklin, contrary to what was portrayed. Martha Jefferson never traveled to Philadelphia to be with her husband ; she was extremely ill during the summer of 1776, having just endured a miscarriage. The play 's authors invented the scene `` to show something of the young Jefferson 's life without destroying the unity of setting. '' James Wilson was not the indecisive milquetoast depicted in the play and the film. The real Wilson, who was not yet a judge in 1776, had been cautious about supporting independence at an earlier date, but he supported the resolution of independence when it came up for a vote. Pennsylvania 's deciding swing vote was actually cast by John Morton, who is not depicted in the musical. The quote attributed to Edmund Burke by Dr. Lyman Hall in a key scene with Adams is a paraphrase of a real quote by Burke. The song `` Cool Considerate Men '' is anachronistic ; the terms `` right '' and `` left '' in politics were not in use until the French Revolution of 1789. John Dickinson, who is portrayed as an antagonist here, was motivated mainly by his Quaker roots and his respect for the British Constitution, having lived in England for 3 years in the 1750s. He was no wealthier than some members of the pro-Independence faction, and freed his slaves in 1777. Thomas Jefferson wrote that `` his name will be consecrated in history as one of the great worthies of the revolution ''. The film also misses the objection some had to the Declaration 's stated basis in `` rights of Man '' based in `` natural law '' derived from a supernatural being. The Quaker - based population in the mid-Atlantic, represented by Dickinson, objected to this conception. Dickinson 's objection to the Declaration had to do with this, as well as the fact he and his base preferred civil disobedience to war as the means, and a view that the colonies were too immature and the egalitarian mid-Atlantic culture would be overruled by the slavery of the South and the patriarchal Puritan attitudes of New England, represented by John Adams, in the foundation of the new country. The film also omits the fact that Dickinson, after refusing to sign the Declaration, set about drafting the Articles of Confederation, which he based on `` rights of Person '' with no reference to anything but law created by human beings and the only reference to `` men '' being in the context of mustering armies. This basis was then used when the Articles were converted to the Constitution but by then completely omitting the word `` man '' and only using the word `` Person. '' The musical also deviates from history in its portrayal of attitudes about slavery. In 1776, after a dramatic debate over slavery, the southern delegates walk out in protest of the Declaration 's denunciation of the slave trade, and only support independence when that language was removed from the Declaration. The walkout is fictional, as the debate over the wording of the declaration took place after the vote for independence on July 2, and apparently most delegates, northern and southern, supported the deletion of the clause. The musical depicts Edward Rutledge as the leader of the opposition to an anti-slavery clause in Jefferson 's original draft of the Declaration. However, while we do know that, according to Jefferson, the clause was opposed by South Carolina and Georgia, plus unspecified `` northern brethren '', that is all that is known about opposition to the clause. Rutledge was a delegate from South Carolina, but there is no historical evidence that he played any part -- much less a leadership role -- in the opposition to the clause. The musical does acknowledge the complexity of the colonial attitudes toward slavery in the dramatic song `` Molasses, to Rum, to Slaves '', sung by the Rutledge character, which illustrates the hypocrisy in northern condemnations of slavery since northerners profited from the triangle trade. Thomas Jefferson is depicted in the musical as saying that he has resolved to free his slaves, something he did not do, except for a few slaves freed after his death 50 years later. The musical also depicts Franklin as claiming that he is the founder of the first abolitionist organization in the New World ; the real Franklin did not become an abolitionist until after the American Revolution, becoming president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society in 1785. It was actually Dickinson who freed his slaves in 1776, conditionally at first, and fully by 1787 when the Constitution was ratified. In both the play and the film, John Adams sarcastically predicts that Benjamin Franklin will receive from posterity too great a share of credit for the Revolution. `` Franklin smote the ground and out