Best Things About America: 100 Reasons to Love America

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Carrie Underwood

Randee St. Nicholas

Rare and refreshing: a relatable icon who shares her journey. (And her five favorite cities in America!)

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Kacey Musgraves and the Modern Women of Country

VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images

After a decade filled with bro-country odes to trucks, tailgates and tank tops, a new generation of female singer-songwriters like Musgraves, Maren Morris and Kelsea Ballerini are making their own mark on country music — and expanding the genre as they do it.

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Tiger Woods

Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Everybody loves a comeback! The golfer, 43, overcame addiction and scandal to win the Masters.

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Gary Sinise

Julia Robinson/Gary Sinise foundation

The actor dedicates his life to supporting veterans. His foundation has adapted more than 50 smart homes for wounded warriors.

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Goat Yoga

Lainey Morse

The most joyful type of yoga, because of goats.

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Tuition-Free Community Colleges

Eleven states have programs in place.

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Mariano Rivera

Nick Laham/Getty

The former New York Yankee is the first person elected unanimously to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

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The Statue of Liberty Museum

Drew Angerer/Getty

Now open on Liberty Island, the 26,000-sq.-ft. structure celebrates the universal symbol of freedom and brings the immigrant experience to life. Admission is free.

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Timothée Chalamet

alankruthahaha/Twitter

The actor, 23, proved he’s a nice person when he was seated on a plane— in economy class—next to superfan Alankrutha Giridhar, who live-tweeted the ride (and took this hoodie pic). He answered all of her questions, and she wrote, “What shocks me the most is this dude wanted to know about me!”

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Brady Bunch House Renovation

HGTV

In an explosion of nostalgia, the original Brady Bunch house has been restored to its 1970s glory by the stars of the sitcom along with HGTV pros. A Very Brady Renovation will air in September.

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Michelle Obama

Paras Griffin/Getty Images

Her book Becoming is set to become the bestselling memoir in history. But the former First Lady is as self-effacing as she is confident. After she appeared at the Grammys, she shared some texts she exchanged with her mom. ‘Did you meet any of the real stars?’ asked Marian Robinson. Replied Obama: ‘I am a real star…by the way.’

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Robokiller

This app uses answer bots to get rid of spam calls from telemarketers and scammers.

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Asheville, N.C.

The Blue Ridge Mountain city calls itself Dog City U.S.A., and canines are welcome at bakeries, bars breweries and stores. A hotel, Aloft, even fosters dogs until they are adopted by guests.

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L.L. Bean Boots

Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald/Getty

The Freeport, Maine, company’s boots and totes are having a fashion moment, and they’re made in the U.S.A.

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Pi Day

Getty

On March 14 we celebrate math and eat pie (3.14=pi).

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Cardi B & Bruno Mars

Their second smash hit together, “Please Me,” reached No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

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Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Erik Pendzich/REX/Shutterstock

When the New York City department store began its holiday tradition in 1924, it promised a “marathon of mirth,” and it has delivered year after year with intricate floats, iconic balloons and musical performances.

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The Jonas Brothers

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

All grown up and married now — Nick to Priyanka Chopra and Joe to Sophie Turner just this year; Kevin is a father of two — the three put their differences aside to make music again (and a documentary) after six years apart.

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Buffalo, New York

A rust-belt city having a renaissance. Spectacular late-19th-century architecture provides a backdrop for a busy restaurant and bar scene.

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Celebrity Cruises

If the ship’s destinations and amenities aren’t enough of a draw, travelers can now set sail with the likes of Oprah, the Property Brothers or Jon Bon Jovi.

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TWA Hotel at JFK Airport

TWA’s 1960s flight center, designed by architect Eero Saarinen, closed in 2001, along with the airline. Renovated as a hotel, it has 512 rooms. Rates start at $249 per night, or you can book a four-hour stay for $139.

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C-Span's 40th Anniversary

Jeff Greenberg/Universal Images Group/Getty

The nonprofit network is all about transparency, televising congressional proceedings since 1979.

