1776 (film) Quotes

1776 (film) is a television program that was first aired in 1970 . 1776 completed its run in 1970.

It features Jack L. Warner as producer, Sherman Edwards in charge of musical score, and Harry Stradling, Jr. as head of cinematography.

1776 (film) is recorded in English and originally aired in United States. Each episode of 1776 (film) is 141 minutes long. 1776 (film) is distributed by Columbia Pictures.

The cast includes: William Daniels as John Adams, Donald Madden as John Dickinson, Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson, Ron Holgate as Richard Henry Lee, David Ford as John Hancock, Roy Poole as Hopkins, David Ford as Hancock, Ralston Hill as Thomson, Virginia Vestoff as Abigail, William Duell as McNair, Patrick Hines as Samuel Chase, Ralston Hill as Charles Thomson, James Noble as Rev. John Witherspoon, Howard Caine as Lewis Morris, Emory Bass as James Wilson, Charles Rule as Joseph Hewes, John Cullum as Edward Rutledge, Daniel Keyes as Dr. Josiah Bartlett, William Hansen as Caesar Rodney, Rex Robbins as Roger Sherman, John Myhers as Robert Livingston, Stephen Nathan as Courier, Roy Poole as Stephen Hopkins, Leo Leyden as George Read, Ralston Hill as Chorus, and David Ford as John Hancock.

1776 (film) Quotes

Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson

• (Ken Howard) "Mr. Adams, leave me alo-one."
• (William Daniels) "Mr. Jefferson --"
• (Ken Howard) "Mr. Adams, I beg of you, I've not seen my wife these past six months."
• (William Daniels) ""And we solemnly declare that we will preserve our liberties, being with one mind resolved to die free men rather than British slaves."; Thomas Jefferson, "On the Necessity of Taking up Arms", 1775. Magnificent."
• (William Daniels) "Why, you write 10 times better than any man in Congress, including me. For a man of only 33 years, you possess a happy talent for composition, and a remarkable felicity of expression. Now then, sir: will you be a patriot -- or a lover?"
• (Ken Howard) "A lover."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, don't worry, Tom. No worries, Thomas, I'll get Adams to write it."
• (Ken Howard) "I don't know, he had a funny look on his face."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "He always does."
• (William Daniels) "All right, gentlemen. Let's get on with it."
• (William Daniels) "Which of us will write our Declaration of Independence?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Mr. Adams, I say you should write it, To your legal mind and brilliance, we defer,"
• (William Daniels) "Is that so? / Well, if I'm the one to do it, they'll run their quill pens through it, / I'm obnoxious and disliked, you know that, sir,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Yes, I know."
• (William Daniels) "But I say you should write it, Franklin, / Yes, you --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Hell no."
• (William Daniels) "Yes, you, Dr. Franklin, you --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "But --"
• (William Daniels) "You --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "But --"
• (William Daniels) "You --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "But --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Mr. Adams, But, Mr. Adams, the things I write are only light extemporania, / I won't put politics on paper, it's a mania, / So I refuse to use the pen in Penn; sylvania."
• (Rex Robbins) "Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, / Refuse to use the pen --"

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Don't worry, Tom. Oh, let me handle it. I'll get Adams to write it."
• (Ken Howard) "I don't know. He had a funny look on his face."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "He always does."

• (Ken Howard) "Mr. Adams, I beg of you. I have not seen my wife these past six months."
• (William Daniels) "'And we solemly declare that we will preserve our liberties, being with one mind resolved to die free men rather than to live slaves.' Thomas Jefferson "On the Necessity of Taking Up Arms," 1775. Magnificent. Why, you write ten times better than any man in Congress. Including me. For a man of only thirty-three years, you have a happy talent of composition and a remarkable felicity of expression. Now then, sir -- will you be a patriot? Or a lover?"
• (Ken Howard) "A lover."

• (Ken Howard) "We're waiting for the chirp, chirp, chirp, of an eaglet being born, / Waiting for the chirp, chirp, chirp, on this humid Monday morning, in this -- Congressional incubator,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "God knows the temperature's hot enough, to hatch a stone, let alone an egg."
• (Ken Howard) "We're waiting for the scratch, scratch, scratch, of that tiny, little fellow, / Waiting for the egg to hatch, on this humid Monday morning in this -- Congressional incubator,"
• (William Daniels) "God knows the temperature's hot enough, to hatch a stone --"
• (Ken Howard) "But will it hatch an egg?"
• (William Daniels) "The Declaration will be a triumph, I tell you, a triumph. If I was ever sure of anything, I'm sure of that; a triumph; and if isn't, we've still got four days left to think of something else."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle's going to crack the shell, of the egg that England laid,"
• (Ken Howard) "Yes sir, we can tell, tell, tell, / On this humid Monday morning, in this -- Congressional incubator,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "And just as Tom here has written, though the shell may belong to Great Britain, / The eagle inside, belongs to us."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "And just as Tom here has written,"
• (Ken Howard) "We say "To hell with Great Britain". / The eagle inside -- belongs to us."

• (Ken Howard) "Just a moment, Mr. Thomson. I do not consent. The king is a tyrant whether we say so or not. We might as well say so."
• (Ralston Hill) "But I already scratched it out."
• (Ken Howard) "Then scratch it back in."
• (David Ford) "Put it back, Mr. Thomson. The King will remain a tyrant."

• (Ken Howard) "Tonight, I'm leaving for home."
• (David Ford) "On business?"
• (Ken Howard) "Family business."
• (Roy Poole) "Give her a flourish for me, young feller."