sprang -- George Washington. Fully grown, and on his horse. Franklin then electrified them with his miraculous lightning rod and the three of them -- Franklin, Washington, and the horse -- conducted the entire Revolution all by themselves. '' Adams did make a similar comment about Franklin in April 1790, just after Franklin 's death, although the mention of the horse was a humorous twist added by the authors of the musical. James Wilson is portrayed as subordinating himself to Dickinson 's opposition to independence, only changing his vote so that he would not be remembered unfavorably. In fact, Wilson was considered one of the leading thinkers behind the American cause, consistently supporting and arguing for independence, although he would not cast his vote until his district had been caucused. The formula John Adams gives Abigail for making saltpeter -- `` By treating sodium nitrate with potassium chloride, of course ! '' -- refers to various chemicals by their modern names, instead of the names used in the 1770s. A more historically accurate version might be `` treating soda niter with potash. '' More accurate still would have been a detailed description of the process, involving ingredients such as manure or bat guano, would probably have been too long, and repulsive to audiences. Critical reception Vincent Canby of The New York Times observed, `` The music is resolutely unmemorable. The lyrics sound as if they 'd been written by someone high on root beer, and the book is familiar history -- compressed here, stretched there -- that has been gagged up and paced to Broadway 's not inspiring standards. Yet Peter H. Hunt 's screen version of 1776... insists on being so entertaining and, at times, even moving, that you might as well stop resisting it. This reaction, I suspect, represents a clear triumph of emotional associations over material... ( It ) is far from being a landmark of musical cinema, but it is the first film in my memory that comes close to treating seriously a magnificent chapter in the American history. '' Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun - Times gave 1776 two stars and declared, `` This is an insult to the real men who were Adams, Jefferson, Franklin and the rest... The performances trapped inside these roles, as you might expect, are fairly dreadful. There are good actors in the movie ( especially William Daniels as Adams and Donald Madden as John Dickinson ), but they 're forced to strut and posture so much that you wonder if they ever scratched or spit or anything... I can hardly bear to remember the songs, much less discuss them. Perhaps I should n't. It is just too damn bad this movie did n't take advantage of its right to the pursuit of happiness. '' Awards and honors The film was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy but lost to Cabaret. Harry Stradling Jr. was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography but lost to Geoffrey Unsworth for Cabaret. The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists : 2006 : AFI 's Greatest Movie Musicals -- Nominated Home media releases The film was released on videocassette and laserdisc in the 1980s, and on DVD in 2002. This DVD version was released as the `` Restored Director 's Cut '' and contains clips that were unreleased and unavailable in videocassette versions, including the `` Cool, Cool Considerate Men '' musical number and accompanying dialogue. The ( out of print ) laserdisc contains an additional four minutes of material which is not available on the DVD. The film was released on Blu - ray 4K - master on June 2, 2015. It contains two commentaries : an all - new commentary, with director Peter H. Hunt, William Daniels, and Ken Howard, and also the DVD version 's commentary with Hunt and Peter Stone only. It also contains two versions of the film : the DVD 's `` Director 's Cut '', and an `` extended cut '' adding an additional 2 minutes and 44 seconds to the DVD edition 's time. It also includes two deleted and alternate scenes with filmmaker commentary, screen tests, and original theatrical release trailers. Comic book adaptation Charlton Comics : 1776 ( March 1973 ) See also List of American films of 1972 References Jump up ^ `` 1776 ( A ) ''. British Board of Film Classification. 1972 - 12 - 15. Retrieved 2013 - 06 - 04. Jump up ^ Jack Warner to Make ' 1776 ' Into a Movie - New York Times ( 1923 - Current file ) ( New York, N.Y ) 26 Mar 1971 : 29 Jump up ^ `` Big Rental Films of 1973 '', Variety, 9 January 1974 p 19 Jump up ^ `` 1776 film ''. