FOURTH OF JULY : South County Will Celebrate Holiday With a Bang or Two

If Uncle Sam ever retired, he’d feel right at home in South County on Independence Day. There are 10 cities unincorporated communities in the area, nine of which are celebrating the Fourth of July with small-scale, hometown events.

Fireworks, concerts and parades--all free--will take place throughout the South County, starting at 7 a.m. in Lake Forest with that ultimate small-town event, a pancake breakfast fund-raiser.

After pancakes at El Toro High School, 25255 Toledo Way, the year-old city’s first Independence Day parade will kick off at 10 a.m. near the high school.

More than 100 entries, including floats, military bands and Disneyland characters, will entertain. The parade will wind up at Heritage Hill Park near the intersection of Serrano Road and Lake Forest Boulevard, where city officials will bury a 50-year time capsule. For further information, call (714) 707-5583.

At noon, the area’s premier holiday event, the Mission Viejo Independence Day Street Fair and fireworks show, will open, with about 20,000 people expected to attend.

Fair-goers can expect to find more than 80 game and food booths along Olympiad Road, which will be closed off between Marguerite Parkway and Melinda Road. Entertainment will start at 2:30 p.m. with performances by local groups and a skateboard show. Clowns and Uncle Sam stilt-walkers will be circulating through the crowd.

Fireworks will begin at 9 p.m. and will be visible throughout the fairgrounds. For more information, call (714) 951-6872, ext. 2694.

One of the more interesting events will be the debut of Midnight, a rock group featuring former members of Quiet Riot and the Sweet, at Laguna Niguel Regional Park on La Paz Road near Aliso Creek Road.

A series of local bands will take the stage in Laguna Niguel starting at 2 p.m. with Midnight performing at 7 p.m. A fireworks show begins at 9 p.m. Information: (714) 362-4300.

Other down-home celebrations:

* After falling victim to city budget problems, the long-running fireworks show from the San Clemente Pier will take place after all, thanks to several community groups which raised the $29,000 needed to fund the program. The fireworks start at 9 p.m. Information: (714) 492-1234.

* In San Juan Capistrano, the celebration will start with an exhibition softball game between city employees and the chamber of commerce at 4:30 p.m. at Marco Forster Junior High School, corner of Camino Del Avion and Del Obispo Street. Other events will include children’s games and contests, live bands and the awarding of San Juan Capistrano Citizen of the Year. A fireworks show will start at approximately 9 p.m. Information: (714) 493-1171.

* In Dana Point, the fireworks will be shot off from a barge in the harbor at dusk. Good vantage points are picnic sites inside the harbor area. Children’s games and other festivities will begin at 4 p.m. at Heritage Park on Old Golden Lantern near the intersection of Golden Lantern and Del Prado Road. Information: (714) 496-4251.

* Aliso Viejo residents will start their celebration at 11 a.m. in Sheep Hills Park at the intersection of Moulton Parkway and Laguna hills Drive. Highlights will include a community tug-of-war and big band performances starting at 6 p.m. The fireworks show will start at 9 p.m.

* Laguna Beach will hold its pyrotechnics extravaganza at dusk. The show will take place at the north end of Main Beach, near Laguna Canyon Road and Pacific Coast Highway. (714) 497-3311.

* Although the public isn’t officially invited, you might still be able to see the sky light up when Rancho Santa Margarita residents and their guests hold their annual fireworks show at Solana Park, located at the corner of Melinda Road and Via Regressos. The sky rockets will be launched at 9 p.m., accompanied by the 15th Air Force Band of the Golden West. Information: (714) 589-4040.