• (Ken Howard) "They're reading the Declaration."
• (William Daniels) "Good God. How far have they gotten?"
• (Ken Howard) "" -- to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.""
• (Ralston Hill) "" -- independent of and superior to-""

William Daniels as John Adams

• (William Daniels) "It's a masterpiece, I say, They will cheer every word, every letter,"
• (Ken Howard) "I wish I felt that way,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I believe I can put it bet-ter, / Now then, attend, as friend to friend, our declaration committee, / For us I see, immortality,"
• (Ken Howard) "In Philadelphia city --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "A farmer, a lawyer, and a sage --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "A bit gouty in the leg -- / You know, it's quite bizarre, to think that here we are, playing midwives to an egg --"
• (William Daniels) "Egg? What egg?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "America, the birth of a new nation."
• (Ken Howard) "If only we could be sure of what kind of a bird it's going to be."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Tom has a point: what sort of bird shall we choose as the symbol of our new America?"
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The dove."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The dove."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The eagle."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle is a majestic bird."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The eagle is a scavenger, a thief, and a coward. A symbol of over 10 centuries of European mischief."
• (William Daniels) "The turkey?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey is a truly noble bird: Native American, source of sustenance of our original settlers. An incredibly brave fellow who will not flinch at attacking a regiment of Englishmen single-handedly. Therefore, the national bird of America is going to be --"
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The eagle."

• (William Daniels) "That little paper there deals with freedom for Americans."
• (John Cullum) "Oh, really. Mr. Adams is now calling our black slaves "Americans." Are they, now?"
• (William Daniels) "Yes, they are. They are people, and they are here. If there's any other requirement, I haven't heard it."
• (John Cullum) "They are here, yes, but they are not people sir, they are property."
• (Ken Howard) "No, sir they are people who are being treated as property. I tell you, the rights of human nature are deeply wounded by this infamous practice."
• (John Cullum) "Then see to your own wounds Mr. Jefferson, for you are a practitioner are you not?"
• (Ken Howard) "I have already resolved to release my slaves."
• (John Cullum) "Oh. Then I'm sorry, for you've also resolved the ruination of your own personal economy."
• (William Daniels) "Economy. Always economy. There's more to this than a filthy purse-string, Rutledge. It is an offense against man and God."
• (Roy Poole) "It's a stinking business, Mr. Rutledge, a stinking business."
• (John Cullum) "Is it really now, Mr. Hopkins? Then what's that I smell floating down from the North? Could it be the aroma of hy-pocrisy? For who holds the other end of that filthy purse-string, Mr. Adams? Our northern brethren are feeling a bit tender toward our black slaves. They don't keep slaves. Oh, no. But they are willing to be considerable carriers of slaves to others. They're willin'. For the shillin'. Or haven't you heard, Mr. Adams? Clink, clink."

• (William Daniels) "Mark me, Franklin, if we give in on this issue, posterity will never forgive us."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "That's probably true, but we won't hear a thing, we'll be long gone. Besides, what will posterity think we were, demigods? We're men, no more, no less, trying to get a nation started against greater odds than a more generous god would have allowed. First things first, John, Independence. America. If we don't secure that, what difference will the rest make?"

• (William Daniels) "What is that racket?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "It's the latest thing from Europe, John. It's called music."
• (William Daniels) "I came here expecting to hear a pen scratching, not a bow."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, John, look at her. Just look at her."
• (William Daniels) "Oh, I am."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "She's even more magnificent than I remember. Of course, we didn't see much of her front last night."

• (William Daniels) "Well, is it written yet? Well, you've had a whole week, man. Is it done? Can I SEE IT?"
• (William Daniels) ""There comes a time in the lives of men when it becomes necessary to advance from that subordination in which they have hitherto rem-" -- This is terrible. Where's the rest of it?"
• (William Daniels) "Do you mean to say that it is not yet finished?"
• (Ken Howard) "No, sir. I mean to say that it's not yet begun."
• (William Daniels) "Good god. A whole week. The entire earth was created in a week."
• (Ken Howard) "Someday, you must tell me how you did it."
• (William Daniels) "Disgusting."

• (William Daniels) "At a stage in life when other men prosper, I'm reduced to living in Philadelphia."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "If Sam Adams can't put up with you, no one can."
• (William Daniels) "You're getting at something."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "How can you tell?"

• (William Daniels) "There's nothing to fear; it's a masterpiece. I am to be congratulated."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "You?"
• (William Daniels) "For making him write it."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, of course."

• (William Daniels) "Dear God. For one solid year, they have been sitting here; a whole year, doing nothing."
• (William Daniels) "I do believe you've laid a curse, on North America, / A curse that we here now rehearse, in Philadelphia, / A second flood, a simple famine, plagues of locusts everywhere, Or a cataclysmic earthquake, I'd accept with some despair, / But no, you sent us Congress, Good God sir, was that fair? / You see, we piddle, twiddle, and resolve, not one damn thing do we solve, / Piddle, twiddle, and resolve, Nothing's ever solved, / In foul, fetid, fuming, foggy, filthy Philadelphia."

• (William Daniels) "Tell me, Mr. Thomson, out of curiosity. Do you stand with Mr. Dickinson, or do you stand with me?"
• (Ralston Hill) "I stand with the General. Well, lately, I've had the oddest feeling that he's been writing to me."
• (Ralston Hill) "I have been in expectation of receiving a reply on the subject of my last fifteen dispatches. Is anybody there? Does anybody care? Does anybody care?"

• (William Daniels) "Mr. Jefferson? It so happens that the word is UN-alienable, not IN-alienable."
• (Ken Howard) "I'm sorry, Mr. Adams, but "Inalienable" is correct."
• (William Daniels) "I happen to be a Harvard graduate, Mr. Jefferson."
• (Ken Howard) "Well, I attended William & Mary."
• (David Ford) "Mr. Jefferson, will you concede to Mr. Adams' request?"
• (Ken Howard) "No, sir, I will not."
• (William Daniels) "Oh, very well, I withdraw it."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, good for you, John."
• (William Daniels) "I'll speak to the printer about it later."

• (William Daniels) ""Dear Mr. Adams, I am taking my wife back to bed. Kindly go away. Your obedient, T. Jefferson." Incredible."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "You know, perhaps I should have written the Declaration. At my age there's little doubt that the pen is mightier than the sword."

• (William Daniels) "Fat George has declared us in rebellion. Why in bloody hell can't they?"

