![\"Revolutionary-Flag\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/524\/2016\/07\/Revolutionary-Flag.jpg\")
<\/a>Wish I\u2019d thought of this in time to do this post for the morning of the Fourth, but better late than never . A few years ago, in 2009 and 2010, when I worked for the Tribune syndicate and its online site, Zap2it.com, I set upon a project to ask Hollywood types about their favorite Founding Fathers.<\/p>\nClick through to read the entire stories, but here are some highlights:<\/p>\n
\u201cNCIS: LA\u201d star LL Cool J<\/a>:<\/p>\n You know what,\u00a0that\u2019s a good question, interesting question. My favorite Founding Father .. wow. Benjamin Franklin<\/a> was brilliant. I think I will go with Benjamin Franklin first. I would go with Jefferson and then Adams, but I would go with Franklin.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen he talked about wealth \u2026 his \u2018Poor Richard\u2019s Almanack\u2019<\/a> was amazing. Him being a scientist; him being an author; him being a\u00a0businessman; him being an entrepreneur; him being a guy who understood\u00a0how important it was to be conservative when it came to a dollar, and\u00a0conserve your wealth.<\/p>\n I just thought he was a very wise guy. I would go with Franklin.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Walton Goggin<\/a>s of \u201cThe Shield,\u201d \u201cJustified,\u201d \u201cThe Hateful Eight\u201d and HBO\u2019s upcoming \u201cVice Principals,\u201d via Facebook:<\/p>\n OK, this one\u2019s easy.JOHN ADAMS<\/a>. Why? The sacrifice that this man made over the course of his life for our REPUBLIC, from representing the British officers accused in the BOSTON MASSACRE to procuring funds for our fledgling uprising from the Dutch \u2014 a man among men; a just man with a moral compass pointing due North.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And from \u201cShield\u201d star Michael Chiklis<\/a>, seen most recently in Fox\u2019s \u201cGotham,\u201d also via Facebook:<\/p>\n Being from the Boston area, I\u2019m going to have to go with a local boy, John Adams, for many reasons, not the least of which was he stood to lose the most. When someone supports a cause because they believe in it, in spite of the fact that they risk life, liberty, family and personal wealth, that is the definition of courage and integrity.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Adam Baldwin <\/a>of \u201cIndependence Day,\u201d \u201cFirefly,\u201d and, currently, \u201cThe Last Ship\u201d on TNT:<\/p>\n My favorite Founding Father would be John Adams or James Madison. Madison wrote the Constitution, gotta love that guy. Or George Washington, because he was a great general. I also like (Alexander) Hamilton.<\/p>\n I can\u2019t nail it down to one. Look, I\u2019m an individualist. You need a band of brothers with divergent viewpoints that distill down to the most wonderful document ever created in the history of man. Those guys all got together. What did you expect me to say, John Hancock?<\/p>\n Franklin is too much of a partier, although he does have one of my favorite sayings of all\u00a0time. He said that beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. That\u2019s the quote.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Veteran actor Gary Graham<\/a> of \u201cAlien Nation,\u201d \u201cJAG,\u201d \u201cStar Trek: Enterprise\u201d and much more, via Facebook:<\/p>\n And though I am tempted to say Jefferson, Franklin or Madison \u2026 I think I\u2019ll chose Patrick Henry<\/a>, for so eloquently stating the grave consequences at stake: \u2018I know not what course others will take, but as for me \u2026 give me Liberty or give me death.<\/i>\u2018\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Matt Iseman, currently the host of NBC\u2019s \u201cAmerican Ninja Warrior\u201d:<\/p>\n I\u2019m going with someone I consider to be an underrated Founding Father \u2014 James Madison.<\/a> I\u2019m a big fan of the Federalist Papers<\/a>, where he convincingly lays out the argument for our republican government as we know it today (relax, politicos, that\u2019s republican with a small \u2018r\u2019).<\/p>\n Yes, I might\u2019ve gone with Alexander Hamilton, but I prefer to picture my Founding Fathers like Clint Eastwood<\/a> in \u2018The Outlaw Josey Wales,\u2019<\/a> and Hamilton lost in a duel<\/a> with Aaron Burr, so he\u2019s out.<\/p>\n Madison is also considered the Father of the Constitution,<\/a> which, in my mind, means he slept with Lady Liberty and gave birth to a lil\u2019 democracy known as the U.S. of A.<\/p>\n Furthermore, his wife, Dolley Madison<\/a>, inspired delicious pastry snacks. And, he went to Princeton, so I like to think I might run into him at reunions \u2014 If I have enough beers.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Hearing Iseman\u2019s answer, Graham replied:<\/p>\n Matt \u2014 HAAAAA! Fantastic post. I\u2019m with you on Madison. I\u2019m a HUGE fan of his \u2026 as well as the Federalist Papers. Should be mandatory reading in schools.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n John Walsh<\/a>, formerly of \u201cAmerica\u2019s Most Wanted\u201d:<\/p>\n Thomas Jefferson.<\/a> He was a renaissance man. He has such great side interests \u2014 architecture and farming, all the different things he was involved in. The dichotomy, of course, was that he owned slaves, but he was conflicted about that.<\/p>\n He sorta got drafted into (the Revolution). I\u2019m not making a parallel between myself and Thomas Jefferson, but sometimes you do what you have to do. Life takes you in the strangest, strangest ways. There\u2019s no real plan.