Cultural depictions of Philadelphia

Cultural depictions of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania range from depictions of major historical events to the city being used as a minor backdrop.

Painting and sculpture

Date	Title	Artist	Notes
1771	Penn's Treaty with the Indians	Benjamin West	Oil on canvas
1811 – c. 1813	Members of the City Troop and Other Philadelphia Soldiery	John Lewis Krimmel	Watercolor, gouache, and graphite
1817	Declaration of Independence	John Trumbull	Oil on canvas
1827	"William Penn's Treaty with the Indians, 1682"	Nicholas Gevelot	Sandstone frieze located in the United States Capitol Rotunda.
1875	The Gross Clinic	Thomas Eakins	Oil on canvas depiction of Jefferson Medical College's amphitheater.

Literature

Date	Title	Author	Notes
1844	The Quaker City	George Lippard
1899	The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study	W.E.B. Du Bois	Sociological study of life for African-Americans in late 19th century Philadelphia.
1912	The Financier	Theodore Dreiser	First volume of the Cowperwood trilogy.
1939	Kitty Foyle	Christopher Morley	Later turned into the film Kitty Foyle.
1942	Liberty Belle	Don Cameron & Chuck Winter, creators	Charlton Comics superheroine whose powers were originally tied to the ringing of the Liberty Bell. First appeared in Boy Commandos #1 (Winter 1942). Rights currently owned by DC Comics.
1957	The Philadelphian	Richard P. Powell
1990	Philadelphia Fire	John Edgar Wideman	Based on the events surrounding the 1985 bombing of the MOVE house by the Philadelphia Police Department.
1993	Flyy Girl	Omar Tyree	Features the character Tracy Ellison.
1988 - 2003	Badge of Honor (novel series)	W.E.B. Griffin	Series about detectives in the Philadelphia Police Department.
1998 - present	Heart of the City	Mark Tatulli	Daily comic strip.
1999	The Resurrectionist (Old Philadelphia Mystery Series)	Mark Graham
2000	For the Love of Money	Omar Tyree	Sequel to Flyy Girl.
2001	Epsilon	John J. Rust
2005	Boss Lady	Omar Tyree	Omar Tyree's third Tracy Ellison novel.
2006	The Blonde	Duane Swierczynski

Music

Date	Title	Artist/Group	Notes
1879	"O Dem Golden Slippers"	James A. Bland	Theme song from the Philadelphia Mummers New Year's Day Parade.
1963	"South Street"	The Orlons
1964	"Dancing in the Street"	Martha and the Vandellas
1973	"TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)"	MFSB	This tune and its subsequent cover versions have served as the theme song from the dance and music television series Soul Train for much of the period from 1973 to the present.
1975	"Philadelphia Freedom"	Elton John	Inspired by Billie Jean King and the Philadelphia Freedoms tennis team.
1976	"Gonna Fly Now"	Bill Conti	Theme song from the Rocky film series. The song is closely associated with the city of Philadelphia in general, and with the front steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in particular.
1982	"Atlantic City"	Bruce Springsteen	The first line, "Well they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night now they blew up his house too," refers to the [...] of mobster Philip Testa in 1981.
1982	"Mt. Airy Groove"	Pieces of a Dream	Tribute to the Mount Airy section of Northwest Philadelphia.
1983	"Fo-Fi-Fo"	Pieces of a Dream	Inspired by the Philadelphia 76ers' NBA championship in the 1982-83 season, with the team winning the three rounds of the playoffs in "four, five, four" games, respectively.
1985	"The Roof is on Fire"	Rockmaster Scott and the Dynamic Three	The lyric "The roof, the roof, the roof is on fire. We don't need no water, let the motherfucker burn" is a direct reference to the 1985 bombing of the MOVE house by the Philadelphia Police Department. Onlookers and protesters are reputed to have chanted this lyric in outrage as the local police and fire departments chose to let the house burn to the ground.
1988	"Parents Just Don't Understand"	DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince	Contains the line "We headed downtown to the Gallery Mall."
1991	"Motownphilly"	Boyz II Men
1991	"Summertime"	DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince	Contains the line "Back in Philly we be out in the park, a place called the Plateau is where everybody goes." (reference to Belmont Grove in Fairmount Park)
1993	"Philadelphia"	Neil Young	Written for the film Philadelphia.
1993	"Streets of Philadelphia"	Bruce Springsteen	Written for the film Philadelphia.
1994	"All Around the World"	Boyz II Men
1996	"Got My Mind Made Up"	Tupac Shakur	Contains the line "I rock from here to there, to Philly and back."
2002	"Block Party"	Will Smith	Mentions a plan to buy hundreds of cheesesteaks from Ishkabibble's Eatery, Jim's Steaks, and Pat's King of Steaks for a block party.
2007	"Ms. Philadelphia"	Musiq Soulchild
2007	"Goodbye Philadelphia"	Peter Cincotti

