''Bicentennial_Minutes
'' was the name of a series of short public-service American television segments commemorating the 1976 United_States_Bicentennial. The segments were produced by the network CBS and broadcast nightly from July_4, 1974 until July 4, 1976. The series was created by Ethel_Winant and Louis_Friedman of CBS, who had to fight to get approval from network executives who considered it to be a mere commercial. The producer of the series was Paul_Waigner, the executive producer was Bob_Markell. and the executive story editor and writer was Jerome_Alden. In 1976, the series received an Emmy_Award in the category of Special Classification of Outstanding Program and Individual Achievement. It also won a Special Christopher_Award in 1976. The videotaped segments were one minute long and were broadcast each night after the network news and before the start of the prime_time hours. The format of the segments did not change, although each segment featured a different narrator, often a CBS network television star. The narrator, after introducing himself or herself, would state "This is a Bicentennial Minute," followed by the phrase "Two hundred years ago today..." and a description a historical event or personnage prominent on that particular date two hundred years ago during the American_Revolution. The Bicentennial Minute achieved a high cultural profile during its run and was widely referenced and parodied. For example, on the episode of '' and offered a comic rebuttal to the always pro-American_Revolution Bicentennial Minutes. Indeed, the phrase "Bicentennial Minute" has entered into the American cultural vocabulary, although the original series of segments has been largely forgotten. The Bicentennial Minute on July_3, 1976 was narrated by Vice President Nelson_Rockefeller. The final Bicentennial Minute, broadcast on July_4, 1976 (the actual date of the bicentennial of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence), was narrated by President Gerald_Ford.
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