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Nancy Drew

The classic teen sleuth got a movie this year — and a new TV series was picked up in May.

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PEN15

Alex Lombardi/Hulu

Comics Maya Erskine (left) and Anna Konkle, both in their 30s, play teen versions of themselves in this Hulu hit, sending up middle school by portraying it as it really happened.

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Beyoncé

Raven Varona/Parkwood/PictureGroup

In the superb Netflix documentary Homecoming, the first black woman to headline Coachella not only proves that she’s the “best performer in the world,” in the words of her husband, JAY-Z — she also reveals details of her difficult pregnancy and strict postpartum diet.

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Government Workers

Getty

The longest shutdown in history proved how valuable they are.

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Burr-Hamilton Duel Reenactment

Getty(2)

Chicago White Sox teammates Ryan Burr and Ian Hamilton (no relation to the originals) couldn’t resist capitalizing on their names by pulling out their revolutionary garb and re-creating the historic event – without bullets – in March.

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The Vessel at Hudson Yards

Xinhua/Wang Ying/Getty

With 154 flights of stairs, the over $150 million N.Y.C. space has been called the world’s most expensive selfie spot.

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Tim Tebow's Elaborate Proposal

Kelly Braman Photography

The former NFL quarterback raised the bar on a millennial trend when he whisked Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters to his family’s Florida farm and slipped a 7.25-carat solitaire ring on her finger. Then singer Mathew Mole stepped out from behind a bale of hay to serenade the couple with “The Wedding Song.”

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Andy Cohen's Baby

Andy Cohen/instagram

Benjamin Allen, born Feb. 4, wins the hair and smile sweepstakes. “I’m in love,” the Bravo host wrote on Instagram.

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Apollo 11 Anniversary

NASA/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty

It was 50 years ago that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took a walk on the moon—a giant leap for mankind.

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Levi's

Getty

The All-American brand has started trading publicly on the NYSE.

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Grant Thompson

Dia Dipasupil/Getty

The teen discovered a FaceTime bug that spies on users—and got it fixed.

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Sesame Street

For the show’s 50th anniversary, the USPS has issued stamps. (Confidential to young readers: You buy these at a post office.)

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Jimmy Fallon’s Wheel of Musical Impressions

Andrew Lipovsky/NBC/Getty

The popular game on The Tonight Show (the host is pictured with Alicia Keys) has inspired a new NBC competition show.

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Volunteering

Courtesy City Harvest

Helping others is a core value.

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'Old Town Road'

Nancy Kruh

The country rap song by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (shown above, with Keith Urban) went viral and topped the charts in more than 12 countries.

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The Lottery

CJ GUNTHER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

The Mega Millions jackpot keeps getting bigger. (Odds of winning: 1 in 300 million.)

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Dunkin' Yogurt

Boston Kreme flavor (also cinnamon roll) without the guilt.

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Kenan Thompson

Peter Kramer/NBCUniversal

Saturday Night Live’s longest-running cast member—he started in 2003—is also its MVP, with breakout characters like Steve Harvey (pictured) and the host of Black Jeopardy. “I want people to say that I did it right,” he told Vanity Fair. Next he plays a dad on his own NBC show.

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Friends Turns 25

Courtesy Everett Collection

Before the iconic TV show premiered, director James Burrows sent the cast to Vegas to commemorate their last days of anonymity. They’ve barely had a quiet moment since. Though Courteney Cox received almost 4 million views of a video she posted while visiting the Friends N.Y.C. apartment in March, there’s little hope of a reunion—but Jennifer Aniston said, “Anything could happen.”

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Public Libraries

Getty

Maybe there’s no allure left in the Dewey decimal system, but libraries have been reinventing themselves in the digital age as community hubs, with business resources and teen spaces. And they’re free.

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Janet Jackson's Las Vegas Residency

Farrenton Grigsby/Getty Images

The pop star traces her journey in “Metamorphosis,” at the Park MGM through August.