• (William Daniels) "Good God. Consider yourselves fortunate that you have John Adams to abuse, for no sane man would tolerate it."
• (Ralston Hill) "John, you're a bore, We've heard this before, Now for God's sake, John, sit down."
• (William Daniels) "I say vote yes --"
• (Ralston Hill) "No."
• (William Daniels) "Vote yes --"
• (Ralston Hill) "No."
• (William Daniels) "Vote for independency."
• (Ralston Hill) "Someone ought to open up a window --"
• (William Daniels) "I say vote yes --"
• (Ralston Hill) "Sit down, John."
• (William Daniels) "Vote for independency."
• (George Walton (GA)) "Won't someone shut that man up?"
• (William Daniels) "Never. Never."

• (William Daniels) "God help us."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, he will, John. He will."

• (William Daniels) "Good God, you don't mean -- they're not going to? In the middle of the afternoon?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Not everybody's from Boston, John."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh John, you can dance."
• (William Daniels) "We still do a few things in Boston, Franklin."

• (William Daniels) "Mr. Jefferson, dear Mr. Jefferson, I'm only 41, I still have my virility, / And I can romp through Cupid's grove with great agility, / But life is more than sexual combustility,"
• (William Daniels) "Jefferson, stop right there."
• (John Myhers) "Combustibility, combustibility, combustibili --"
• (William Daniels) "Quiet."
• (William Daniels) "Now, you'll write it, Mr. J."
• (Ken Howard) "Who will make me, Mr. A.?"
• (William Daniels) "I."
• (Ken Howard) "You?"
• (William Daniels) "Yes."
• (Ken Howard) "How?"
• (William Daniels) "By physical force, if necessary. It's your duty, damnit, your duty."
• (Ken Howard) "Mr. Adams, damn you, Mr. Adams, / You're obnoxious and disliked, that cannot be denied, / Once again, you stand between me and my lovely bride,"
• (John Myhers) "Lovely bride,"
• (Ken Howard) "Oh, Mr. Adams, you are driving me to homicide,"
• (William Daniels) "Jefferson, stop."
• (John Myhers) "Homicide, homicide --"
• (William Daniels) "Quiet."
• (William Daniels) "The decision is yours, Jefferson, do as you like with it."
• (John Myhers) "We may see murder yet."

• (William Daniels) "Good God, consider yourselves fortunate that you have John Adams to abuse, for no sane man would tolerate it."

• (William Daniels) "Why, Abby? You must tell me what it is. I've always been dissatisfied, I know that. But lately I find that I reek of discontentment. It fills my throat, and it floods my brain. And sometimes I fear there is no longer a dream, but only the discontentment."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "Oh, John, can you really know so little about yourself? And can you really think so little of me that you believe I'd marry the man you've described?"

• (William Daniels) "By God, Franklin. When are they going to make up their minds? With one hand, they can raise an army, dispatch one of their own to lead it, and cheer the news from Bunker's Hill; and with the other, they wave the olive branch, begging the king for a happy and permanent reconciliation. Fat George has declared us in rebellion, why in bloody hell can't they?"

• (William Daniels) "It would be a pity for a man who's handed down hundreds of wise decisions from the bench to be remembered for the one unwise decision he made in Congress."

• (William Daniels) "Wake up, Franklin, you're going to New Brunswick."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Like hell I am. What for?"
• (Roy Poole) "The whoring and the drinking."

• (William Daniels) "Franklin, do something, think."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I'm thinking, but nothing's coming."

• (William Daniels) "Now, will you be a lover or a patriot?"
• (Ken Howard) "A lover."
• (William Daniels) "No."
• (Ken Howard) "But I burn, Mr. A."
• (William Daniels) "So do I, Mr. J."
• (Ken Howard) "You?"
• (Rex Robbins) "You do?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "John."
• (John Myhers) "Who'd have thought it?"

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "We've no choice, John. The slavery clause has got to go."
• (William Daniels) "Franklin, what are you saying?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "It's a luxury we can't afford."
• (William Daniels) "'Luxury?' A half million souls in chains -- and Dr. Franklin calls it a 'luxury.' Maybe you should have walked out with the South."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "You forget yourself sir. I founded the FIRST anti-slavery society on this continent."
• (William Daniels) "Oh, don't wave your credentials at me. Maybe it's time you had them renewed."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The issue here is independence. Maybe you have forgotten that fact, but I have not. How DARE you jeopardize our cause, when we've come so far? These men, no matter how much we may disagree with them, are not ribbon clerks to be ordered about; they are proud, accomplished men, the cream of their colonies. And whether you like them or not, they and the people they represent will be part of this new nation that YOU hope to create. Now, either learn how to live with them, or pack up and go home."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "In any case, stop acting like a Boston fishwife."

• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The dove."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The dove."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The eagle."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle is a majestic bird."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The eagle is a scavenger, a thief and coward. A symbol of over ten centuries of European mischief."
• (William Daniels) "The turkey?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "A truly noble bird. Native American, a source of sustenance to our original settlers, and an incredibly brave fellow who wouldn't flinch from attacking a whole regiment of Englishmen single-handedly. Therefore, the national bird of America is going to be --"
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The eagle."

• (William Daniels) "It's a masterpiece, I say, They will cheer every word, every letter,"
• (Ken Howard) "I wish I felt that way,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I believe I can put it better,/ Now then, attend, as friend to friend, our declaration committee, / For us I see, immortality,"
• (Ken Howard) "In Philadelphia city --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "A farmer, a lawyer, and a sage --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "A bit gouty in the leg -- / You know, it's quite bizarre, to think that here we are, playing midwives to an egg --"
• (William Daniels) "Egg? What egg?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "America, the birth of a new nation."
• (Ken Howard) "If only we could be sure of what kind of a bird it's going to be."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Tom has a point: what sort of bird shall we choose as the symbol of our new America?"
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The dove."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (William Daniels) "The dove."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The eagle."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey."
• (William Daniels) "The eagle is a majestic bird."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The eagle is a scavenger, a thief, and a coward. A symbol of over 10 centuries of European mischief."
• (Ken Howard) "The turkey?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The turkey is a truly noble bird; Native American, source of sustenance of our original settlers. An incredibly brave fellow who will not flinch at attacking a regiment of Englishmen single-handedly. Therefore, the national bird of America is going to be --"
• (William Daniels) "The eagle."
• (Ken Howard) "The eagle."

