If you think you have it rough with your job just watch Harlan County, USA and, trust me, you'll realize that you've never worked a hard day in your life. In 1972, coal miners in Kentucky, living in shanties without running water or plumbing, facing the possibility of deadly explosions, slow death from black lung, and a shocking lack of safety and benefits began a thirteen month, bitter and deadly strike. The daring documentarian Barbara Kopple and her crew suffered beatings and guns fired at them to capture the turmoil and drama.

You are unlikely to witness?areal life situation so wrought with tension, (even with the incredible Gimme Shelter and the less incredible house wives tables flipping out there). From murder within the union to murder on the picket lines, these hard working individuals are literally willing to die for their rights and, sadly, do. It's the women, the wives and daughters of the miners who are particularly resilient and fight the most visible battles against the gun wielding strike breakers and scabs.

With images that are both horrific and beautiful and a soundtrack of harrowing local blue grass, often sung by the people on screen, the academy award winning film is more than a political drama about unions, it's a piece of art that makes you question how far you could go and how much you could endure and fight if put in the same situation.

See more: Movies 1970s 4th of July Documentary

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Posted on June 29, 2009

I remember going with a big group of older girls to see Rocky IV in the theater for my sister's birthday. James Brown opens the drama with an over the top showgirl extravaganza to stick it to the Russians (aka Dolph Lundgren and Brigitte Nielsen). But then Dolph ends up killing Apollo Creed in the match and Rocky has to train in the snow and get revenge in Moscow (sans showgirls). He beats Dolph bloody, but decides not to kill him, rather to give a rousing speech instead that ends the cold war.

I posted some rousing stills over at RC.

See more: Songs 1980s 4th of July Funk

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Posted on June 29, 2009

It's hard to add anything new to the dialogue about James Dean as an American icon. But on a personal note, when Stand by Me helped usher in a period obsession with the 50's back when I was in elementary school, my sister and I both got cardboard stand-ups of Dean and Marilyn Monroe from our local novelty and sticker shop, CJ Kard.

Beyond the good looks that still stop hearts (really, has there been anyone quite like him since?), he had an undeniably impressive (but sadly brief) film career. He was a true rebel, not only on screen but with his daringly ambivalent sexuality, angst ridden method acting, and his literal live fast/die young attitude.

He also most best represented some of America's best fashion statements: white tees, denim, cowboy hat, fisherman's sweaters, bomber jackets, chinos and trenches.

See more: Hunks 4th of July Actors

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Posted on June 29, 2009

Hill Country is, and I say this with all my heart and kindly, just a fat assed restaurant. Everything (with the exception of the cheery waitresses) is big and loud: two warehouse sized stories holding huge communal style picnic tables, a seemingly 15 foot TV (blaring sports), a band upstairs shouting countrified 80's tunes (they were actually quite fun), drinks with vodka, tequila, and everything else (mine, the 8 layer dip, also had jalapenos and was rimmed with BBQ rub salt) and portions of meat like you have never seen.

I really did feel like I was back in Austin for an evening (I would have even more so if some of it were outside and the diners were more rockabilly than NYU), which was fun. But all this would mean nothing if the food's not great and I have to say, it's the best I've had in the city.

The jalapeno sausage and moist brisket were phenomenal! Sides also delivered with the cornbread and chipotle deviled eggs standing out to me (my friends all raved about the slaw too, though I am never a fan, so I'll have to take their word). The ordering process can seem confusing. You have a meal ticket that you bring to the meat counter where you tell butchers how big a portion you want. I recommend no more than one pork rib, while nice and meaty, they were the least impressive meat dish we had, lacking in flavorful flair, but better slathered in the sauce provided at the tables.

You will feel your indulgences soon after dining and find yourself longing for big bowls of salad for days, but it's worth it – particularly the sausage and brisket.

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Posted on June 29, 2009

The quilts of Paula Nadelstern make for a dazzling exhibit of exceptional craftsmanship at the American Folk Art Museum. You are greeted with a huge creation on the lobby level that boggles the mind. Upstairs, more vibrant quilts using different techniques are on display. The labor intensive art is even more impressive when you learn that Nadelstern, a Bronx native makes all her quilts in a small apartment as she says on her own site:

“Historians have suggested that the block-style method of quilt-making evolved in response to the cramped quarters of early American life. My family's living arrangement in an urban environment created similar considerations which, unwittingly, I resolved in much the same way. For over twenty years, my work space in our two bedroom apartment was the forty-inch round kitchen table”.

The most interesting look into the artist's craft is the segment along the hallway that shows the reverse side of the quilting, the literal toil to make such geometrically perfect images on the front. Be sure to peek into the kaleidoscopes by various artists too.

Upstairs is a much smaller, but equally fascinating, collection of hand carved wood sculptures by Southern barber Ulysses Davis. He not only captured historical and religious figures but created mythical creatures some of which would make Father Lankester Merrin tremble if he dug them up in Iraq.

Davis, who (like many folk and outsider artists) rarely sold his work,?never looked to his craft for financial gain. As he once said “They're my treasure. If I sold these, I'd be really poor.”

See more: Spend a Couple Hours 4th of July Galleries/Museums Local Midtown West

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Posted on June 29, 2009

It's too bad PBS hasn't delved into the world of reality television more. Frontier House (inspired by a similarly conceived show about the 1900s over at the BBC) was a highly entertaining, insightful, and even educational. Three families were given acreage in Montana to live just as settlers did back in the 1880's. The goal was to be prepared for the coming winter by the end of the series – without cheating, Gordon Clune!

Like any good reality, there's a villain, and here Mr. Clune serves well, but in this relatively good-natured show, even the cheater finds himself better for growing closer to his family. Another family, the Glenns adapt to the harsh lifestyle easier, but their personal relationships are strained.

Available on DVD and Netflix, you'll find yourself more inthralled in the drama of making root cellars and cutting wood than you would ever expect. This is only second to Manor House in PBS's amazing series of historical reality shows.

See more: TV Shows 4th of July Pre 1900 Reality

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Posted on June 29, 2009

It was a rough day for American icons and those of us that grew up with them. Farrah Fawcett, who epitomized blonde, American, smiling sexuality with her ubiquitous pin up poster and role on Charlie's Angels lost her long battle with cancer just before news of the surprise death of fellow superstar Michael Jackson hit the internet.

Giving the world the feathered haircut and agreeing with me and most teenage boys on the sexiness of ditching the bra, there were few women that had more influence on the popular culture of the 1970's than she did.

See more: Style Icons: Female 4th of July Actors

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Posted on June 29, 2009