The "Greatest American" (HA!) nominees on AOL

[Guaranteed]

http://tv.channel.aol.com/greatestamerican

There are some great names in there, and there are some ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING people in there.

DR. PHIL?

It's just a joke. All four Bushes are on it- Daddy, Barb, Laura and the Chimp.

So embarassing to me as an American. THESE clowns are the ones we're supposed to be represented by? There are people around us who would actually BELIEVE that Rush Limbaugh is a great American, and who would put him up there with people like Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass?

God damn, it makes me so sick that there are actually people around me that are that freaking stupid. It actually lowers my respect for the human race.

[MADem]

1. Wow, such a concept

Let's put the founding fathers and mothers in an "American Idol" contest with punks from pop culture who will not be remembered in a decade...yeah, great idea. What will that teach our children? Not much, I wager!

Obviously there's a market for this shit, but I will be among those who won't be buying!

[Gnaeus]

2. The list is full of crap

TOM CRUISE is on the same list as Einstein, or Donald Trump on the same list as Mark Twain. Sheer stupidity

[Guaranteed]

3. I think I'm voting for Dr. Phil.

I believe Dr. Phil to be the Greatest American to have ever lived.

No. Really.

We owe everything to DR. FREAKING PHIL.

[BlueJazz]

4. Hey..It's on AOL..which means it's about as classy...

....as a Dog's Asshole.

[Ian David]

5. It won't let me click on Michael Moore, BUT THEY HAVE CARL SAGAN!!

Pass this along: The Greatest American is Carl Sagan!

Where's Barbara Boxer?

Is John Kery or Howard Dean on the list?

How about Julie and Hillary Goodridge?
http://www.glad.org/marriage/Julie&Hillary.shtml

How about U.S. Army Spc. Thomas Wilson?

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2004/12/10/kuwait/index_np.html

[Ian David]

6. Here's the press release (and no, John Kerry is not on the list)

They have Martha Stewart but not Jon Stewart.

George Bush but not John Kerry or Al Gore (but they have John Edward)

No Barbara Boxer.

No Richard Feynman.

No Michael Schiavo.

No Dan Rather.

Arnold Schwarzenegger-- WHO IS NOT EVEN AN AMERICAN!

Michael Jackson but not Janet Jackson (or even just her nipple).

WTF??



Top 100 Greatest Americans Unveiled Today and Featured in World Premiere Discovery Channel Television Event

SILVER SPRING, Md., Apr. 18 /PRNewswire/ --

SILVER SPRING, Md., April 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Who will be the Greatest American? Political giant Abraham Lincoln or Bill Clinton? Sports legend Babe Ruth or Tiger Woods? Media mogul Oprah Winfrey or Walt Disney? These remarkable people, and many more, have been named by America as some of the top 100 Greatest Americans.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050418/DCM023 )

After tallying more than half a million online nominations, Discovery Channel and interactive partner America Online today unveiled the list of the top 100 nominees. Ranging from inventors to athletes, politicians to musicians, the list takes the pulse of the nation and reveals the qualities we most admire. (The full list follows. The list, nominee biographies, and additional information can be found on aol.com/greatestamerican and Keyword: Greatest American)

Beginning Sunday, June 5 at 8 PM (ET/PT), and airing every Sunday in June, GREATEST AMERICAN will premiere on Discovery Channel with Today show's Matt Lauer presenting the top 100 nominees. At the end of the premiere episode, Lauer will announce the top 25 Greatest American nominees based on nominations held earlier this year. Viewers can then cast votes at the AOL site listed above, via toll-free numbers or via text messaging.

In the second episode, Matt Lauer and influentials (actors, comedians, politicians, athletes, etc) will offer insights on the top 25 to aid America in another round of voting that determines the top five. The third episode pits celebrity advocates against one another, debating the virtues of their "Greatest American." The seven-hour series culminates in real-time election- style voting, as America selects one person to be named the "Greatest American." The grand finale will be televised live from New York City on Sunday, June 26, at 9 PM (ET).

Discovery Channel is partnering with America Online on this extraordinary, interactive project to highlight Americans of importance and the incredible contributions they made to our society. Biographies of those on the Top 100 list are available for viewing at aol.com/greatestamerican and Keyword: Greatest American and are arranged alphabetically. This site will also offer "person on the street" interviews with ordinary Americans who share their thoughts on who the "Greatest American" is and why.