Music video

Date	Title	Artist/Group	Notes
1987	Everything Good Takes Time	Jeffrey Osborne	Tribute to Julius Erving upon his retirement from the Philadelphia 76ers.
1991	Summertime	DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
1993	Streets of Philadelphia	Bruce Springsteen
2000	Justfriends (Sunny)	Musiq Soulchild
2000	Gettin' in the Way	Jill Scott
2001	A Long Walk	Jill Scott

Theater

Date	Title	Notes
1848	Philadelphia in 1848	Text of play no longer exists.
1939	Philadelphia Story	Play written by Philip Barry and later adapted into a film.
1969	1776	Broadway musical, later adapted into a film.
1980	Zooman and the Sign	Off-Broadway play written by Charles Fuller, first performed by the Negro Ensemble Company.

Film

Date	Title	Country	Notes	width="5% \| IMDB
1926	The Show Off	USA	Silent film based on the play by George Kelly. Stars Ford Sterling.	1
1933	42nd Street	USA	Busby Berkeley musical, ending takes place in Philadelphia.	2
1934	The Show-Off	USA	Based on the play by George Kelly. Stars Spencer Tracy.	3
1940	The Philadelphia Story	USA	Stars Jimmy Stewart, Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Takes place on the Main Line, based on a play.	4
1940	Kitty Foyle	USA	Based on a 1939 novel.	5
1941	The Big Store	USA	Stars the Marx Brothers.	6
1946	The Show-Off	USA	Based on the play by George Kelly. Stars Red Skelton.	7
1959	The Young Philadelphians	USA	Based on Richard P. Powell's novel The Philadelphian. Stars Paul Newman and Robert Vaughn.	8
1967	The Happiest Millionaire	USA	Musical about Anthony J. Drexel Biddle
1968	High School	USA	Documentary	9
1972	1776	USA	Adapted from Broadway musical.	10
1973	Trick Baby	USA	Stars Kiel Martin and Mel Stewart.	11
1976	Rocky	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	12
1978	Dawn of the Dead	Italy/USA	Sequel to Night of the Living Dead. Directed by George A. Romero.	13
1979	Rocky II	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	14
1981	Blow Out	USA	Directed by Brian De Palma.	15
1981	Bustin' Loose	USA	Stars Richard Pryor and Cicely Tyson.	16
1982	Rocky III	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	17
1983	Trading Places	USA	Stars Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy.	18
1984	Birdy	USA	Directed by Alan Parker.	19
1984	The Philadelphia Experiment	USA	Based on the urban legend of the Philadelphia Experiment.	20
1985	Rocky IV	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	21
1985	Witness	USA	Stars Harrison Ford.	22
1986	The Bombing of Osage Avenue	USA	Documentary on the 1985 bombing of the MOVE house by the Philadelphia Police Department, as told from the perspective of the neighboring residents of Osage Avenue. Written and narrated by Toni Cade Bambara.	23
1987	Mannequin	USA		24
1990	Rocky V	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	25
1993	Money for Nothing	USA	Stars John Cusack.	26
1993	Philadelphia	USA	Stars Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington.	27
1995	Twelve Monkeys	USA	Directed by Terry Gilliam.	28
1995	Two Bits	USA	Directed by James Foley.	29
1995	Wide Awake	USA	Directed by M. Night Shyamalan.	30
1996	Up Close & Personal	USA		31
1998	Fallen	USA	Directed by Gregory Hoblit, starring Denzel Washington.	32
1999	The Sixth Sense	USA	Directed M. Night Shyamalan, stars Bruce Willis and Haley Joel Osment.	33
2000	Best in Show	USA	Mockumentary about five entrants in a prestigious Philadelphia dog show. Directed by Christopher Guest.	34
2000	Unbreakable	USA	Directed by M. Night Shyamalan, stars Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson.	35
2001	Artificial Intelligence: AI	USA	Directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Haley Joel Osment.	36
2002	Confessions of a Dangerous Mind	USA	Based on the autobiography by Chuck Barris. Directed by George Clooney, stars Sam Rockwell.	37
2002	State Property	USA	Stars Beanie Sigel.	38
2003	Death by Association	USA	Written and directed by Anthony L. Fletcher.	39
2003	My Architect: A Son's Journey	USA	Documentary on architect Louis Kahn.	40
2004	The 24th Day	USA		41
2004	Fat Albert	USA	Based on the animated television series by Bill Cosby.	42
2004	National Treasure	USA	Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, stars Nicolas Cage.	43
2005	E-A-G-L-E-S: The Movie	USA	Documentary on the Philadelphia Eagles' 2004 season.	44
2005	A History of Violence	USA	Directed by David Cronenberg, based on a graphic novel.	45
2005	In Her Shoes	USA	Directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Cameron Diaz.	46
2005	Shadowboxer	USA		47
2005	State Property 2	USA	Stars Beanie Sigel.	48
2005	Train Ride	USA		49
2006	10th & Wolf	USA	Directed by Robert Moresco.	50
2006	Invincible	USA		51
2006	Lady in the Water	USA	Directed by M. Night Shyamalan.	52
2006	Rocky Balboa	USA	Written by and stars Sylvester Stallone.	53
2006	The Shame of a City	USA	Documentary on the 2003 Philadelphia mayoral campaign between John F. Street and Sam Katz.	54
2007	Pride	USA	Directed by Sunu Gonera, starring Terrence Howard.	55
2007	Shooter	USA	Directed by Antoine Fuqua, starring Mark Wahlberg.	56
2007	Then She Found Me	USA	Upcoming film based on the novel by Elinor Lipman.	57
2007	Cover	USA	Upcoming film starring Aunjanue Ellis.	58