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 23, 2016. Jump up ^ William Daniels interview with William Daniels on Turner Classic Movies, April 16, 2017 Jump up ^ http://www.columbiaranch.net/Park/ Jump up ^ `` COLUMBIA TRISTAR PICTURES SONY ENTERTAINMENT CORPORATION WORLD ELECTRIC NAVIGATION CHALLENGE SOLAR COLA, COKE, PEPSI, VIRGIN, COCA COLA ''. Archived from the original on July 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 11. Jump up ^ Gary Wayne. `` Sunset - Gower Studios ( formerly Columbia Studios ) ''. Archived from the original on July 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 11. Jump up ^ `` 1776 ( 1972 ) - Notes ''. TCM.com. 1969 - 03 - 16. Retrieved 2011 - 09 - 07. ^ Jump up to : Heated Debate About ' Cool ' Cut, Los Angeles Times Archives, September 07, 2001, Accessed 2009 - 05 - 30 ^ Jump up to : Epstein, Ronald ( May 20, 2015 ). Peter Hunt interview. Home Theater Forum ``. Jump up ^ Peter C. Rollins, ed., The Columbia Companion to American History on Film ( Columbia University Press, 2004, ISBN 0 - 231 - 11222 - X ), p. 154. Jump up ^ Stone and Edwards, pp. 153 -- 65, describing the play 's historical basis and dramatic license. ^ Jump up to : Stone and Edwards, p. 158. Jump up ^ `` Archived copy ''. Archived from the original on 2015 - 07 - 04. Retrieved 2015 - 07 - 04. Jump up ^ Letter from Adams to Timothy Pickering, 1822 Archived November 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine... Adams also described himself as `` obnoxious '' in his Autobiography, written in 1805. Jump up ^ McCullough, David. John Adams ( New York : Simon & Schuster, 2001 ), pp. 119 -- 20. Jump up ^ Wills, Garry. Inventing America : Jefferson 's Declaration of Independence ( New York : Doubleday, 1978 ), pp. 349 -- 50. ^ Jump up to : Stone and Edwards, p. 162. Jump up ^ Stone and Edwards, p. 161. Jump up ^ `` Your Representative owes you, not his industry only, but his judgment ; and he betrays, instead of serving you, if he sacrifices it to your opinion. '' Edmund Burke, Select Works of Edmund Burke. A New Imprint of the Payne Edition. Foreword and Biographical Note by Francis Canavan ( Indianapolis : : Liberty Fund, 1999 ). Vol. 4. Chapter : Speech to the Electors of Bristol, Accessed from http://oll.libertyfund.org/title/659/20392/1385301 on 2010 - 04 - 15. Jump up ^ Jack Rakove : `` The Patriot Who Refused to Sign the Declaration of Independence '', http://www.historynet.com/the-patriot-who-refused-to-sign-the-declaration-of-independence.htm Jump up ^ `` Student finds letter ' a link to Jefferson ' - CNN.com ''. CNN. December 8, 2009. Retrieved May 6, 2010. Jump up ^ The Jeffersonian Cyclopedia : a Comprehensive Collection of the Views of Thomas Jefferson ( 1900 ) by Thomas Jefferson, edited by John P. Foley, p. 246 Jump up ^ Nothing is known of what Rutledge said or did during the Continental Congress, as the Congress was conducted in closed session and its members had made a pact of secrecy. No letters or memoirs have been found in which his participation is specified, and no record has been found as to what Rutledge did or did not say in regard to Jefferson 's complaint about the King 's freeing of slaves and veto of slave tariffs. See, e.g., Lives of the Presidents of the United States by Robert W. Lincoln ( 1836 ), p. 390 ; Sanderson 's Biography of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence ( 1846 ) by John Sanderson and Robert Taylor Conrad, p. 351 ; The United States Manual of Biography and History by James V. Marshall ( 1856 ), p. 115 ; An Outline of the Political and Social Life of George Washington, Volume 2 ( 1895 ) by James Tyson, p. 339. Jump up ^ Isaacson, Walter. Benjamin Franklin : An American Life ( 2003 ). Jump up ^ ' Old Family Letters ', https://books.google.com/books?id=84oTAQAAMAAJ&dq=old%20family%20letters%20john%20adams%2055&pg=PA55#v=onepage&q=old%20family%20letters%20john%20adams%2055&f=false Jump up ^ James Wilson : Founding Father, Charles Page Smith, 1956 Jump up ^ Canby, Vincent ( 1972 - 11 - 10 ). `` New York Times review ''. Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2011 - 09 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Chicago Sun - Times review ''. Rogerebert.suntimes.com. December 26, 1972. Retrieved 2011 - 09 - 07. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's Greatest Movie Musicals Nominees '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 2016 - 08 - 13. Jump up ^ http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=16385 Jump up ^ `` Charlton Comics : 1776 ''. Grand Comics Database. Jump up ^ Charlton Comics : 1776 at the Comic Book DB External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1776 ( film ). 