‘Modern Family,’ ‘Seinfeld’ & More TV Episodes to Stream on July 4th (PHOTOS)
Modern Family
“I Love a Parade” (Season 10, Episode 1)
Who knew? Curmudgeon Jay (Ed O’Neill) has a heart that beats true for the red, white and blue! Well, for Independence Day, at least. “You get to cook outside, blow stuff up, wear shorts. Easter should be taking notes!” says the retiree, who accepts the offer to serve as the town parade’s grand marshal. His wife, Gloria (Sofia Vergara), gets to set off the cannon, which she does too early.
The Wonder Years
“Independence Day” (Season 6, Episode 22)
“Things never turn out exactly the way you planned.” That’s one of several Kevin Arnold observations in the series’ poignant farewell. As the maturing teen (Fred Savage) and his loved ones take in the local parade, viewers learn that, though he and Winnie (Danica McKellar) don’t end up together, they stay friends well past their wonder years.
The Bob Newhart Show
“Caged Fury” (Season 5, Episode 2)
Hi, Bob! Why so peeved? As the doctor (Bob Newhart) and wife Emily (Suzanne Pleshette) help a neighbor prepare to host a Yankee-Doodle bash for friends (including Will Mackenzie, Marcia Wallace, and Peter Bonerz), they accidentally get locked in their Chicago building’s basement. Naturally, they turn it into a makeshift bedroom and wax about life and love.
Saved by the Bell
“Fourth of July” (Season 4, Episode 6)
Duh, of course smooth-talking teen Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) is a judge at the Miss Liberty pageant at the Malibu Sands Beach Club. He votes for ex-girlfriend Kelly (Tiffani-Amber Thiessen) over his boss’s daughter Stacey (Leah Remini), but it’s all right — in the last scene, he and the runner-up spark a romance.
M*A*S*H
“A War for All Seasons” (Season 9, Episode 6)
The Army hospital unit marks all the 1951 milestones in one compact installment. By the time they get to midsummer, Hot Lips’s (Loretta Swit) knitting project has gone from pot holder to sweater, while Hawkeye (Alan Alda) and the guys put money down on the baseball pennant winner. (Go, Giants!)
Seinfield
“The Serenity Now” (Season 9, Episode 3)
This episode isn’t technically centered around the Fourth of July, so including it is a bit of a cheat … not that there’s anything wrong with that. Jerry’s (Jerry Seinfeld) neighbor Kramer (Michael Richards) decides to make over the hallway outside his New York City apartment like it’s a suburban porch in summertime. Think: a screen door, a lawn chair, an American flag, and Kramer himself holding a sparkler. After kids vandalize it, he utters two magic words to zen out: Serenity now!
Fireworks don’t just explode in the sky, you know.
This July 4, celebrate life, liberty … and the pursuit of watching some of our favorite TV characters make magic on the small screen. This is the way our forefathers would have wanted it. Promise.
