Forrest Gump, He Was There!

The movie Forrest Gump is by no means a documentary, but it is quite amusing to see the main protagonist Forrest buddy up with some well-known figures in American history and also be present for a few milestone events. Here are some of those people and events:

Elvis Presley
Forrest's mother rents rooms out to borders, and one of those borders happens to be the King himself before he became a superstar. Forrest actually teaches him those hip-swinging moves (Forrest wears heavy leg braces, so its much easier for him to swing his hips then move his feet).

George Wallace's Stand at the Schoolhouse Door
After winning an athletic scholarship to the University of Alabama, Forrest finds himself an observer to governor George Wallace's speech against the desegregation of the school. Federal troops forced Wallace aside, but as the two black students enter the building, the women drops her book. Naturally, Forrest picks up her book and returns it to her.

John F. Kennedy
Forrest meets Kennedy in the White House in an event celebrating the All-American football team. Upon reflection, Forrest acts genuinely distraught with the assassination "of that nice young president."

Vietnam War
Forrest volunteers to fight in Vietnam, and finds that he is well-suited for such a lifestyle. His low IQ and cordial personality make him a good soldier as he very willingly listens to commands. He spends much of his time in the swamps and the wretchedness of the situation is very much stressed in the movie.

Lyndon B. Johnson
After his stint in Vietnam, Forrest is rewarded the Medal of Honor by President Johnson (He single-handedly saved several members of his platoon after a surprise attack by the Viet Cong).

Anti-War Movement
Forrest accidentally wanders into anti-war demonstration. For some reason, he is volunteered to speak. The counterculture also is referenced here because Forrest's love interest, Jenny, was deeply ingrained in the counter culture movement and she and Forrest reunite in this scene. Her boyfriend is from Berkley, and it is also implied that he is part of the free speech movement there. Jenny also takes Forrest to a Black Panther meeting, where Forrest starts a fight with Jenny's boyfriend.

Richard Nixon (and Watergate)
Thanks to his exceptional ping pong skills, Forrest is invited to participate on the goodwill tour, an event where members of the US ping pong team went to China to play members of there team. After this, Forrest is invited to the White House by Nixon. Nixon suggests that Forrest stays in the Watergate hotel, so unknowingly, Forrest reports the Watergate scandal when he calls the hotel front desk about some suspicious behavior at the neighboring building.

This is only a snapshot of some of the events and people mentioned in Forrest Gump. Every time I watch this movie, I see more and more references I didn't notice before. This is a great movie and I encourage you all to see it!