'Pollyanna' the Beautiful

I experienced Walt Disney's "Pollyanna" (1960) when I was freshly eight. At the great risk of shocking you, I confess it was here where I first fell in love with a certain older woman. Hayley Mills was about 13.

I am not alone. Gathered from a half century of personal conversations, adolescent Hayley was the object of more affection by my collective contemporary fellows than any other female, at any point in our lives.

(Apologies to Annette Funicello, who trended to the slightly older boys. We caught up with her in our teens.)

Watching "Pollyanna" again on Independence Day was special, steeped in its unabashed Americana. One portion, faded from my memory, caught me by surprise.

Pollyanna and the children at the early 20th century bazaar, dressed up as the flag, singing "America the Beautiful," is a remarkably touching scene. I prize and place this sequence in high esteem and good company, alongside the endearing ham suit of "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962).

(Scene begins at 8:14)



"Pollyanna: America the Beautiful" via YouTube