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Food Delivery Apps

Seamless, Grubhub, Uber Eats and others bring dinner to your door

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Dr. Pimple Popper

TLC

The extractions showcased by dermatologist Sandra Lee are grotesquely satisfying.

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Shareable Scooters

MEGA

Last year we took 38.5 million trips on e-scooters. (That includes Tyler Posey, pictured, riding a Bird in L.A.) They’re ecofriendly and a cheap way to get around.

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Kids Suing the Government Over Climate Change

Andrew Selsky/AP/Shutterstock

Here’s to Gen Z for taking action. Juliana v. the United States says federal energy policy puts children in harm’s way.

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Ring Doorbell

Courtesy Ring

Helps stop crime in your neighborhood.

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Tanitoluwa Adewumi

GoFundMe

The Nigerian refugee, 8, won a chess championship; then a fund drive raised money for his family to get a home. (Even cooler? The family is using the majority of the money to set up a fund to help other African immigrants.)

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Pod Save America

Former Obama staffers are smart and insightful on this podcast.

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Cheez Whiz

For a hot minute it was considered healthy.

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Katelyn Ohashi

Ricky Lee/UCLA

The UCLA gymnast brought joy to her sport.

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Ali Stroker

Theo Wargo/Getty

The first wheelchair user to win a Tony Award.

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Brandless

Courtesy Brandless

An e-commerce company focused on fair prices, not fancy branding.

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Jordan Peele

Stephen Lovekin/BEI/Shutterstock

The director of Get Out and Us is Hollywood’s hottest filmmaker.

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Pool Floats

Neiman Marcus

Fun, relaxing and Instagrammable.

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Steph Curry

Under Armour

Thanks to Riley Morrison, he makes girls’ shoe sizes.

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Dan Crenshaw's Glass Eye

The Congressman, who lost his eye to an IED while serving as a Navy Seal in Afghanistan, has a glass eye inspired by Captain America!

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The Masked Singer

Michael Becker / FOX

A freaky hit that’s all about those costumes.

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Tailgating

Courtesy OL' SB Media

The thrill of pregame partying and charcoal grilling.

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James Holzhauer

Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

The pro sports gambler changed the way Jeopardy! is played.

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Amy Schumer's Maternity Selfies

Amy Schumer/Instagram

The new mom of Gene Attell kept them refreshingly real.

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Play-Doh

Courtesy jet.com

It comes in 50 colors, it smells great, and it helps kids focus. Sept. 16 is National Play-Doh Day.

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Southwest Airlines Semiannual Sales

Getty

In June and October snag $49 one-way flights to Nashville or $159 tickets to Honolulu. (Blackout days apply.)

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Courtesy Saks Fifth Avenue

The superstar brought TV’s best comedy, Veep, to an end in May.

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Woodstock's 50th Anniversary

P/REX/Shutterstock

Three days of peace, love and rock and roll changed the culture.

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100 Reasons to Love America in 2019

1 of 101

Carrie Underwood

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Kacey Musgraves and the Modern Women of Country

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Tiger Woods

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Gary Sinise

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Goat Yoga

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Tuition-Free Community Colleges

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Mariano Rivera

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The Statue of Liberty Museum

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Timothée Chalamet

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Brady Bunch House Renovation

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Michelle Obama

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Robokiller

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Asheville, N.C.

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L.L. Bean Boots

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Pi Day

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Cardi B & Bruno Mars

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Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

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The Jonas Brothers

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Buffalo, New York

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Celebrity Cruises

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TWA Hotel at JFK Airport

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C-Span's 40th Anniversary

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Nancy Drew

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PEN15

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Beyoncé

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Government Workers

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Burr-Hamilton Duel Reenactment

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The Vessel at Hudson Yards

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Tim Tebow's Elaborate Proposal

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Andy Cohen's Baby

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Apollo 11 Anniversary

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Levi's

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Grant Thompson

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Sesame Street

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Jimmy Fallon’s Wheel of Musical Impressions

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Volunteering

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'Old Town Road'

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The Lottery

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