• (William Daniels) "'For I have crossed the Rubicon, let the bridge be burned behind me, come what may, come what may."
• (William Daniels) "Commitment."

• (William Daniels) "There's nothing to fear; it's a masterpiece. I'm to be congratulated."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "You?"
• (William Daniels) "For making him write it."

• (William Daniels) "Oh, Abigail, Abigail, I have such a desire to knock heads together."

• (William Daniels) "Look at him, Franklin. Virginia's most famous lover."
• (Ken Howard) "Virginia abstains."

• (William Daniels) "Franklin, you've got to do something, think."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I'm thinking, but nothing's coming."
• (Ralston Hill) "All those in favor of the resolution on independence as proposed by the colony of Virginia, signify by saying --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Mr. Secretary? Would you please read the resolution again?"
• (South Carolina Delegate) "What?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I've forgotten it."
• (Ralston Hill) "A resolve: that these united colonies are, and have a right ought to be, free and independent."

• (William Daniels) "As chairman of the war committee, I can assure you, never have training and discipline gone more smoothly. Never have soldiers been more cheerful. Never have --"
• (William Daniels) "Oh, good God."

• (William Daniels) "Now you'll write it, Mr. J."
• (Ken Howard) "Who will make me, Mr. A?"
• (William Daniels) "I."
• (Ken Howard) "You?"
• (William Daniels) "Yes."
• (Ken Howard) "How?"
• (William Daniels) "By physical force, if necessary."

• (William Daniels) "They won't be happy until they remove one of the F's from Jefferson's name."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Don't worry, John, the history books will clean it up."
• (William Daniels) "Hmm -- Well, I'll never appear in the history books anyway. Only you. Franklin did this, and Franklin did that, and Franklin did some other damn thing. Franklin smote the ground and out sprang George Washington; fully grown and on his horse. Franklin then electrified him with his miraculous lightning rod and the three of them, Franklin, Washington and the horse, conducted the entire revolution all by themselves."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I like it."

• (William Daniels) "It would be a pity for a man who's handed down hundreds of wise decisions from the bench to be remembered only for the one unwise decision he made in Congress."

• (William Daniels) "This is positively indecent."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, John, they're young and they're in love."
• (William Daniels) "Not them, Franklin. Us. Standing out here, waiting for them to -- I mean, what will people think?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Don't worry, John. The history books will clean it up."
• (William Daniels) "It doesn't matter. I won't be in the history books anyway, only you. Franklin did this and Franklin did that and Franklin did some other damn thing. Franklin smote the ground and out sprang George Washington, fully grown and on his horse. Franklin then electrified him with his miraculous lightning rod and the three of them; Franklin, Washington, and the horse; conducted the entire revolution by themselves."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I like it."

• (William Daniels) "Jefferson, kindly introduce me to your wife."
• (William Daniels) "She is your wife, isn't she?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Of course she is. Look at the way they fit."

• (William Daniels) "Oh, good God."

• (William Daniels) "Thomas, I want you to ride back down to Delaware and fetch back Caesar Rodney."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "John, are ya mad? It's eighty miles, and he's a dyin' man --"
• (William Daniels) "No, he's a patriot."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "John, what good will it do? The South's done us in --"
• (William Daniels) "And suppose they change their minds. Can we get Delaware without Rodney?"
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "God, what a bastardly bunch we are."

• (William Daniels) "Franklin, where in God's name have you been?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Right here, John, being preserved for posterity. Do you like it?"
• (William Daniels) "It stinks."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "As ever, the soul of tact."
• (William Daniels) "Well, the man's no Botticelli."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "And the subject's no Venus."
• (William Daniels) "Franklin, where were you when I needed you? You should have heard what I suffered in there."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, I heard, all right. Along with the rest of Philadelphia. Lord, your voice is piercing, John."
• (William Daniels) "Well, I just wish to Heaven my arguments were."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "John, really. You talk as if independence were the rule. It's never been done before. No colony has ever broken from the parent stem in the history of the world."
• (William Daniels) "Damn it, Franklin. You make us sound treasonous."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Do I? Treason, eh?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Treason is a charge invented by winners as an excuse for hanging the losers."
• (William Daniels) "I have more to do than stand here listening to you quote yourself."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "No, that was a new one."

• (William Daniels) "Abigail, I'm very lonely."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "Are you, John? As long as you're sending for wives, why not send for your own?"
• (William Daniels) "Oh, don't be unreasonable, Madam."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "Oh, now I'm unreasonable? You must add that to your list."
• (William Daniels) "List? What list?"
• (Virginia Vestoff) "The catalogue of my faults you included in your last letter."
• (William Daniels) "They were fondly intended, Madam."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "Indeed? That I play at cards badly?"
• (William Daniels) "An endearment."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "That my posture is crooked?"
• (William Daniels) "A complement."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "That I read, talk and think too much?"
• (William Daniels) "An irony."
• (Virginia Vestoff) "That I am pigeon-toed?"
• (William Daniels) "Ah, well there you have me. I'm afraid you are pigeon toed."

• (William Daniels) "Why, you write 10 times better than any man in Congress, including me. For a man of only 33 years, you possess a happy talent for composition, and a remarkable felicity of expression. Now then, sir: will you be a patriot -- or a lover?"
• (Ken Howard) "A lover."
• (William Daniels) "No."
• (Ken Howard) "But I burn, Mr. A."
• (William Daniels) "So do I, Mr. J."
• (John Myhers) "You?"
• (Rex Robbins) "You do?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "John, who'd have thought it?"
• (William Daniels) "Mr. Jefferson, dear Mr. Jefferson, I'm only 41, I still have my virility, / And I can romp through Cupid's grove with great agility, / But life is more than sexual combustibility,"
• (William Daniels) "Jefferson, stop right there."
• (Rex Robbins) "Combustibility, combustibility, combustibili --"
• (William Daniels) "Quiet."