1776 on IMDb 1776 at Rotten Tomatoes John Adams 2nd President of the United States, 1797 -- 1801 1st Vice President of the United States, 1789 -- 1797 U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, 1785 -- 1788 U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands, 1782 -- 1788 Delegate, Second Continental Congress, 1775 -- 1778 Delegate, First Continental Congress, 1774 Founding of the United States Braintree Instructions ( 1765 ) Boston Massacre defense Continental Association Novanglus ; A History of the Dispute with America, From Its Origin in 1754 to the Present Time ( 1775 ) Thoughts on Government ( 1776 ) Declaration of Independence May 15 preamble Committee of Five Model Treaty Treaty of Amity and Commerce Treaty of Alliance Board of War Chairman of the Marine Committee, 1775 - 1779 Continental Navy Staten Island Peace Conference Conference House Constitution of Massachusetts ( 1780 ) Treaty of Paris, 1783 Presidency Inauguration Quasi War with France XYZ Affair Commerce Protection Act United States Marine Corps Convention of 1800 Alien and Sedition Acts Naturalization Act of 1798 Navy Department Library Treaty of Tellico Treaty of Tripoli Midnight Judges Act Marbury v. Madison State of the Union Address ( 1797 1798 1799 1800 ) Cabinet Federal judiciary appointments Other writings Massachusetts Historical Society holdings Adams Papers Editorial Project Life and homes Early life and education Adams National Historical Park John Adams Birthplace Family home and John Quincy Adams birthplace Peacefield Presidential Library Massachusetts Hall, Harvard University Presidents House, Philadelphia Co-founder and second president, American Academy of Arts and Sciences United First Parish Church and gravesite Elections United States presidential election 1788 -- 1789 1792 1796 1800 Legacy Adams House at Harvard University John Adams Building U.S. Postage stamps Adams Memorial Popular culture Profiles in Courage ( 1964 series ) American Primitive ( 1969 play ) 1776 ( 1969 musical 1972 film ) The Adams Chronicles ( 1976 miniseries ) Liberty ! ( 1997 documentary series ) Liberty 's Kids ( 2002 animated series ) John Adams ( 2001 book 2008 miniseries ) Sons of Liberty ( 2015 miniseries ) Related `` Adams and Liberty '' campaign song Adams ' personal library American Enlightenment Congress Hall Federalist Party Federalist Era First Party System republicanism American Philosophical Society Gazette of the United States The American Museum American Revolution patriots Family Abigail Adams wife Quincy family Abigail Adams Smith ( daughter ) John Quincy Adams son presidency Charles Adams ( son ) Thomas Boylston Adams ( son ) George W. Adams ( grandson ) Charles Adams Sr. ( grandson ) John Adams II ( grandson ) John Q. Adams ( great - grandson ) Henry Adams ( great - grandson ) Brooks Adams ( great - grandson ) John Adams Sr. ( father ) Susanna Boylston ( mother ) Elihu Adams ( brother ) Samuel Adams ( second cousin ) Louisa Adams daughter - in - law First Lady ← George Washington Thomas Jefferson → Category Benjamin Franklin January 6, 1706 -- April 17, 1790 President of Pennsylvania ( 1785 -- 1788 ), Ambassador to France ( 1779 -- 1785 ) Second Continental Congress ( 1775 -- 1776 ) Founding of the United States Join, or Die ( 1754 political cartoon ) Albany Plan of Union Albany Congress Hutchinson Letters Affair Committee of Secret Correspondence Committee of Five Declaration of Independence Model Treaty Franco - American alliance Treaty of Amity and Commerce Treaty of Alliance Staten Island Peace Conference Treaty of Paris, 1783 Delegate, 1787 Constitutional Convention Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly Postmaster General Founding Fathers Inventions, other events Franklin 's electrostatic machine Bifocals Franklin stove Glass armonica Gulf Stream exploration, naming, and chart Lightning rod Kite experiment Pay it forward Associators 111th Infantry Regiment Junto club American Philosophical Society Library Company of Philadelphia Pennsylvania Hospital Academy and College of Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia Contributionship Union Fire Company Early American currency Fugio Cent United States Postal Service President, Pennsylvania Abolition Society Master, Les Neuf Sœurs Other social contributions and studies Gravesite Writings Silence Dogood letters ( 1722 ) A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain ( 1725 ) The Busy - Body letters ( 1729 ) Pennsylvania Gazette ( 1729 -- 1790 ) Poor Richard 's Almanack ( 1732 -- 1758 ) The Drinker 's Dictionary ( 1737 ) `` Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress '' ( 1745 ) `` The Speech of Polly Baker '' ( 1747 ) Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, etc. ( 1751 ) Experiments and Observations on Electricity ( 1751 ) Birch letters ( 1755 ) The Way to Wealth ( 1758 ) Pennsylvania Chronicle ( 1767 ) Rules