Obama’s Acceptance and Other Famous American Speeches

Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the DNC last night coincided with the 45th anniversary of the deliverance of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream" speech, one of the most renowned American speeches given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963.

That speech is well-known. In fact, it is rated as the most famous American speech by www.AmericanRhetoric.com. Here are five of the most famous American speeches of the 20th century (and some little-known facts behind them).

SPEECH: Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream”
Date Delivered: August 28, 1963 in Washington, D.C.
Most Quoted Line: “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’”
What You Might Not Know: If Obama, or anyone else, wants to quote or paraphrase any parts of the speech, contacting the King estate is a must. That’s because a month after King delivered his speech, he obtained copyright protection for it. That protection still stands: In the 1990s, CBS used excerpts of the speech, amounting to close to 60% of its full content, in a documentary. This angered members of the late King’s estate at which point, they filed a lawsuit Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., v. CBS, Inc. (CBS). The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ruled that the copyright was maintained by King’s estate, according to the Cornell Law Review.

SPEECH: John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s Inaugural Address
Date Delivered: January 20, 1961 in Washington, D.C.
Most Quoted Line: “And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”
What You Might Not Know: It may be one of the most famous American speeches of the 20th century and possibly the most famous inaugural address, but that’s not the only record it snagged. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address, delivered three months after he won the election, was only 13 minutes and 59 seconds, excluding the applause at the end, according to www.americanrhetoric.com, making it the fourth-shortest inaugural address delivered. 

SPEECH: Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Address
Date Delivered: March 4, 1933 in Washington D.C.
Most Quoted Line: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
What You Might Not Know: Upon accepting office, Roosevelt addressed the nation via radio and discussed details of a New Deal, including the financial depression and high unemployment rates, along with his plan to use the government to help people get back to work.

SPEECH: Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation
Date Delivered: December 8, 1941 in Washington D.C.
Most Quoted Line: “Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”
What You Might Not Know: This speech, broadcasted via radio, marked our nation’s entrance into World War II. According to a Reuters article, entitled “Five Things You Should Know About FDR’s Pearl Harbor Speech,” Roosevelt wrote the speech himself, which was just 25 sentences and contained less than 500 words. The total delivery was just seven minutes, but time was no measure of its impact. Within 33 minutes of the address’s completion, a declaration of war passed unanimously in the Senate, while only one member of the House of Representatives dissented.

SPEECH: Barbara Charline Jordan’s 1976 DNC Keynote Address
Date Delivered: July 12, 1976 in New York City.
Most Quoted Line: “We are a people in search of our future. We are a people in search of a national community.”
What You Might Not Know: After speaking at Madison Square Garden, Jordan received hundreds of telegrams from people inspired by her speech, including one from a 16-year-old boy named Marc Holtzman, who grew up to run in the Republican primary for Governor of Colorado in 2006. Her words moved one California woman to urge her to run for vice-presidency, but Jordan declined:
“I chose not to have my name placed in nomination for the position because I believe that if and when my name or the name of any other black American is placed in nomination, it should be done with a serious intent.”