• (William Daniels) "Is anybody there? -- Does anybody care? -- Does anybody see -- what I see?"
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "Yes, Mr. Adams, I do."
• (William Daniels) "Dr. Hall, I didn't know anyone was --"
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "I'm sorry if I startled you. I couldn't sleep. In trying to resolve my dilemma I remembered something I'd once read, "that a representative owes the People not only his industry, but his judgment, and he betrays them if he sacrifices it to their opinion.""
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "It was written by Edmund Burke, a member of the British Parliament."

William Duell as McNair

• (William Duell) "I can't say I'm very fond of the United States of America as a name for a new country."

• (William Duell) "Mr. Adams? Mr. Adams? Mr. Adams. Well, there you are. Didn't you hear me calling, Mr. Adams? You could have shouted down something, save me climbing up four flights. A man that likes to talk as much as you do, I think --"
• (William Duell) "What do you keep coming up here for, Mr. Adams? Afraid someone's gonna steal our bell?"
• (William Duell) "Well, no worry. Been here more than fourteen years and it ain't been carried off once."
• (William Duell) "You'd better get yourself back down to Congress, Mr. Adams. They're getting ready to vote, and they said they couldn't settle such an important question without Massachusetts being there."
• (William Daniels) "I can just imagine. All right, what burning issue are we voting on this time?"
• (William Duell) "On whether or not to grant General Washington's request that all members of the Rhode Island militia be required to wear matching uniforms."
• (William Daniels) "Oh, good god."

• (William Duell) "Mr. Hopkins, you'll be pleased to meet Dr. Lyman Hall."
• (Roy Poole) "I don't need a doctor, damn it."
• (William Duell) "New delegate from Georgia."
• (Roy Poole) "Well why didn't you say so?"

James Noble as Rev. John Witherspoon

• (James Noble) "Dr. Franklin? I'm afraid I must be the bearer of unhappy tidings. Your son, the royal governor of New Jersey, has been arrested, and has been moved to the colony of Connecticut for safekeeping."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Is he unharmed, sir?"
• (James Noble) "When last I heard, he was."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Well then, why the long face? I hear Connecticut's a excellent location. Tell me -- why did they arrest the little bastard?"

• (James Noble) "Our, uh -- New Jersey legislature has recalled the old delegation to this Congress and has sent a new one."
• (William Daniels) "Quickly, man: where do you stand on independence?"
• (James Noble) "Why, haven't I made that clear?"
• (William Daniels) "No."
• (James Noble) "Well, I suppose I hadn't, but that's the reason for the change. See, we've been instructed to vote for independence."
• (William Daniels) "Mr. President, Massachusetts is now ready to vote for the vote on independence, and reminds the chair of its privilege to decide all votes that are deadlocked."
• (David Ford) "I won't forget, Mr. Adams."
• (David Ford) "The chair takes this opportunity to welcome the New Jersey delegation, and appoints the Reverend Witherspoon to Congressional chaplain, if he will accept the post."
• (James Noble) "With much pleasure, sir."
• (David Ford) "Very well. Mr, Thompson, you er, uh -- may now proceed with the vote on independence."
• (Ralston Hill) "All in favor of the resolution on independence, as proposed by the colony of Virginia, signify by --"
• (Donald Madden) "Mr. President, Pennsylvania moves that any votes in favor of independence -- must be unanimous."
• (William Daniels) "What?"
• (Emory Bass) "I second the motion."
• (David Ford) "Judge Wilson."
• (Emory Bass) "Oh, my God --"
• (Leo Leyden) "Delaware seconds, Mr. President."

Donald Madden as John Dickinson

• (Donald Madden) "Don't forget that most men with nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor."

• (Donald Madden) "Do you expect us to forget Hastings and Magna Carta, Strongbow and Lionheart, Drake and Marlborough?"

• (Donald Madden) "Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Lee, Mr. Hopkins, Dr. Franklin, why have you joined this -- incendiary little man, this BOSTON radical? This demagogue, this MADMAN?"
• (William Daniels) "Are you calling me a madman, you, you -- you FRIBBLE."
• (William Daniels) "You and your Pennsylvania proprietors. Oh, you cool, considerate men. You hang to the rear on every issue so that if we should go under, you'll still remain afloat."
• (Donald Madden) "Are you calling me a coward?"
• (William Daniels) "Yes -- coward."
• (Donald Madden) "Madman."
• (William Daniels) "Landlord."
• (Donald Madden) "LAWYER."

• (Donald Madden) "Tell me, Doctor, where do you stand on the question of --"
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "Independence?"
• (Donald Madden) "Treason."
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "I've no stomach for it."
• (Donald Madden) "Ahh, then be careful not to dine with John Adams. Between the fish and the soufflé, you'll find yourself hanging from an English rope. Your servant, sir."