GREATEST AMERICAN is produced for Discovery Channel by NBC Entertainment. Executive Producers for NBC are Sharon Scott and Jason Raff. For Discovery Channel, Mark Finkelpearl is the executive producer.

America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Virginia, America Online is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.

Tide Coldwater is a proud partner of GREATEST AMERICAN.

Discovery Channel is the United States' largest cable television network, serving 89.8 million households across the nation with the finest in informative entertainment. Discovery Networks, U.S., a unit of Discovery Communications, Inc., operates and manages Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Travel Channel, Discovery Health Channel, Discovery HD Theater, Discovery Kids Channel, Discovery Times Channel, The Science Channel, Discovery Home Channel, Military Channel, Discovery en Espanol and FitTV. The unit also distributes BBC AMERICA. For more information, please log onto http://www.discovery.com/.

The Top 100 Nominees
Abraham Lincoln
Albert Einstein NOT AN AMERICAN- never even applied for citizenship
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Hamilton
Amelia Earhart
Andrew Carnegie
Arnold Schwarzenegger NOT AN AMERICAN
Audie Murphy
Babe Ruth
Barack Obama
Barbara Bush
Benjamin Franklin (bisexual sadomasochistic swinger atheist- right on!)
Bill Clinton
Bill Cosby (William Henry Cosby, Jr.)
Bill Gates
Billy Graham
Bob Hope
Brett Favre
Carl Sagan
Cesar Chavez
Charles Lindbergh
Christopher Reeve
Chuck Yeager
Clint Eastwood
Colin Powell
Condoleezza Rice
Donald Trump
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor Roosevelt)
Ellen DeGeneres
Elvis Presley
Frank Sinatra
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Frederick Douglass
George H. W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Lucas
George Patton
George Washington
George Washington Carver
Harriet Ross Tubman
Harry Truman
Helen Keller
Henry Ford
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Howard Hughes
Hugh Hefner
Jackie Robinson (Jack Roosevelt Robinson)
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jesse Owens
Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Stewart
John Edwards
John Glenn
John F. Kennedy
John Wayne
Johnny Carson (John William Carson)
Jonas Edward Salk
Joseph Smith Jr.
Katharine Hepburn
Lance Armstrong
Laura Bush
Lucille Ball
Lyndon B. Johnson
Madonna (Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone)
Malcolm X (Malcolm Little)
Marilyn Monroe
Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens)
Martha Stewart
Martin Luther King Jr.
Maya Angelou
Mel Gibson NOT AN AMERICAN
Michael Jackson (you're kidding me, right?)
Michael Jordan
Michael Moore
Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.)
Neil Alden Armstrong
Nikola Tesla
Oprah Winfrey
Pat Tillman
Dr. Phil McGraw
Ray Charles
Richard Nixon
Robert Kennedy
Ronald Reagan
Rosa Parks
Rudolph W. Giuliani
Rush Limbaugh
Sam Walton
Steve Jobs
Steven Spielberg
Susan B. Anthony
Theodore Roosevelt
Thomas Edison
Thomas Jefferson
Tiger Woods
Tom Cruise
Tom Hanks
Walt Disney
Wrights Brothers (Orville & Wilbur Wright)

* The nomination period was open to Americans across the country for nearly a month in early 2005
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050418/DCM023
AP Archive:
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN4
PRN Photo Desk, [e-mail] Discovery Channel

CONTACT: Elizabeth Hillman of Discovery Channel, [phone],
[e-mail]; Lauren Kapp of NBC News, [phone],
[e-mail]; or Jennifer Rankin Byrne of AOL, [phone],
[e-mail]

Web site: http://www.discovery.com/

[e75]

8. ;)

I belive Arnold is a naturalized citizen

[Ian David]

10. It would make Dems look bad if we voted for John Hinkley, wouldn't it?

Sometimes "taking the low road" can be tempting.

Anyway, they could have at least put Jodi Foster on the list then.

[JHB]

7. Of course, it's William Katt

I thought everyone knew that. :spray:

[cleofus1]

9. oh you.......

damnit...you beat me to it...

[xmas74]

11. I was crapped out by the nominations.

What happened-did the Free Republic get together and nominate en masse?