1776 (1972)
Howard Da Silva: Dr. Benjamin Franklin (PA)
Photos
Quotes
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John Dickinson : Mr. Jefferson, are you seriously suggesting that we publish a paper declaring to all the world that an illegal rebellion is, in reality, a legal one?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, Mr. Dickinson, I'm surprised at you. You should know that rebellion is always legal in the first person, such as "our rebellion." It is only in the third person - "their rebellion" - that it is illegal.
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[Jefferson's wife visits, and they retire behind closed doors]
John Adams : 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!
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Please Mr. Dickinson, but must you start banging? How is a man to sleep?
[laughter from Congress]
John Dickinson : Forgive me, Dr. Franklin, but must YOU start speaking? How is a man to stay awake?
[More laughter]
John Dickinson : 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.
John Dickinson : 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.
[laughter]
John Dickinson : When did you first notice they were missing, sir?
[laughter]
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John Dickinson : 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.
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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.
John Adams : Damn it, Franklin! You make us sound treasonous.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Do I? Treason, eh?
[thoughtfully]
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Treason is a charge invented by winners as an excuse for hanging the losers.
John Adams : [scoffs] I have more to do than stand here listening to you quote yourself.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : No, that was a new one.
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[Adams and Frankline wait expectantly on the street below Jefferson's apartment]
John Adams : [reading a note tossed down from Jefferson] "Dear Mr. Adams, I am taking my wife back to bed. Kindly go away. Your obedient, T. Jefferson." Incredible!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [chuckles] You know, perhaps I should have written the Declaration. At my age there's little doubt that the pen is mightier than the sword.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [to John Dickinson] Be careful, Mr. Dickinson. Those who would give up some of their liberty in order to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : We've no choice, John. The slavery clause has got to go.
John Adams : [stunned] Franklin, what are you saying?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : It's a luxury we can't afford.
John Adams : [pause, then] '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 : [dangerous] You forget yourself sir. I founded the FIRST anti-slavery society on this continent.
John Adams : Oh, don't wave your credentials at me! Maybe it's time you had them renewed!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [angrily] 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!
[pause, then]
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : In any case, stop acting like a Boston fishwife.
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John Adams : Damn it, Franklin, we're at war.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : To defend ourselves, nothing more. We expressed our displeasure, the English moved against us, and we in turn have resisted. Now our fellow Congressmen want to effect a reconciliation. Before it *becomes* a war.
John Adams : Reconciliation, my ass! The people want independence!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : The people have read Mr. Paine's "Common Sense". I doubt very much the Congress has.
John Adams : Well, that's true.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : John, why don't you give it up? Nobody listens to you; you're obnoxious and disliked.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [to Dr. Hall] What are you staring at? Haven't you ever seen a great man before?
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[Standing awkwardly nearby as Jefferson and Martha embrace]
John Adams : Jefferson, kindly introduce me to your wife.
[pause]
John Adams : She is your wife, isn't she?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Of course she is. Look at the way they fit.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : If we do not hang together, we shall most assuredly hang separately!
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Don't worry, John, the history books will clean it up.
John Adams : 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 : [pondering] I like it.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Congratulations, John. You just made your greatest contribution to Independence: you kept your flap shut.
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John Adams : Franklin, where in God's name have you been?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Right here, John, being preserved for posterity. Do you like it?
[John walks around to look at the painting]
John Adams : It stinks.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : As ever, the soul of tact.
John Adams : Well, the man's no Botticelli.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : And the subject's no Venus.
John Adams : 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.
John Adams : Well, I just wish to Heaven my arguments were.
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Hopkins : 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.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [referring to Martha Jefferson] No wonder the man couldn't write! Who could think of independence being married to her?
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[Adams and Franklin arrive at Jefferson's apartment to check the status of the Declaration, and hear him playing his violin instead]
John Adams : What is that racket?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : It's the latest thing from Europe, John. It's called music.
John Adams : I came here expecting to hear a pen scratching, not a bow.
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[John Adams volunteers to visit New Brunswick after a report is given of Washington's soldiers being afflicted with venereal disease and alcoholism]
John Adams : Wake up, Franklin, you're going to New Brunswick!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [Half asleep] Like hell I am. What for?
Hopkins : The whoring and the drinking!
[Franklin gets up and marches off right behind Adams]
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh John, you can dance!
John Adams : We still do a few things in Boston, Franklin.
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[Jefferson is arguing about being appointed to the declaration committee]
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Don't worry, Tom. Oh, let me handle it. I'll get Adams to write it.
Thomas Jefferson : I don't know. He had a funny look on his face.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : He always does.