• (Donald Madden) "Fortunately, the people of these colonies maintain a higher regard for their mother country."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Higher, certainly, than she feels for them."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Never was such a valuable possession so stupidly and recklessly managed, than this entire continent by the British crown. Our industry discouraged, our resouces pillaged, worst of all: our very character stifled. We've spawned a new race here, Mr. Dickinson; rougher, simpler, more violent, more enterprising, less refined. We're a new nationality; we require a new nation."
• (Donald Madden) "Well -- that may be -- your opinion, Dr. Franklin, but -- as I said, the -- people feel quite differently."
• (William Daniels) "Now, what do you know about the people, Dickinson? You don't speak for the people, you represent only yourself. And that precious status quo you keep imploring the people to preserve for their own good, is nothing more than the eternal preservation of your own property."
• (Donald Madden) "Mr. Adams, you have an annoying talent for making such delightful words as "property" sound quite distasteful. In heaven's name, what's wrong with property? Perhaps you've forgotten that many of us first came to these shores in order to secure rights to property, and that we hold these rights no less dear than than the rights you speak of."
• (William Daniels) "Yes; so safe, so fat, so comfortable in Pennsylvania."
• (Donald Madden) "And what is this independence of yours, except the private grievance of Massachusetts? Why is it always Boston that always breaks the king's peace?"
• (Donald Madden) "My dear Congress, you must not adopt this evil measure. It is the work of the Devil. Leave it where it belongs: in New England."
• (Rex Robbins) "Brother Dickinson, New England has been fighting the Devil for more than 100 years."
• (Donald Madden) "And as of now, Brother Sherman, the Devil has been winning hands down."
• (Donald Madden) "Why, at this very moment, he's sitting right here in this Congress. Don't let him deceive you, this proposal is entirely his doing. Oh, it may bear Virginia's name, but it reeks of Adams, Adams, and more Adams. Look at him: ready to lead this continent down the fiery path of total destruction."
• (William Daniels) "Oh, good God. Why can't you acknowledge what already exists. It has been more than a year since Concord and Lexington. Damn it man, we're at war. Right now."
• (Donald Madden) "You may be at war; you, Boston and John Adams, but you will never speak for Pennsylvania."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Please Mr. Dickinson, but must you start banging? How is a man to sleep?"
• (Donald Madden) "Forgive me, Dr. Franklin, but must YOU start speaking? How is a man to stay awake?"
• (Donald Madden) "We'll promise to be quiet; I'm sure everyone prefers that you remained asleep."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "If I'm to hear myself called an Englishman, sir, I assure you I prefer I'd remained asleep."
• (Donald Madden) "What's so terrible about being called an Englishman? The English don't seem to mind."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Nor would I, were I given the full rights of an Englishman. But to call me one without those rights is like calling an ox a bull. He's thankful for the honor, but he'd much rather have restored what's rightfully his."
• (Donald Madden) "When did you first notice they were missing, sir?"

• (Donald Madden) "Fortunately, the people maintain a higher regard for their mother country."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Higher, certainly, than she feels for them. Never was such a valuable possession so stupidly and recklessly managed, than this entire continent by the British crown. Our industry discouraged, our resouces pillaged -- worst of all our very character stifled. We've spawned a new race here, Mr. Dikinson. Rougher, simpler; more violent, more enterprising; less refined. We're a new nationality. We require a new nation."

• (Donald Madden) "I trust, Caesar, when you're through converting the poor fellow to independency, you'll give the opposition a fair crack at him."
• (William Hansen) "You're too late, John. Once I get 'em, they're got."

• (Donald Madden) "Mr. Hancock, you're a man of property, one of us. Why don't you join us in our minuet? Why do you persist on dancing with John Adams? Good Lord, sir, you don't even like him."
• (David Ford) "That is true, he annoys me quite a lot, but still I'd rather trot to Mr. Adams' new gavotte."
• (Donald Madden) "But why? For personal glory? For a place in history? Be careful, sir. History will brand him and his followers as traitors."
• (David Ford) "Traitors, Mr. Dickinson? To what? The British crown, or the British half-crown? Fortunately there are not enough men of property in America to dictate policy."
• (Donald Madden) "Perhaps not. But don't forget that most men without property would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor."

• (Donald Madden) "Mr. President, Pennsylvania moves, as always, that the question of independence be postponed. Indefinitely."
• (Emory Bass) "I second the motion."
• (David Ford) "Judge Wilson, in your eagerness to be loved, you seem to have forgotten that Pennsylvania cannot second its own motion."

• (Donald Madden) "And is that how new nations are formed? By a nonentity seeking to preserve the anonymity he so richly deserves?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Revolutions, Mr. Dickinson, come into this world like bastard children -- half improvised and half compromised. Our side has provided the compromise. Judge Wilson is now supplying the rest."

Roy Poole as Hopkins

• (Roy Poole) "Tell me, doctor, where does Georgia stand on the question of independence?"
• (John Cullum) "With South Carolina, of course."
• (Roy Poole) "Ha, ha, ha. Neddy, good morning. Neddy, come over here and shake the hand of Dr. Lyman Hall of Georgia. Dr. Hall, this here is Edward Rutledge from -- whichever Carolina he says he's from. God knows I can't keep 'em straight."

• (Roy Poole) "Ah, Ben. I want you to see some cards I'd gone and had printed up. Oughta save everybody here a lot of time and effort, considering the epidemic of bad disposition that's been going on around here lately. "Dear Sir, you are without any doubt, a rogue, a rascal, a villain, a thief, a scoundrel, and a mean, dirty, stinking, sniveling, sneaking, pimping, pocket-picking, thrice double-damned no-good son of a bitch." and you sign your name; what do you think?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "I'll take a dozen, right now."

• (Roy Poole) "That's quite a large signature, Johnny."
• (David Ford) "So fat George can read it in London without his reading glasses."

• (Roy Poole) "Well, in all my years I ain't never heard, seen nor smelled an issue that was so dangerous it couldn't be talked about. Hell yeah. I'm for debating anything. Rhode Island says yea."

• (Roy Poole) "What's afire? Can anybody tell?"
• (John Myhers) "Looks like the Pemberton house."
• (Leo Leyden) "It couldn't be, it's brand new."
• (Rex Robbins) "Might be the city tavern."
• (Roy Poole) "You bite your tongue, man."

• (Roy Poole) "McNair."
• (William Duell) "Your rum."
• (Roy Poole) "Where'd you go for it, man; Jamaica?"

• (Roy Poole) "Been living too high again, eh, pappy?"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, Stephen, I only wish King George felt like my big toe, all over."

• (Roy Poole) "Dear Sir, You are without any doubt a rogue, a rascal, a villain, a thief, a scoundrel and a mean, dirty, stinking, sniveling, sneaking, pimping, pocket-picking, thrice double damn no good son of a bitch."