by Which a Great Empire May Be Reduced to a Small One ( 1773 ) Proposed alliance with the Iroquois ( 1775 ) A Letter To A Royal Academy ( 1781 ) Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America ( 1784 ) The Morals of Chess ( 1786 ) An Address to the Public ( 1789 ) A Plan for Improving the Condition of the Free Blacks ( 1789 ) The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin ( 1771 -- 90, pub. 1791 ) Bagatelles and Satires ( pub. 1845 ) Franklin as a journalist Legacy Franklin Court Benjamin Franklin House Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Franklin Institute Benjamin Franklin Medal Depicted in The Apotheosis of Washington Benjamin Franklin statue, Washington D.C. In popular culture Ben and Me ( 1953 short ) Ben Franklin in Paris ( 1964 musical play ) 1776 ( 1969 musical 1972 film ) Benjamin Franklin ( 1974 miniseries ) A More Perfect Union ( 1989 film ) Liberty ! ( 1997 documentary series ) Liberty 's Kids ( 2002 animated series ) Benjamin Franklin ( 2002 documentary series ) John Adams ( 2008 miniseries ) Sons of Liberty ( 2015 miniseries ) Sons of Ben ( supporters group for the Philadelphia Union soccer club Refunding Certificate Franklin half dollar One - hundred dollar bill Washington - Franklin stamps other stamps Cities, counties, schools named for Franklin Franklin Field State of Franklin Ships named USS Franklin Ben Franklin effect Related Age of Enlightenment American Enlightenment The New - England Courant The American Museum magazine American Revolution patriots Syng inkstand Family Deborah Read ( wife ) Sarah Franklin Bache ( daughter ) Francis Franklin ( son ) William Franklin ( son ) Richard Bache Jr. ( grandson ) Benjamin F. Bache ( grandson ) Louis F. Bache ( grandson ) William Franklin ( grandson ) Andrew Harwood ( great - grandson ) Alexander Bache ( great - grandson ) Josiah Franklin ( father ) Jane Mecom ( sister ) James Franklin ( brother ) Mary Morrell Folger ( grandmother ) Peter Folger ( grandfather ) Richard Bache ( son - in - law ) Ann Smith Franklin ( sister - in - law ) Thomas Jefferson 3rd President of the United States ( 1801 -- 1809 ) 2nd U.S. Vice President ( 1797 -- 1801 ) 1st U.S. Secretary of State ( 1790 -- 1793 ) U.S. Minister to France ( 1785 -- 1789 ) 2nd Governor of Virginia ( 1779 -- 1781 ) Delegate, Second Continental Congress ( 1775 -- 1776 ) Founding documents of the United States A Summary View of the Rights of British America ( 1774 ) Initial draft, Olive Branch Petition ( 1775 ) Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms ( 1775 ) 1776 Declaration of Independence Committee of Five authored physical history `` All men are created equal '' `` Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness '' `` Consent of the governed '' 1786 Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom freedom of religion French Revolution Co-author, Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen ( 1789 ) Presidency Inaugural Address ( 1801 1805 ) Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves Louisiana Purchase Lewis and Clark Expedition Corps of Discovery timeline Empire of Liberty Red River Expedition Pike Expedition Cumberland Road Embargo Act of 1807 Chesapeake -- Leopard affair Non-Intercourse Act of 1809 First Barbary War Native American policy Marbury v. Madison West Point Military Academy State of the Union Addresses ( texts 1801 1802 1805 ) Cabinet Federal judicial appointments Other noted accomplishments Early life and career Founder, University of Virginia history Land Ordinance of 1784 Northwest Ordinance 1787 Anti-Administration party Democratic - Republican Party Jeffersonian democracy First Party System republicanism Plan for Establishing Uniformity in the Coinage, Weights, and Measure of the United States ( 1790 ) Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions A Manual of Parliamentary Practice ( 1801 ) Jeffersonian architecture Barboursville Farmington Monticello gardens Poplar Forest University of Virginia The Rotunda The Lawn Virginia State Capitol White House Colonnades Other writings Notes on the State of Virginia ( 1785 ) 1787 European journey memorandums Indian removal letters Jefferson Bible ( 1895 ) Jefferson manuscript collection at the Massachusetts Historical Society The Papers of Thomas Jefferson Related Age of Enlightenment American Enlightenment American Philosophical Society American Revolution patriots Member, Virginia Committee of Correspondence Committee of the States Founding Fathers of the United States Franco - American alliance Jefferson and education Religious views Jefferson and slavery Jefferson and the Library of Congress Jefferson disk Jefferson Pier Pet mockingbird National Gazette Residence Act