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John Adams : Well, Franklin, where's that idiot Lee? Is he back yet? I don't see him.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Softly, John. Your voice is hurting my foot.
John Adams : One more day, Franklin. That's how long I'll remain silent, not a minute longer. That strutting popinjay was so damn sure of himself. He's had time to bring back a dozen proposals by now.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : What do you think, Doctor? Democracy. What Plato called "A charming form of government, full of variety and disorder. I never knew Plato had been to Philadelphia.
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Edward Rutledge : [In the final vote for Independence, Rutledge wants the slavery clause removed from the Declaration, or else he will vote against independence] Well, Mr. Adams?
John Adams : Well, Mr. Rutledge.
Edward Rutledge : [stands] Mr. Adams, you must believe that I *will* do what I promised to do.
John Adams : [stands and approaches him] What is it you want, Rutledge?
Edward Rutledge : Remove the offending passage from your Declaration.
John Adams : If we did that, we would be guilty of what we ourselves are rebelling against.
Edward Rutledge : Nevertheless... remove it, or South Carolina will bury, now and forever, your dream of independence.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : John? I beg you consider what you're doing.
John Adams : 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 would posterity think we were? Demi-gods? 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?
John Adams : [long pause] Jefferson, say something.
Thomas Jefferson : What else is there to do?
John Adams : Well, man, you're the one that wrote it.
Thomas Jefferson : I *wrote* ALL of it, Mr. Adams.
[stands and goes to the Declaration, crosses out the clause]
John Adams : [snatches the paper from Jefferson and takes it to Rutledge] There you are, Rutlege, you have your slavery; little good may it do you, now VOTE, damn you!
Edward Rutledge : [takes the paper] Mr. President, the fair colony of South Carolina...
[looks at Adams]
Edward Rutledge : ... says yea.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [watching Martha, mesmerized] Oh, John, look at her. Just look at her.
John Adams : 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.
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Rev. John Witherspoon : 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?
Rev. John Witherspoon : 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?
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John Adams : God help us.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, he will, John. He will.
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John Adams : [Franklin, Adams and Jefferson start to sing "The Egg"] It's a masterpiece, I say, They will cheer every word, every letter,
Thomas Jefferson : 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,
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : [as a three part barbershop melody] In Philadelphia city...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [Franklin glances at Jefferson, then Adams] A farmer, a lawyer, and a sage...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [the Liberty Bell rings in the background] A bit gouty in the leg... / You know, it's quite bizarre, to think that here we are, playing midwives to an egg...
John Adams : Egg? What egg?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : America, the birth of a new nation.
Thomas Jefferson : 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?
John Adams : The eagle.
Thomas Jefferson : The dove.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : The turkey.
John Adams : The eagle.
John Adams : The dove.
John Adams : [more insistently] The eagle!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [Jefferson yields to Adams's suggestion] The eagle.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : The turkey.
John Adams : 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.
Thomas Jefferson : [astonished] 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...
John Adams : [with insistent finalitly] The eagle!
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : [Franklin resignedly agrees to Adams's suggestion, with a confused look on his face afterwards] The eagle!
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Samuel Chase : Mr. Adams, how can a nation of only two million souls stand up to an empire of ten million? Think of it. Ten million! How do we compensate for that shortage?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : It's simple, Mr. Chase. Increase and multiply.
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Martha Jefferson : [singing] Oh, he never speaks his passions, he never speaks his views. Whereas other men speak volumes, the man I love is mute. In truth, I can't recall being wooed with words at all. Even now...
John Adams : Oh, don't stop, madam.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : No, tell us. How did he win you? And how does he hold on to a bounty such as you?
Martha Jefferson : [speaking] Well, surely you've noticed that Tom is a man of many accomplishments. Author, lawyer, statesman, architect, farmer. And still one more that a hesitate to mention.
John Adams : Don't hesitate, madam. Don't hesitate.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : No, tell us. What else can that red-headed tombstone do?
Martha Jefferson : [coyly beckoning them closer; singing] He plays the violin. He tucks it right under his chin. And he bows, oh, he bows, for he knows, yes, he knows, that's heigh, heigh, heigh diddle-diddle. 'Twixt my heart, Tom and his fiddle. My strings are unstrung. Heigh, heigh, heigh, heigh. I am undone.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : The violin, madam?
Martha Jefferson : I hear his violin, and I get that feeling within. And I sigh, oh, I sigh. He draws near, very near. And it's heigh, heigh, heigh diddle-diddle, and goodbye to the fiddle, my strings are unstrung. Heigh, heigh, heigh, heigh. I'm always undone.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : That settles it, John. We're taking up the violin.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Tell me, Mr. Wilson, when you were a judge, how in hell did you ever make a decision?
