Happy Fourth of July! There’s a great way to prepare for or wind down from feasting and fireworks today, which is to download and watch the new movie “Lt. Dan Band: For the Common Good.” This flick follows Gary Sinese and his colleagues in the Lt. Dan Band as they travel the country and the world playing concerts for the U.S. soldiers, sailors and Marines who have volunteered to keep our freedom protected.
Filmmakers Jonathan and Deborah Flora knew that the story of Sinese’s commitment to our troops and to first responders was pretty much unique among big-name Hollywood actors in terms of the amount of time Sinese had invested and variety of venues he and his bandmates had played over the past few years.
The Floras also figured out that musicians make very good talking heads, especially when interwoven with the first-person stories of sacrifice, courage and heartbreaking loss that make up the film’s theme.
And they knew that Sinese’s role as Lt. Dan in the “Forrest Gump” flick was a brand known the world over and near and dear to the American military as the tough-talking, hard-charging platoon leader who suffers terrible injuries but returns to battle back to a rewarding life in the States.
Even though Sinese is the star of the new film, its heroes are the men and women who have served since the war began, especially those who have lost their lives and the families of those who have fallen.
Sinese, in the film and in interviews surrounding its release, is uncomfortable with praise for his contributions, saying again and again that he just wants to do his part for those who do so much more. Entertainment matters, he says, and laughs and songs, and good days help make the bad days easier to endure.
Thus a Snowball Express concert for the children of service members who have lost their lives is a great annual gathering full of love and energy, and a gig the Lt. Dan Band clearly loves playing.
Embedded in the movie are some clips of Bob Hope, Connie Stevens and Raquel Welch touring the battlefields and flight decks of the Vietnam War, a reminder that great patriots in the entertainment industry have never shirked their duty to deploy some of that talent and fame in the service of the service.
Two nights ago, an old aviator regaled me with a story of how Hope had redesigned his tour many years back to perform for the aviators and crew of the U.S.S. Franklin Roosevelt during the war. The memories that these entertainers make are lasting and cherished.
Sinese is not alone in doing this work, but he is by far the champion of the effort, and of similar efforts aimed at continuing the salute to the fallen first responders of 9/11, as some amazing footage and guests in the Lt. Dan Movie bring home.
Sinese and his band — an amazing group of musicians led by Sinese and Kimo Williams and nearly a dozen other extraordinary players and a score of key supporting staff — work hard at their craft and have gotten better and better at it. Their concerts open strong and keep the momentum going, and the troops cheer every familiar anthem and every new composition.
But what they are really applauding is the fact that some civilians of note and talent have traveled to their world to say thanks.
So download and enjoy the movie. If you want to help support the groups that Sinese and company support, visit the Gary Sinese Foundation and help out. The fireworks still go off on the Fourth of July because of the incredible men and women of the American military, and it is a great day to remember that fact with action as well as words.
Examiner Columnist Hugh Hewitt is a law professor at Chapman University Law School and a nationally syndicated radio talk show host who blogs daily at HughHewitt.com.