Compromise of 1790 Sally Hemings Jefferson -- Hemings controversy Betty Hemings Separation of church and state Swivel chair The American Museum magazine Virginia dynasty Elections United States Presidential election 1796 1800 1804 Legacy Bibliography Jefferson Memorial Mount Rushmore Birthday Thomas Jefferson Building Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression Jefferson Lecture Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service Thomas Jefferson ( Karl Bitter statues ) Jefferson Lab Monticello Association Jefferson City, Missouri Jefferson College Thomas Jefferson School of Law Thomas Jefferson University Washington and Jefferson National Forests Other placenames Currency depictions Jefferson nickel Two - dollar bill Louisiana Purchase Exposition dollar U.S. postage stamps Popular culture Ben and Me ( 1953 short ) 1776 ( 1969 musical 1972 film ) Jefferson in Paris ( 1995 film ) Thomas Jefferson ( 1997 film ) Liberty ! ( 1997 documentary series ) Liberty 's Kids ( 2002 animated series ) John Adams ( 2008 miniseries ) Jefferson 's Garden ( 2015 play ) Hamilton ( 2015 musical ) Jefferson -- Eppes Trophy Wine bottles controversy Family Peter Jefferson ( father ) Jane Randolph Jefferson ( mother ) Lucy Jefferson Lewis ( sister ) Randolph Jefferson ( brother ) Isham Randolph ( grandfather ) William Randolph ( great - grandfather ) Martha Jefferson ( wife ) Martha Jefferson Randolph ( daughter ) Mary Jefferson Eppes ( daughter ) Harriet Hemings ( daughter ) Madison Hemings ( son ) Eston Hemings ( son ) Thomas J. Randolph ( grandson ) Francis Eppes ( grandson ) George W. Randolph ( grandson ) John Wayles Jefferson ( grandson ) Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. ( son - in - law ) John Wayles Eppes ( son - in - law ) John Wayles ( father - in - law ) Dabney Carr ( brother - in - law ) Dabney Carr ( nephew ) ← John Adams James Madison → Category John Dickinson 5th President of Pennsylvania, 1782 -- 1785 5th President of Delaware, 1781 -- 1783 Second Continental Congress, 1775 -- 1776, 1779 -- 1781 First Continental Congress, 1774 Stamp Act Congress, 1765 Founding of the United States Declaration of Rights and Grievances ( 1765 ) Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania ( 1767, 1768 ) `` The Liberty Song '' ( 1768 United we stand, divided we fall ) Petition to the King ( 1774 ) Signee, Continental Association ( 1774 ) Pennsylvania Committee of Correspondence ( 1774 -- 1776 ) Letter to the inhabitants of the Province of Quebec ( 1774 ) Olive Branch Petition ( 1775 ) Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms ( co-wrote, 1775 ) Committee of Secret Correspondence ( 1775 -- 1776 ) Model Treaty committee ( 1776 ) Articles of Confederation and perpetual Union ( 1776 ) President, Annapolis Convention ( 1786 ) Delegate, Constitutional Convention ( 1787 ) Other events Brigadier General, Pennsylvania militia Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783 Delaware Constitution of 1792 Life and homes Mary Norris Dickinson ( wife ) Philemon Dickinson ( brother ) Early life Poplar Hall home Fair Hill estate Friends Burial Ground Legacy Dickinson College Dickinson School of Law, Pennsylvania State University John Dickinson High School 1776 ( 1969 musical, 1972 film ) John Adams ( 2008 miniseries ) Sons of Liberty ( 2015 miniseries ) Related Claymont Stone School American Revolution patriots Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1776_(film)&oldid=853039210 '' Categories : 1972 films English - language films 1970s musical comedy films 1970s comedy - drama films American films American comedy - drama films American musical comedy films Films directed by Peter H. Hunt American Revolutionary War films Films about Presidents of the United States Films set in Philadelphia Films set in the 1770s 1776 in fiction Independence Day ( United States ) films Musical films based on actual events United States Declaration of Independence Columbia Pictures films Cultural depictions of Thomas Jefferson Cultural depictions of George Washington Cultural depictions of Benjamin Franklin Cultural depictions of John Adams Cultural depictions of John Hancock Films adapted into comics Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use mdy dates from June 2013 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from June 2018 Articles with unsourced statements from July 2011 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Català فارسی Français Italiano Português Edit links This page was last edited on 2 August 2018, at 01 : 14 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. 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Question: who sang mama look sharp in 1776 movie
Answer: Courier