James Wilson : The decisions I made were based on legality and precedent. But there is no legality here, and certainly no precedent.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [losing his temper] Because, it's a new idea, you CLOD! We'll be making our own precedent!
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : If Sam Adams can't put up with you, no one can.
John Adams : You're getting at something.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : How can you tell?
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John Adams : Mr. Jefferson? It so happens that the word is UN-alienable, not IN-alienable.
Thomas Jefferson : I'm sorry, Mr. Adams, but "Inalienable" is correct.
John Adams : I happen to be a Harvard graduate, Mr. Jefferson.
Thomas Jefferson : Well, I attended William & Mary.
Hancock : Mr. Jefferson, will you concede to Mr. Adams' request?
Thomas Jefferson : No, sir, I will not.
[grins]
John Adams : Oh, very well, I withdraw it!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, good for you, John!
John Adams : I'll speak to the printer about it later.
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John Adams : There's nothing to fear; it's a masterpiece. I'm to be congratulated.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : You?
John Adams : For making him write it.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [chuckling] Oh, of course.
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John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : [Adams starts off singing 'The Egg', with Franklin and Jefferson joining in] 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.
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : 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,
John Adams : God knows the temperature's hot enough, to hatch a stone...
Thomas Jefferson : But will it hatch an egg?
John Adams : [spoken] 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.
John Adams : The eagle's going to crack the shell, of the egg that England laid,
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : 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!
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin : And just as Tom here has written,
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson : We say "To hell with Great Britain"! / The eagle inside... belongs to us!
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John Adams : Mr. President, how can this Congress vote on independence without a written declaration of some sort defining it?
John Hancock : What sort of declaration?
John Adams : Ah. Well, you know. Listing the reasons for the separation, our purposes, goals, so forth, so on.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Ditto, ditto.
John Adams : Ditto, ditto, et cetera, et cetera.
John Hancock : We know those, don't we?
John Adams : Oh, well, yes, good God, we know them. Uh, but what about the rest of the world? Certainly we require the assistance of a powerful nation such as France or Spain, and such a written declaration would be consistent with European delicacy.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [finding Adams asleep outside the Jeffersons'] John? John!
John Adams : [jerking awake] Hmm? What?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : What are you doing down here? I thought you'd be up there, cracking the whip.
John Adams : Oh, well, uh, the, uh, shutters are still closed.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : My word! So they are. Well, as the French say...
John Adams : Oh, please, Franklin! Spare me your bawdy mind first thing in the morning.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Tell us about yourself. We've heard precious little. What's your first name?
Martha Jefferson : Martha.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Martha. He might at least have told us that. Your husband doesn't say very much.
John Adams : Most silent man in Congress. I've never heard him utter three sentences together.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Not every man's a talker, John.
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John Dickinson : [James Wilson is about to vote for independence in defiance of John Dickinson] 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.
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Hopkins : [Franklin's gout is acting up] Been living too high again, eh, pappy?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, Stephen, I only wish King George felt like my big toe, all over.
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John Adams : Franklin, do something, think!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : I'm thinking, but nothing's coming.
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Martha Jefferson : I beg your pardon, gentlemen. My husband is not yet up. It is indeed an honor to meet the two greatest men in America.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Certainly the greatest within earshot, anyway.
Martha Jefferson : I'm not an idle flatterer, Dr. Franklin. My husband admires you both greatly.
John Adams : Uh, did you sleep well, madam?
Martha Jefferson : Hmm?
John Adams : Oh, uh... well, I mean, uh, did you lie comfortably? Damn it, you know what I mean.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Yes, John, we know what you mean.
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John Adams : Very well, madam, you have us playing the violin. What happens next?
Martha Jefferson : Next, Mr. Adams?
John Adams : Yes. What does Tom do now?
Martha Jefferson : Why, just what you'd expect. We dance.
John Adams : Dance?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Dance? Incredible!
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John Adams : All right, Franklin, enough socializing. There's work to be done.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Good morning, John.
John Adams : What?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [indicating Dr. Hall and Hopkins with him] Good morning.
John Adams : [waving it off] Oh, good morning, good morning.
[pulling Franklin away]
John Adams : Now then, let's get to it.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Get to what?
John Adams : Unanimity, of course. Look at that board. Six "nays" to win over in less than a week.
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John Adams : Jefferson, we're back, and we've got Maryland. That is we will, as soon as Chase gets through telling the Maryland Assembly what we saw in New Brunswick, huh?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : He's in Annapolis right now, describing a ragtag collection of provincial militiamen who couldn't drill together, train together, or march together. But when a flock of ducks flew over, and they saw their first meal in three full days, sweet Jesus, could they shoot together. It was a slaughter.
