“My first words were not ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada.’ They were ‘fries,’” quipped Emmy Award-winning TV personality Carson Kressley.

“We drove past McDonalds and my mom swears that I said ‘fries,’” he continued.

The Claussville, Lowhill Township, native mentioned his mother was in the audience as he headlined “The Fries Rebellion” film fundraiser at Folino Estate Winery, 340 Old Route 22, Greenwich Township, Berks County.

The charismatic Kressley told 200 at the sold-out event that his family had neighbors named Fries and remembered them pronouncing it “freeze.”

Funds are being raised for post-production of the 30-minute film, in which Kressley, an award-winning equestrian is in uniform and rides a horse as he portrays Gen. William McPherson, leading Federal forces. Filming took place March 4-12.

The film pertains to an important event in Lehigh Valley history that occurred in fall and winter 1798 - 1799 when vendue cryer, aka auctioneer, John Fries and his followers rebelled against a recently-passed federal property tax.

At one point, the insurrectionists marched on Bethlehem’s Sun Inn.

It was not the first post-American Revolution tax revolt.

The Shays’ Rebellion in 1786 was directed against the Massachusetts state government.

The 1797 Whiskey Insurrection erupted between the federal government and the rural population of western Pennsylvania.

All three violent uprisings were put down by the military.

“Last year, our board members wrestled with the question of how our Society could contribute to the celebration of the 250th anniversary of America in 2026,” said Lower Macungie Township Historical Society (LMTHS) board member Richard Gorton as he thanked the project’s supporters.

“Under the leadership of Sarajane Williams and Ann Bartholomew, we developed the idea for the Fries Rebellion Movie Project … an effort that would both highlight, and capture on film, a significant event of local history that was closely aligned with the unique culture and mindset of the early Pennsylvania-German settlers in our region,” Gordon said.

Gleaning information about the historic event from “The Fries Rebellion,” written by W.W.H. Davis in 1899, and “Fries’s Rebellion: The Enduring Struggle for the American Revolution,” written by Paul Douglas Newman in 2004, Williams wrote the screenplay for the 30-minute film. She had access to copies of historic records relating to the trial of John Fries.

Williams, LMTHS president, was assisted by LMTHS Vice President Bartholomew.

Enthusiastic guests at the fundraiser were treated to a screening of the teaser for the film.

Among those attending was Danita Fries, a descendant of John Fries. She informed Kressley that he was distantly-related to her.

The film preview opens in present day as a teenage girl and her history professor-uncle dine in the Red Lion Inn, Quakertown.

As he assists her school report on the tax revolt, she learns that the Red Lion Inn was where Fries and his fellow insurrectionists confronted the authorities.

The youth-friendly approach to teaching history toggles smoothly between past and present as the young woman’s mind wanders in and out of the late 1790s as historic events unfold.

Partnering with LMTHS are Dan Hertzog and crew from New Jersey-based In the Wee Hours, and Craig Friebolin and crew from Allentown-based ubiFire.

Project and event sponsors include Folino Estate Winery owners Marco and Andrea Folino, who underwrote the fundraiser.

Lou Czechowski, Nancy Reed and Ted Williams provided music at the event.

“The film will be used by educators, school students and the general public as a combining resource to learn about this important event in our local history, and how it relates to political issues of today,” said Gorton.

Plans include distributing “The Fries Rebellion” as an educational tool for K-12 teachers in Pennsylvania and nationwide via streaming services, film festivals, in museums and historical societies, as well as tourism organizations.

Organizers of the Feb; 4 fundraiser said it raised $25,000, including a $15,000 donation from a descendant of John Fries.

With a budget of $220,000, LMTHS continues to seek funding.

“If we can raise sufficient funds by June to complete post-production, the premiere release could tentatively occur in late August,” said Williams.

Information: https://friesrebellionfilm.com