The Man Behind "White Christmas"

December 21, 2010

It’s that time of year to break out all of your favorite Christmas films! 

Many have come to love films such as: Miracle on 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Christmas Story, Elf, Home Alone, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, and many others.  White Christmas and Holiday Inn are two films that stand out above the rest because they both feature that beloved holiday song "White Christmas" as sung by Bing Crosby. The music for both of these movies was composed by the great 20th century composer, Irving Berlin. The Russian born songwriter was born on May 11, 1888.  Five years later, his family immigrated to New York City, where they would begin their new life in America. Irving couldn’t read or write music, but that didn’t stop him from composing an estimated 1,500 songs throughout his illustrious career. Some of his most popular songs would include hits such as: "Alexander’s Ragtime Band," "God Bless America," "Cheek to Cheek," and "White Christmas." He would go on to compose the music for 18 different films, and many musicals. Irving still lived in his New York City home when he died on September 22, 1989, at the age of 101!

Want to learn more about your favorite people? Great biographical information on Irving Berlin and many others can be found In MCPL's great collection of online Biography Databases.

Josh R.
Colbern Road Branch