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By LANE FILLER [email protected]
Wednesday, July 02, 2003     Page: 1D

Friday is Independence Day, and what better time to celebrate American food
and American movies? Get ready to eat good old U.S. vittles and sample good
old U.S. wars and beauty contests.

After you finish all your holiday partying this weekend, might we suggest
whipping together a no-fuss meatloaf and popping in two holiday-appropriate
flicks?
On the serious side, there is the obvious “Born on the Fourth of July.”
Tom Cruise, bullets and bombs and a true story to boot.

“Born on the Fourth of July,” released in 1989, is the story of Ron
Kovic, who was, in fact, born on Independence Day. After graduating from high
school, he enlisted to serve in Vietnam, eventually volunteering for a second
tour of active duty.

Shocked by an error that caused him to kill an American soldier and
eventually paralyzed by a sniper’s bullet, Kovic returned to the United
States, endured a period of disillusionment and heavy drinking and eventually
became an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam War.

The film, directed by Oliver Stone, was one of a spate of Vietnam epics
that came out in the late ’80s, and it caused more controversy than most.
Kovic is a divisive figure: Some vets feel he turned his back on them, and
many people questioned the anti-war efforts of a man who volunteered to serve.

Watch it, then you decide.

For a much lighter viewing experience, dig up the 1988 release “Miss
Firecracker,” starring Holly Hunter in one of her legendary oddball roles.
Think “Raising Arizona,” “Home For the Holidays” or “Broadcast News.”
Hunter plays Carnelle Scott, a sexually promiscuous orphan who desperately
wants to win her hometown (Yazoo City, Miss.) beauty pageant.

She stops sleeping around, borrows her former “Miss Firecracker” cousin’s
(Mary Steenburgen) red victory dress and generally acts like an obsessed nut.
Adding to the strangeness are a local seamstress played by Alfre Woodard, a
ne’er-do-well played by Tim Robbins and man out of Carnelle’s past played by
Scott Glenn.

Give yourself a break this weekend. Rent the flicks, make the meatloaf and
serve it on leftover paper plates. Then sit back and enjoy.

Our next “Dinner and a Movie” feature will appear in August. We’ll
suggest a good movie for a hot night in front of the air-conditioner, and we’d
like a reader’s recipe for a nice, cool meal that’s easy to prepare on a hot
day. Please (pretty please) send your submissions to [email protected] or the
Times Leader, Attn: Mary Therese Biebel, 15 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre, PA
18711.

Meanwhile, here’s Luzerne resident Bonnie Yuscavage’s recipe for meatloaf:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1 cup bread crumbs

1/3 cup ketchup

1 teaspoon rosemary

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and set oven to 375 degrees. Bake in loaf pan for
40 minutes or until finished. How easy is that?

Yuscavage usually serves her meatloaf with good old-fashioned mashed
potatoes and carrots. “It’s a good, basic American meal,” she said. “It’s
very ’50s, early ’60s. It’s healthful, nutritious and filling.”