Television

Date	Series	Notes	IMDB
1941 - present	Philadelphia Mummers New Year's Day Parade	Held annually on January 1 on Broad Street since 1901. First televised in 1941. Broadcast rights are currently held by WPHL-TV (Philadelphia).
1952 - 1964	American Bandstand	Dance and music show hosted by [...] Clark, first locally on WFIL-TV (Philadelphia) as Bandstand, then nationally on ABC as American Bandstand. The show moved to Los Angeles in 1964.
1965 - 1978	The Mike Douglas Show	Syndicated talk show hosted by Mike Douglas. Moved to Los Angeles in 1978.	59
1968 - present	One Life to Live	ABC daytime drama (same-day rebroadcasts on SOAPnet since 2000). Setting is the fictional town of Llanview, Pennsylvania, which is modeled after the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia.	60
1969	Hey, Hey, Hey: It's Fat Albert	NBC live action/animated special. Precursor to the Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids animated series.	61
1970 - present	All My Children	ABC daytime drama (same-day rebroadcasts on SOAPnet since 2000). Setting is the fictional town of Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, which is described as a Philadelphia suburb on the Main Line.	62
1972 - 1984	Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids	CBS children's animated series. Philadelphia setting not specified, but the show was based on Bill Cosby's coming of age in Philadelphia.	63
1973 - 1986	Schoolhouse Rock! - America Rock	ABC series of educational animated short films, designed to teach children about American history through song. "Fireworks" deals with the signing of the Declaration of Independence, while "Preamble" covers the drafting of the Constitution. The chorus to "Preamble" is a verbatim recitation (less four words) of the actual Preamble to the Constitution. Aired between Saturday morning cartoons on a rotating basis along with other Schoolhouse Rock! short films.	64
1976 - 1978	The Tony Randall Show	ABC sitcom.	65
1979	Blacks in America: With All Deliberate Speed?	CBS News two-part documentary. In Part 2, Ed Bradley travels to his hometown of Philadelphia, to assess how African-Americans have fared in the 25 years following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which outlawed public school segregation. Aired July 25, 1979.	66
1979 - 1980	Angie	ABC sitcom.	67
1981 - 1987	Dancin' on Air	Dance and music show, aired locally weekdays on WPHL-TV (Philadelphia).	68
1983	Grace Kelly	ABC made-for-television movie. Biopic chronicling the life of actress Grace Kelly, from her childhood in Philadelphia until her wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco.	69
1984 - 1989	Brothers	Showtime comedy series.	70
1985	Live Aid	Multi-venue benefit rock concert held on July 13, 1985 to aid famine relief in Ethiopia. One of the major venues was JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Concert was broadcast live to 1.5 billion viewers in over 100 countries.	71
1986 - 1991	Amen	NBC sitcom.	72
1986 - 1993	Double Dare	Nickelodeon game show for children. Originated from the studios of PBS member station WHYY-TV (Philadelphia).	73
1987	Frontline	PBS documentary series. Episode entitled "The Bombing of West Philly" examines the 1985 bombing of the MOVE house by the Philadelphia Police Department. Aired May 5, 1987.	74
1987 - 1988	Bustin' Loose	Syndicated sitcom. Based on the Richard Pryor film.	75