John Adams : A slaughter.
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Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [as Congress suggests changes to the Declaration] John, you'll give yourself an attack of apoplexy if you're not careful.
John Adams : Have you heard what they're doing to it? Have you heard?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : I heard.
John Adams : And so far, that's just our friends. Can you imagine what our enemies will do?
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John Adams : [leaving the Jeffersons] Have you eaten?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Not yet, but...
John Adams : I understand the turkey's fresh at Bunch o' Grapes.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Well, the fact is, I have a rendezvous, John.
John Adams : Oh.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : I'd ask you along, but talking makes her nervous.
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Richard Henry Lee : [starts singing "The Lees of Old Virginia"] 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...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Political...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Financial...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Natural...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Internal...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : External...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Fraternal...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Eternal...
Richard Henry Lee : Lee!
Richard Henry Lee , Dr. Benjamin Franklin : The F.F.V., the first family, in the sovereign colony of Virginia, /
Richard Henry Lee : And may my wife refuse the bed, if I can't deliver as I said, the resolution on independency!
John Adams : Spoken modest-Lee, God help us!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, He will, John, He will.
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Richard Henry Lee : [continues singing "The Lees of Old Virginia"] They say that God in Heaven is everybody's God,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Amen!
Richard Henry Lee : [sung] 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!
Richard Henry Lee : There's Papa Lee, Mama Lee, General Lighthorse Harry Lee, Willie Lee, Jesse Lee,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : And Richard H.
Richard Henry Lee : That's me!
Richard Henry Lee : [sung] 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!
Richard Henry Lee , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , John Adams : Here a Lee, there a Lee...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : When do you leave?
Richard Henry Lee : Immediate-Lee!
Richard Henry Lee , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , John Adams : Here a Lee, there a Lee...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : When will you return?
Richard Henry Lee : Short-Lee!
Richard Henry Lee , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , John Adams : Here a Lee, there a Lee...
Richard Henry Lee : And I'll come back triumphant-Lee!
Richard Henry Lee , Dr. Benjamin Franklin , John Adams : [Lee backs up near the fountain, then walks away and gets on his horse] Here a Lee, there a Lee, everywhere a Lee, a Lee...
Richard Henry Lee : Forward... hooo!
[Lee rides away on his horse as the song ends]
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John Adams : All right, gentlemen. Let's get on with it. Which of us will write our Declaration of Independence?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [singing] Mr. Adams, I say you should write it. To your legal mind and brilliance we defer.
John Adams : 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.
John Adams : But I say you should write it, Franklin. Yes, you.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Hell no!
John Adams : Yes, you, Dr. Franklin, you...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : But...
John Adams : You...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : But...
John Adams : You...
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : But... 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 Pennsylvania.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Jefferson , Robert Livingston , Roger Sherman : Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania. Refuse to use the pen!
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John Adams : 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?
Thomas Jefferson : A lover.
John Adams : No.
Thomas Jefferson : But I burn, Mr. A.
John Adams : So do I, Mr. J.
Robert Livingston : [surprisedly] You?
Roger Sherman : You do?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : John, who'd have thought it?
John Adams : [Adams resumes singing] 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,
John Adams : [spoken quickly as Adams abruptly stops singing to call after Jefferson] Jefferson, stop right there!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Robert Livingston , Roger Sherman : [sung as a chorus] Combustibility, combustibility, combustibili...
John Adams : [Adams abruptly stops the chorus, ending the song] Quiet!
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John Adams : Thomas, how did you leave Caesar? Is he still alive?
Col. Thomas McKean : Aye, but the journey to Dover was fearful hard on him. He never complained, but I could see the poor man was sufferin' terrbile.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : But you got him safely home.
Col. Thomas McKean : I did, but I doubt he'll ever set foot out of it again.
John Adams : That leaves you and Read split down the middle. Will he come over?
Col. Thomas McKean : I don't know. He's a stubborn ignoramus.
John Adams : Work on him. Keep after him 'til you wear him down.
Col. Thomas McKean : Look, John, face facts, will ya? If it were just Read standing in our way, it wouldn't be so bad, but look for yourself, man. Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the entire South. It's impossible!
John Adams : Well, it's impossible if we all stand around complaining about it. To work, McKean! One foot in front of the other!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : I believe I put it a better way: never leave off until tomorrow that which...
John Adams : Shut up, Franklin.
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John Adams : Franklin, Jefferson, what are you all sitting around for?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Didn't you hear a word I said before?
