The summer of 1976 was all about the Bicentennial, so it’s no wonder that one of the country’s biggest icons headlined a star-studded variety special to celebrate the nation’s 200thbirthday on July 4 of that year.
While all three networks devoted that night to Bicentennial-related programming, NBC stood out on July 4, 1976, with a 90-minute variety-style show hosted by Bob Hope, the beloved comedian known for entertaining U.S. troops during his United Service Organizations (USO) tours.
“Bob Hope's Bicentennial Star-Spangled Spectacular” featured the comedy legend and guests Debbie Reynolds, Donny and Marie Osmond, Sammy Davis Jr., Ron Howard, Captain and Tennille, Jimmie Walker, Phyllis Diller, and more, per IMDb.
At the time, Donny and Marie had a hit variety show on ABC, while Howard was starring on Happy Days. The Captain and Tennille were fresh on the heels of their massive hit “Love Will Keep Us Together” and just ahead of their own variety show that would debut on ABC that fall.
While the special featured comedy sketches and musical performances, Hope got serious at the end as he shared a poignant patriotic message about the United States, in which he praised hardworking Americans as heroes.
“When the house lights dim and the cameras are turned off, I’m just like the rest of you. Kid America, you bet your life,” Hope told his audience as patriotic music played. “Love America, all the way. I love our country as it is now, and mankind’s best hope for the dreams that are just around the corner of tomorrow.”
Hope noted that while George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and other giants who built the country were all “authentic heroes,” he added, “To me, the guy in the bleachers with his kid rooting for his team between bites on a hotdog is no less a hero. He’s the man who fights the traffic every morning to get to work. He’s the man who drives the family jalopy another year, so he can send his bright young son to college. And he’s the guy who pays most of the taxes, buys most of the goods that we produce. And his main concern is to leave to his children a world better than the one he struggled with.”
As he signed off, Hope described "these most uncommon common people" as ”the heart of America, its hopes and its future.”
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Hope’s special wasn’t the only one to air on July 4, 1976. NBC’s "Happy Birthday America" special was the lead-in program. Hosted by Paul Anka, The New York Times described the special as a “pageant taped before 72,000 spectators in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.”
Guests included Arte Johnson, Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Evel Knievel, and Mark Spitz, and it ended with a fireworks display and a patriotic medley.
Related: 1976 ‘Little House on the Prairie’ Episode, Aired During America's Bicentennial, Ranked Among ‘Best Fourth of July TV Episodes of All Time’
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