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Dana Delaney <\/a>of \u201cChina Beach,\u201d \u201cBody of Proof\u201d and Amazon\u2019s \u201cHand of God\u201d (BTW, I asked several women, and for whatever reason, didn\u2019t get much of a response), picking a fellow wine connoisseur:<\/p>\n I would say Jefferson just because I like the fact that he was an oenophile<\/a>. Also, people criticize Jefferson now, but I understand the whole thing, that he came from an elite class, was and wasn\u2019t. He saw the value of his education, but he was also a man of the people. It was an interesting combination.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n James Badge Dale<\/a> of \u201c24,\u201d \u201cThe Pacific,\u201d \u201cRubicon\u201d and the recent Benghazi movie \u201c13 Hours\u201d:<\/p>\n John Hancock <\/a>\u2014 he was the jerk who signed his name bigger\u00a0(Editor: So, he said, King George could read it without his spectacles)<\/i>. No, Thomas Jefferson. I find him a very interesting man. The interesting thing about these men, the original band of brothers, is that they all had completely different opinions of what America is and what it should be and what is important and not important, and they were still able to come together and work together. I think there\u2019s a real important message in there.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Joe Mazzello<\/a>, also of \u201cThe Pacific,\u201d along with \u201cJustified\u201d and \u201cThe Social Network\u201d:<\/p>\n What was amazing about George Washington was that he had this crazy idea \u2014 \u2018I\u2019m going to give up power.\u2019 They called him the king of America. No one thought it was real. They thought, \u2018If this man gives up power, he\u2019s the greatest man in the world. It\u2019s just such an amazing thing.<\/p>\n Now, we take that for granted, yeah, every four, eight years, presidents go and then we get a\u00a0new one. But up until through (Franklin Delano) Roosevelt, it wasn\u2019t even a rule. Men just did that. He started that off. That can\u2019t be overlooked, how amazing it was for him to say, \u2018I\u2019m going to do this. It\u2019s my job, and I\u2019m going to go back home and be a private citizen.\u2019<\/p>\n That notion, it\u2019s amazing. It was walking the walk. All of the guys, Jefferson and Adams and all of them, said, \u201cWe don\u2019t want your tyranny. You can have it. Leave us alone. Let us be free.\u201d Then George Washington walked the walk by saying, \u201cI\u2019m giving up power and handing it over to the next man,\u201d and just started that tradition \u2014 something that is so mind-boggling.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Ed O\u2019Neill<\/a> of \u201cModern Family,\u201d echoing Delany:<\/p>\n I would probably go to (Thomas) Jefferson<\/a>, just because I thought he was brilliant, a vital guy, interesting guy, bon vivant. He knew a lot about wine.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Mike Vogel<\/a>, of \u201cBates Motel,\u201d \u201cUnder the Dome\u201d and Syfy\u2019s \u201cChildhood\u2019s End\u201d:<\/p>\n Being from Philadelphia, I\u2019m a fan of Jefferson and Franklin. You\u2019re indoctrinated with all that. There\u2019s something so amazing, being a massive history buff and growing up where I did in Pennsylvania. I was a mile away from George Washington\u2019s headquarters before he crossed the Delaware<\/a>. Every year, you\u2019d take a field trip down to\u00a0Independence Hall <\/a>and Betsy Ross\u2019 house<\/a> and Ben Franklin\u2019s place<\/a>and the history that exists there.<\/p>\n As for my favorite, I think Jefferson \u2014 his ideals, the conservatism that he espoused, at least as I know it, Jeffersonian democracy<\/a>, I like. (James) Madison<\/a> \u2026 when you look at the checks and balances that you had to go through just to get these guys to show up at a meeting of the federal government.<\/p>\n They had to take it through every level of their state governments, to make sure their state would be OK with them showing up, because they were so adamant about maintaining the rights of the state before turning it over to the federal level of government.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Mike Rowe<\/a>, of \u201cDirty Jobs\u201d and CNN\u2019s \u201cSomeone\u2019s Gotta Do It\u201d:<\/p>\n The short answer for me was always John Adams<\/a>. <\/i>Adams was so contrary and so unlikable, so devoted to his wife. He was the only actual Founding Father who never owned a slave. He made principled decisions and was perfectly comfortable with the fallout \u2014 happy to be unpopular. But also, it\u2019s hard to beat Ben Franklin<\/a>.<\/p>\n Where do you draw the line in terms of time? Lincoln was so late. There\u2019d be no union without (George) Washington. There probably wouldn\u2019t be a union without Jefferson. There definitely wouldn\u2019t be a union without Lincoln. There\u2019d be something, but I don\u2019t know what.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I\u2019m kind of sad that no one mentioned Charles Carroll<\/a>, the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence, but he hasn\u2019t gotten a lot of press.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a photo meme that appeared on the Facebook page I manage for Holy Cross apostolate Family Theater Productions in Los Angeles:<\/p>\n Images: Courtesy\u00a0Wikimedia Commons, Family Theater Productions<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss a thing: head over to my other home at\u00a0CatholicVote\u00a0<\/a>and like my\u00a0Facebook page<\/a>; also like the\u00a0Patheos Catholic<\/a>\u00a0FB page to see what my colleagues have to say.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From the archives, some TV stars pluck their inspirations from Revolutionary War history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2174,"featured_media":3121,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[589,591,590],"class_list":["post-3119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media","category-television","tag-founding-fathers","tag-independence-day","tag-revolutionary-war"],"yoast_head":"\n<\/a><\/p>\n