- Liberty Weekend
Liberty Weekend was the celebration of the (then) recent restoration and centennial of the
Statue of Liberty inNew York City, New York . It began onThursday ,July 3 and ended onSunday ,July 6 ,1986 .Liberty's Restoration
Opening Ceremonies
The Opening Ceremonies of Liberty Weekend were held on
July 3 ,1986 atGovernor's Island inNew York Harbor . Tickets for the occasion cost 5,000 Dollars. French PresidentFrançois Mitterrand showed up to give his well wishes to the American people.Secretary of the Interior Donald Hodel (The Interior is the Government agency responsible for the statue),Executive Producer David Wolper , and [the Chairman of theStatue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation Lee Iacocca spoke with the latter introducing thePresident of the United States ,Ronald Reagan .Reagan spoke of the friendship between France and the United States with an emphasis on the workers conducted the restoration work. He then unveiled the Statue for the first time since its restoration. This was followed by musical performances by
Neil Diamond (who sang They're Coming to America),Frank Sinatra (who sangThe House I Live In , and dancerMikhail Baryshnikov among others.Ted Koppel of ABC News Nightline presented theMedal of Liberty to outstanding naturalized Americans.Emil Mosbacher, jr. , andSecretary of the Navy John Lehman spoke of the following days events and President Reagan spoke again, this time symbolically lighting the torch of the Statue of Liberty. This was followed by a fireworks display set toStars and Stripes Forever .Warren Burger ,Chief Justice of the United States swore in emigrants to the United States in anaturalization ceremony onEllis Island Operation Sail
On the morning of
July 4 ,1986 the battleships and sailing ships of old took part in a naval revue down the Hudson River. The President viewed the ships from theUSS Iowa . He saw the ships as a personification of freedom and liberty:Perhaps, indeed, these vessels embody our conception of liberty itself: to have before one no impediments, only open spaces; to chart one's own course and take the adventure of life as it comes; to be free as the wind -- as free as the tall ships themselves. It's fitting, then, that this procession should take place in honor of Lady Liberty.
Americana Music Concert and Fireworks
Later on, the
Boston Pops Orchestra conducted byJohn Williams conducted a concert of classic American music atLiberty State Park inNew Jersey . It also featured musical performances fromJohn Denver ,Johnny Cash ,Barry Manilow ,Joel Grey and numerous others.This was followed by an address by Reagan aboard the
USS John F. Kennedy and a 30 or so minute fireworks display, the highlight of the night. At the time it was the largest in American history.July 5 and closing ceremonies
On Saturday
July 5 ,1986 aNew York Philharmonic concert was held inCentral Park . Earlier in the day First LadyNancy Reagan had re-opened the Statue to the public accompanied by 100 French and American School children. The following day, the Closing Ceremonies grand finale took place atGiants Stadium inNew Jersey . The Closing Ceremonies featured a tribute to sports and pop culture.Broadcast
The entire event was broadcast on ABC with
Peter Jennings andBarbara Walters as commentators.ABC News had paid $10 Million for broadcasting rights.CBS also broadcast parts of the event, includingOperation Sail 1986.Pictures
ee also
*
Statue of Liberty
*Liberty Fanfare
*Medal of Liberty External links
*http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/70386d.htm was
Ronald Reagan 's speech when he unveiled the Statue at Opening Ceremonies.
*http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/70386e.htm wasRonald Reagan 's speech when he re-light the Statues torch ushering in the fireworks during Opening Ceremonies.
*http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/70486a.htm wasRonald Reagan 's speech on the morning of July 4, duringOperation Sail
*http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/70486c.htm wasRonald Reagan 's speech on the night of July 4 on theUSS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) .
*http://www.tcmdb.com/title/title.jsp?stid=465785 is aTurner Classic Movies article about the event.
*http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,961667-1,00.html is an article inTime Magazine about the event, written for the July 7, 1986 edition.ources
*Liberty Weekend. ABC. KOVR. 3-6 July 1986.
*Liberty Weekend: Commemorative Edition. Videocassette. ABC Video Enterprises, 1986.
*Bond, L.E. Statue of Liberty: Beacon of Promise. Santa Barbra, CA: Albion Group, 1990. 34-37.
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