Ron Holgate as Richard Henry Lee

• (Ron Holgate) "They say that God in Heaven is everybody's God,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Amen."
• (Ron Holgate) "I'll admit that God in Heaven is everybody's God, / But I tell you John, with pride, God leans a little on the side, of the Lees, the Lees of old Virginia. / You see, it's here a Lee, there a Lee, and everywhere a Lee, a Lee, / Here a Lee, there a Lee, and everywhere a Lee; Look out."
• (Ron Holgate) "There's Papa Lee, Mama Lee, General Lighthorse Harry Lee, Willie Lee, Jesse Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "And Richard H."
• (Ron Holgate) "That's me."
• (Ron Holgate) "And may my blood stop running blue, if I can't deliver up to you, the resolution on independency. / Yes sir, by God, it's here a Lee, there a Lee, come on boys, join in with me."
• (William Daniels) "Here a Lee, there a Lee --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "When do you leave?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Immediate-Lee."
• (William Daniels) "Here a Lee, there a Lee --"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "When will you return?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Short-Lee."
• (William Daniels) "Here a Lee, there a Lee --"
• (Ron Holgate) "And I'll come back triumphant-Lee."
• (William Daniels) "Here a Lee, there a Lee, everywhere a Lee, a Lee --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Forward -- hooo."

• (Ron Holgate) "My name is Richard Henry Lee, Virginia is my home, My name is Richard Henry Lee, Virginia is my ho-ome, / And may my horses turn to glue, if I can't deliver up to you, the resolution on indepdendency. / For I am F.F.V., the First Family, in the sovereign colony of Virginia, / Yes the F.F.V., the oldest family, in the oldest colony in America, / And may the British burn my land, if I can't deliver to your hand, the resolution on independency. / You see, it's here a Lee, there a Lee, and everywhere a Lee, a Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Social --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Political --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Financial --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Natural --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Internal --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "External --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Fraternal --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee,"
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Eternal --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Lee."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "The F.F.V., the first family, in the sovereign colony of Virginia, /"
• (Ron Holgate) "And may my wife refuse the bed, if I can't deliver as I said, the resolution on independency."
• (William Daniels) "Spoken modest-Lee, God help us."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, He will, John, He will."

• (Ron Holgate) "Therefore I must decline. Respectful -- "lee"."

• (Ron Holgate) "You've come to the one colony that can get job done: Virginia. The land that gave us our glorious commander in chief, George Washington, will now give the congress its proposal on independence. Where Virginia goes the south is bound to follow. And where the south goes, the middle colonies go. Gentlemen, a salute to Virginia, the mother of American independence."
• (William Daniels) "Incredible, we're free and he hasn't even left yet."

• (Ron Holgate) "I'll leave tonight. Why, hell, I'll leave right now if you like. I'll just stop off in Stratford long enough to refresh the missus, and then straight to the matter."

• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "As you know, the cause that we support has come to a complete standstill. Now, why do you suppose that is?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Simple. Johnny here is obnoxious and disliked."

• (Ron Holgate) "You sent for me, Benjamin?"
• (William Daniels) "Never."
• (Ron Holgate) "Helloooo, Johnny."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Richard, uh -- Johnny and I need some advice."
• (Ron Holgate) "If it's mine to give, it's yours, you know that."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Thank you, Richard, thank you. You know, the cause that we support has come to a complete standstill. Now why do you suppose that is?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Simple: Johnny here's obnoxious and disliked."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "That's true. Now what's the solution, I wonder?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Get somebody else in Congress to propose."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, Richard, that's brilliant. Wasn't that brilliant, John?"
• (William Daniels) "Brilliant."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Yes, now, the question remains: who can it be? The man we need must belong to a delegation publicly committed to support independence. At the present time, only Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Delaware declared our way."
• (Ron Holgate) "Virginia. Don't forget Virginia, Benjy."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh Richard, I haven't. How could I? But strictly speaking, Virginia's views on independence are well-known. Your legislature in Williamsburg has never formally authorized its delegation here in Congress to support the cause. Now, if we could think of a Virginian with enough influence to go down there and persuade the House of Burgesses --"
• (Ron Holgate) "Damn me if I haven't thought of someone."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Who?"
• (Ron Holgate) "Me."
• (Dr. Benjamin Franklin) "Oh, why didn't I think of that?"
• (Ron Holgate) "I'll leave tonight. Why hell, I'll leave right now, if you like. I'll just stop off in Stratford long enough to refresh the missus, and then straight to the matter. Yes sir, I really have to complement you on your judgment, Johnny. Whoa boy, steady. You've come to the one colony that can get the job done: Virginia."
• (Ron Holgate) "The land that gave us our glorious commander-in-chief -- George Washington, will now give the continent its proposal on independence. And when Virginia proposes, the South is bound to follow. And where the South goes, the middle colonies go. Gentlemen, a salute to Virginia, the mother of American independence."

David Ford as John Hancock

• (David Ford) "From the Commander, Army of the United Colonies, New York, dispatch number 1,137 --"
• (William Duell) "Aw, sweet Jesus."
• (David Ford) "The honorable Congress, John Hancock president. "Dear Sirs: It is with great apprehension that I have learned this day of the sailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia, of a considerable force of British troops in the company of foreign mercenaries and under the command of General Sir William Howe. There can be no doubt that their destination is New York; for to take and hold this city and the Hudson Valley beyond would seriously separate New England from the rest of the colonies, permitting both sections to be crushed in turn. Sadly, I see no way of stopping them at the present time, as my army's absolutely falling apart. My military chest is totally exhausted. My commissary general has strained his credit to the last. My quartermaster has no food, no arms, no ammunition, and my troops are in a state of near mutiny. I pray God some relief arrives before the Armada but fear it will not. Your obedient -- ""
• (David Ford) ""G. Washington.""
• (William Duell) "Mister President."
• (David Ford) "Colonel McKean."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "Sure, we have managed to promote the gloomiest man on this continent to the head of our troops. Those dispatches are the most depr-ressing accumulation of disaster, doom, and despair in the entire annals of human history."
• (David Ford) "Colonel McKean, please."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "What?"
• (David Ford) "It's too hot."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "Okay, I suppose so."
• (David Ford) "General Washington will continue wording his dispatches as he sees fit; and I'm sure we he finds happier thoughts to convey in the near -- future."

• (David Ford) "Gentlemen, forgive me if I don't join in the merriment, but if we are arrested now, my name is STILL THE ONLY ONE ON THE DAMN THING."

