Posted on 05/04/2006 9:23:49 AM PDT by pissant
Need to ditch a few of these and add George Patton, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Ben Franklin.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy -- The Kennedy clan is often considered the only Royal family the United States has ever had. What makes it so is not their wealth or political role, but rather the aura of nobility surrounding them. JFK was the embodiment of this. A Navy officer during World War II, he became a congressman in 1947 and a U.S. senator in 1952. Nine years later, he led the Democratic Party to the White House, becoming the 35th American president. His term in office was often dubbed the New Frontier since it was an era of change. He put an end to segregation, established the Peace Corps, and masterminded the resolution of the Cuban missile crisis. Unfortunately, he is often best remembered for his assassination in November 1963. For all his youthful energy and magnetism, he represented the quintessence of America.
Best quote: "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country."
This man certainly has benefited posthumously from overwhelmingly great PR. He gave some good speeches, but other being a great champion of the space program, I can think of no postive accomplishment.
Plus he left us his brother Ted as senator-for-life!
I give him credit for being patriotic, despite his general ineptitude. Too bad the party he left behind became anti-american, pro-communist and pro-terrorist. He's turning in his grave.
Yes he was patriotic, certainly more than any Dem today. But he really started the Viet Nam war in earnest, which ultimately led to the Dem Party becoming the far left entity it is today. Ironic huh?
It's not that the left hates war. It's that the left hates the idea of America winning. Todays democrats are the most vile and disgusting group of traitors in our history.
My favorite quote from JFK is "Ich bin ein Berliner"
Apparently there was a doughnut being made in Berlin at the time that was called the Berliner. And since he used the word ein in that sentence he basically said
"I am a doughnut"
Screw that. GEORGE WASHINGTON is the greatest.
Maybe he just doesn't symbolize America TO FOREIGNERS as well - which is what I guess the gist of this thing is.
That said,
"they also need to have had a colossal influence in their field of expertise on the international scene."
What great influence did James Dean ever have? He made a few forgettable movies and then died. Martyr complex.
Marilyn Monroe, many more but mostly known for her alleged sexiness. She had no good movies.
These 2 are THE most over-rated "stars" of the screen, perhaps. And they both have 1 thing in common - they died during their careers, in the same era. I don't get why their faces are the 2 always plastered on sides of buildings, billboards, posters, art, as if they were the top movie stars of all time. BS.
There are just too many.
George Washington
Thomas Jefferson
Humphrey Bogart
Clark Gable
Thomas Edison
The Mercury astronauts
FDR
The Wright Brothers
Muddy Waters
Bob Dylan
Henry Ford
Andy Warhol
etc.
He was a MARTYR. It's the martyr complex. Just like Lincoln.
George Washington, Babe Ruth, Lucille Ball, Jimmy Stewart, and in a different sense, Al Capone and Lucky Luciano
Nice. I did not know that.
Are you kidding? We've only had one president since who could be said to be more conservative. He probably wouldn't be allowed in the GOP today for being to conservative. He reversed the trend of ever-increasing tacxation, by giving the biggest tax cut in history.
I would put Ben Franklin as the number 1 Icon. George Washington #2. Ronald Reagan #3.
For entertainers:
Louie Armstrong, Mark Twain, Hemmingway, John Wayne, Elvis, Bogie, Sinatra, Clint Eastwood, & Dylan in no particular order.
I'd leave out Warhol and Gable, but not a bad list.
Indeed. Lucille Ball HAS to be on the list.
And Edward G Robinson.
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
Johnny Carson
The American GI
James Cagney
Jackie Onassis
Rogers and Hammerstein
Jimmy Stewart
Grace Kelly
Herman Melville
Billy Graham
Howard Hughes
etc.
Miles Davis
Dizzy Gillespie
Andrew Carnagie
Robert E Lee
Norman Rockwell
Alexander Hamilton
Rocky Marciano
Liz taylor
Bob Hope
Bing Crosby
Ralph Lauren
Farrah Fawcett/Cheryl Tiegs/Lauren Hutton, a/k/a The All-American Girl
Frank Lloyd Wright
Rock Hudson
Truman Capote
Jesse Owens
Mark Spitz
Lance Armstrong
Davey Crockett
Pocohontas
Chief Sitting Bull
Crazy Horse
Geronimo
Lewis and Clark
General Douglas MacArthur
Harry Truman
Amelia Earhart
You win! Gotta add Laurel and Hardy and the Three Stooges though!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.