In 1939 Irving Berlin was sorting through a stack of songs
he’d written for the musical that would eventually become Holiday Inn. He came across “White Christmas” and had second
thoughts. Was it too depressing for a holiday song? He sang it to Bing Crosby
(Can you picture singing ANYTHING to Bing Crosby?) who at first didn’t see anything
special about it. But Bing told Berlin not to toss the song. Audiences took a
while to warm up to “White Christmas,” too. When Holiday Inn debuted, “Be Careful, It’s My Heart” was by far the
biggest hit. I suspect it’s not a coincidence that the popularity of “White
Christmas” blossomed during World War II, when so many soldiers were serving overseas
and longing for Christmases at home, “just like the ones I used to know.” Today
the song Irving Berlin almost threw away is still the best-selling single of
all time.
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