Groundhog Day

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Today is Groundhog Day. I guess most people know that already.

The first Groundhog Day was observed 122 years ago today in Punxsutawney, Pa., in the coal mining region of western Pennsylvania less than 100 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. That is something you may not have known.

Many of the residents of the community were probably up late last night, celebrating the Pittsburgh Steelers' Super Bowl victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

But the town's most famous resident, a groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil, needed to get his rest. Because everyone else in town was expecting him to make his annual prediction about the duration of the remainder of the winter this morning.

Phil and the town were the subjects of the 1993 comedy, "Groundhog Day," which was a big hit, even though most of the movie, as I understand it, actually was filmed in Illinois.

In the movie, as you probably know already, Bill Murray plays a self-absorbed TV weatherman from Pittsburgh (also named Phil) who finds himself repeating the day over and over again after being assigned to cover the Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney.

As a result of the film, the phrase "Groundhog Day" has come to mean, in common usage, repeatedly experiencing an unpleasant situation.

For that reason, many of the unemployed could be forgiven for approaching this day with a certain amount of dread — since many undoubtedly already feel that they're revisiting the same unpleasant situation over and over.

But the general theme of "Groundhog Day" really is one of selflessness and re-examining one's life and priorities. After testing the phenomenon repeatedly by killing himself in all manner of ways, Murray's character begins to discover that a quest for fulfillment can only be successful when one focuses on the needs of others.

Consequently, the film has earned quite a following among religious leaders, who frequently cite its message as a way to inspire their followers.

Perhaps appropriately, "Groundhog Day" enjoyed some success when it was released theatrically, but it wasn't what would be defined as a "blockbuster." Then it gained a second life through its home video sales and its repeated showings on cable — through which it has achieved an almost iconic status.

Film critic Roger Ebert even acknowledged that, in his original review of the film, he failed to comprehend its virtues and he did not appreciate its deeper message until he had watched it several times.

Some have suggested that "Groundhog Day" is one of the 10 best American films ever made. I don't know if I would go to that extreme. There are many great American films, and I would be hard pressed to include "Groundhog Day" in the Top 10 only to exclude an equally, if not more, deserving film.

But I will say that the message of "Groundhog Day" is an important one, especially in these times. If someone who has lost a job and/or a home — or is on the verge of doing so — can watch it and be inspired to summon a little more courage to face what comes, perhaps it has served a noble purpose — whether we must endure six more weeks of winter or not.