1987 - 1991	thirtysomething	ABC drama.	76
1989 - 1991	Shannon's Deal	NBC drama.	77
1990 - 1996	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	NBC sitcom. Frequent references to the titular character's hometown of Philadelphia, including the West Philadelphia section (which is mentioned in the theme song).	78
1992	You Bet Your Life	Syndicated game show hosted by Bill Cosby (remake of the original, hosted by Groucho Marx).	79
1993 - 2000	Boy Meets World	ABC sitcom.	80
1994	The Oprah Winfrey Show	Syndicated talk show. Episode highlighting the city of Philadelphia aired May 23, 1994.	81
1994	Philly Heat	ABC miniseries about members of the Philadelphia Fire Department.	82
1995 - 1997	Brotherly Love	NBC/WB sitcom.	83
1996	Mumia Abu-Jamal: A Case for Reasonable Doubt?	HBO documentary. Examines the conviction and death sentence of journalist/activist Mumia Abu-Jamal for the 1981 [...] of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner.	84
1998	Africans in America: America's Journey Through Slavery	PBS miniseries/documentary. Part 3, entitled "Brotherly Love", examines colonial Philadelphia and its community of free African-Americans.	85
1998	The Garbage Picking Field Goal Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon	ABC made-for-television movie.	86
1999	The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer	NBC miniseries. Dramatizes the 1977 [...] of Holly Maddux and the decades-long pursuit of her accused killer, environmental activist Ira Einhorn.	87
2000 - 2006	Strong Medicine	Lifetime Television medical drama.	88
2001	Carmen: A Hip Hopera	MTV made-for-television musical, starring Beyoncé Knowles and Mekhi Phifer. Modern interpretation of Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, set in modern Philadelphia and Los Angeles.	89
2001 - 2002	Philly	ABC drama.	90
2002 - 2005	American Dreams	NBC drama. American Bandstand's presence in Philadelphia in the 1960s is central to the major premise of the series.	91
2002 - 2004	Hack	CBS drama.	92
2003 - present	Cold Case	CBS drama.	93
2004	The Big House	ABC sitcom.	94
2004 - present	Living It Up with Patti LaBelle	TV One lifestyle show. Moderate number of the episodes highlight persons and places from the host's hometown of Philadelphia.	95
2004 - 2005	The Real World: Philadelphia	MTV reality series.	96
2005	Live 8	Multi-venue benefit pop music concert held on July 2, 2005 as a means of pressuring the G8 nations to: increase aid to Africa, negotiate fairer trade rules, and cancel the debt of the world's poorest nations. One of the major venues was the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Concert was broadcast intermittently in the United States on MTV and VH1.	97
2005	The Amazing Race: Family Edition	CBS reality series. The first leg of the race ended in Philadelphia.	98
2005 - present	It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia	FX sitcom.	99
2006 - 2007	The Class	CBS sitcom.	100
2006 - present	'Til Death	Fox sitcom. The characters have telephone numbers with area code 215, indicating that the setting is the Philadelphia metropolitan area.	101
2008	Parking Wars	A&E Network reality series. Upcoming series spotlighting the Philadelphia Parking Authority.	102
2008	Halls of Fame	Drama on The N network. Upcoming series inspired by the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts. Chris "Ludacris" Bridges will serve as co-executive producer.	103