John Adams : Oh, never mind about that. Now, here's what I want you to do.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : John, I'm not even speaking to you.
John Adams : It's too late for that, damn it. There's work to be done. Jefferson, go find Rutledge. Don't come back until you've worn him down. Now, you're both Southern aristocrats. If he'll listen to anybody, he'll listen to you. Franklin, out of that chair!
[ushering them out]
John Adams : What good is the South if you can't deliver Pennsylvania, hmm? Talk to Wilson. Get him away from Dickinson. That's the only way to do it. Go on, now. Both of you.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : John?
John Adams : Time's running out, damn it. Now move.
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Dr. Lyman Hall : Good lord, sir, do you have the honor to be Dr. Franklin?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Yes, I have that honor. Unfortunately, the gout accompanies the honor.
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Congressional President John Hancock (MA) : I suppose we could leave it a four-man committee.
John Adams (MA) : Uh, just a moment. This business needs a Virginian; therefore I propose a replacement, Mr. Thomas Jefferson.
Thomas Jefferson (VA) : No, Mr. Adams.
Congressional President John Hancock (MA) : Very well, Mr. Adams. Mr. Jefferson will serve.
Thomas Jefferson (VA) : I'm going home, too. To my wife.
John Adams (MA) : Move to adjourn!
Thomas Jefferson (VA) : Wait.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin (PA) : I second!
Congressional President John Hancock (MA) : Moved and seconded. Any objections?
Thomas Jefferson (VA) : Yes, I have objections! I have lots of objections! John, I need to see my wife. I haven't seen her in six months.
Congressional President John Hancock (MA) : [gaveling] So ruled. Congress stands adjourned.
-
Richard Henry Lee : [Richard Lee comes riding into the courtyard] You sent for me, Benjamin?
John Adams : Never.
Richard Henry Lee : Helloooo, Johnny!
[Lee stops his horse and dismounts]
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Richard, uh... Johnny and I need some advice.
Richard Henry Lee : 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?
Richard Henry Lee : Simple: Johnny here's obnoxious and disliked.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : That's true. Now what's the solution, I wonder?
Richard Henry Lee : Get somebody else in Congress to propose!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, Richard, that's brilliant! Wasn't that brilliant, John?
John Adams : 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.
Richard Henry Lee : 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...
Richard Henry Lee : Damn me if I haven't thought of someone!
John Adams , Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Who?
Richard Henry Lee : Me.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Oh, why didn't I think of that?
Richard Henry Lee : [Lee mounts his horse] 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!
Richard Henry Lee : [a drumroll and pause is heard before George Washington's name is mentioned] 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!
-
Charles Thomson : 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.
[the Congress groans and starts to have a discussion]
Charles Thomson : [Hancock hits the desk with his gavel] Uh, resolved: that these united colonies are, and have a right ought to be, free and independent.
-
John Adams : [Adams resumes singing "But, Mr. Adams"] 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,
John Adams : [spoken rapidly] Jefferson, stop right there!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Roger Sherman , Robert Livingston : [sung] Combustibility, combustibility, combustibili...
John Adams : [Adams glares angrily at Franklin, Sherman, and Livingston] Quiet!
John Adams : Now, you'll write it, Mr. J.
Thomas Jefferson : Who will make me, Mr. A.?
John Adams : I.
Thomas Jefferson : You?
John Adams : Yes.
Thomas Jefferson : [Jefferson looks down at Adams] How?
John Adams : By physical force, if necessary. It's your duty, damnit, your duty!
Thomas Jefferson : [Jefferson resumes singing "But, Mr. Adams"] 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,
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Roger Sherman , Robert Livingston : [sung] Lovely bride,
Thomas Jefferson : [sung] Oh, Mr. Adams, you are driving me to homicide,
John Adams : [Jefferson walks away] Jefferson, stop!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Roger Sherman , Robert Livingston : [sung] Homicide, homicide...
John Adams : Quiet!
John Adams : [Adams runs down the stairs, and hands the pen to Jefferson] The decision is yours, Jefferson, do as you like with it!
Dr. Benjamin Franklin , Roger Sherman , Robert Livingston : [Jefferson takes the pen from Adams; Franklin, Sherman and Livingston resume singing, concluding the song] We may see murder yet!
-
John Adams : Mr. President, I move for a postponement.
John Dickinson : Postponement? Ha! I wish you the same luck I had with it.
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : Mr. Adams is right. We need a postponement.
John Dickinson : On what grounds?
Dr. Benjamin Franklin : [to Adams] On what grounds?
-
John Adams : 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?
John Adams : Jefferson, say something.
Thomas Jefferson : What else is there to do?