• (Col. Thomas McKean) "Mr. President."
• (David Ford) "Colonel McKean."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "Surely, we have managed to promote the gloomiest man on this continent to the head of our troops. Those dispatches are the most deprrrr-essing accumulation of disaster, doom and despair in the entire annals of military history. And furthermore --"
• (David Ford) "Colonel McKean, please."
• (Col. Thomas McKean) "What?"
• (David Ford) "It's too hot."

• (David Ford) "I'm concerned over the continued absence of 1/13th of this Congress. Where is New Jersey?"
• (Donald Madden) "Somewhere between New York and Pennsylvania."

• (David Ford) "The principles of independence have no greater advocate in Congress than its president. And that is why I must join those who vote for unanimity."
• (William Daniels) "Good God, John. What are you doing? You've sunk us."
• (David Ford) "Now, hear me out. Don't you see that any colony who opposes independence will be forced to fight on the side of England? That we'll be setting brother against brother. That our new nation will carry as its emblem the mark of Cain. I can see no other way. Either we all walk together, or together we must stay where we are."
• (William Daniels) "The man's from Massachusetts."

• (David Ford) "I'm still from Massachusetts, John. You know where I stand. I'll do whatever you say."
• (William Daniels) "No. No, you're the president of Congress. You're a fair man, Hancock. Stay that way."

• (David Ford) "What we do, we do rationally,"
• (Donald Madden) "We never, ever go off half-cocked, not we,"
• (David Ford) "Why begin, till we know that we can win,"
• (Donald Madden) "And if we cannot win, why bother to begin?"
• (John Cullum) "We say this game's not of our choosing, why should we risk losing?"
• (David Ford) "We are cool men --"
• (Donald Madden) "Mr. Hancock, you're a man of property, one of us, why don't you join us in our minuet? Why do you persist in dancing with John Adams? Good Lord, sir, you don't even like him."
• (David Ford) "That is true, he annoys me quite a lot, / But still, I'd rather trot to Adams' new gavotte"
• (Donald Madden) "Why? For personal glory? For a place in history? Be careful, sir, history will brand him and his followers as traitors."
• (John Cullum) "Traitors, Mr. Dickinson, to what: The British Crown, or the British half-crown? Fortunately, there's not enough men with property in America to dictate policy."
• (Donald Madden) "Perhaps not, but don't forget that most men with nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor. And that is why they will follow us --"
• (Ralston Hill) "To the right, ever to the right, never to the left, forever to the right, / We have gold, a market that will hold, tradition that is old, reluctance to be bold --"
• (Donald Madden) "I sing Hosanna, Ho-san-na,"
• (Donald Madden) "In a sane and lucid manner, we are cool."
• (Ralston Hill) "Come ye cool, cool, considerate men, whose likes may never, ever be seen again, / With our land, cash in hand, self-command, future planned, / And we'll hold to our gold, tradition that is old, reluctant to be bold, / We say this game's not of our choosing, why should we risk losing? / We cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool men."
• (William Duell) "How'd you like to try and borrow a dollar from one of them? You want some more rum, general?"

• (David Ford) "Very well, gentlemen. We are about to brave the storm in a skiff made of paper."

• (David Ford) "A resolve, that these united colonies are, and have a right ought to be, free and independent --"
• (James Noble) "Excuse me, is- is this the Continental Congress? Well, yes, I- I can see that it must be."
• (James Noble) "It's all right, we've found it."
• (James Noble) "We've been looking for you everywhere, you see. Someone told us that you might be at Carpenter's Hall, and someone else suggested Library Hall, and so finally, we asked a constable."
• (David Ford) "Excuse me, sir, but, um -- if you don't mind, the, uh -- Congress is about to decide the question of American independence."
• (James Noble) "Oh, how splendid, that means we're not too late. Oh, these gentlemen are Mr. Francis Hopkinson, Dr. Richard Stockton, and I am the Reverend John Witherspoon."
• (James Noble) "We're the new delegates from New Jersey."

• (David Ford) "Very well. Mr, Thompson, you er, uh -- may now proceed with the vote on independence."
• (Ralston Hill) "All in favor of the resolution on independence, as proposed by the colony of Virginia, signify by --"
• (Donald Madden) "Mr. President, Pennsylvania moves that any votes in favor of independence -- must be unanimous."
• (William Daniels) "What?"
• (Emory Bass) "I second the motion."
• (David Ford) "Judge Wilson."
• (Emory Bass) "Oh, my God --"
• (Leo Leyden) "Delaware seconds, Mr. President."

William Hansen as Caesar Rodney

• (William Hansen) "Stop it. Stop it. This is the Congress. Stop it I say. The enemy's out there."
• (Donald Madden) "No, Mr Rodney, the enemy is here."
• (William Hansen) "No. I say he's out there. England. England closing in, cutting off our air. There's no time."
• (William Hansen) "No air --"

• (William Hansen) "Oh, Judge Wilson, forgive me, but how can anyone see you if you insist on standing in Mr. Dickinson's shadow?"
• (William Hansen) "James Wilson, also of Pennsylvania."
• (Emory Bass) "Sir."
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "An honor, sir."

• (William Hansen) "Tell me, sir, would you be a doctor of medicine or theology?"
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "Both, Mr. Rodney. Which one can be of service?"
• (William Hansen) "By all means, the physician first. Then we shall see about the other."
• (Dr. Lyman Hall) "I shall call at your convenience, sir."

Virginia Vestoff as Abigail

• (Virginia Vestoff) "I never asked for more. After all, I am Mrs. John Adams and that's quite enough for one lifetime."
• (William Daniels) "Is it, Abby?"
• (Virginia Vestoff) "Well, think of it, John, to be married to the man who is always the first in line to be hanged."

• (Virginia Vestoff) "Have you forgotten what you used to say to me, I haven't. Commitment, Abby,

Add or Update Quotes

If you have a quote to add or change and want to let us know, please fill in the form below. Include the time in the film/video if possible so we can find it.