- Born
- Died
- Birth nameIsrael Isidor Baline
- Irving Berlin was born Israel Isidor Baline on May 11, 1888 in Mogilev, Belarus, Russian Empire. Towering composer, songwriter, ("God Bless America", "Always", "Blue Skies", "White Christmas") author and publisher, he came to the United States at age 5 and was educated in New York's public schools. His earliest musical education was from his father, a cantor. He earned Honorary degrees from Bucknell University and Temple University. Beginning his career as a song-plugger for publisher Harry von Tilzer, Berlin worked as a singing waiter in Chinatown. In 1909, he was hired as a staff lyricist by the Ted Snyder Company, and became a partner to that firm four years later.
In 1910, he began doing vaudeville appearances in the United States and abroad, and also appeared with Snyder in the Broadway musical "Up and Down Broadway", that ran for 72 performances. He joined ASCAP as a charter member in 1914, and served on its first board of directors between 1914-1918. Berlin enlisted the United States Army infantry in World War I, and was a sergeant at Camp Upton, New York. After the war, he established his own public-relations firm, and in 1921, he built the 1025-seat Music Box Theatre (at 239 W. 45th Street, New York) with Sam H. Harris. After Harris' death in 1941, Berlin assumed full ownership and the theatre remains a Broadway institution to this day.
Among his many awards was the Medal for Merit for his 1942 all-soldier show "This Is the Army", which toured the United States, Europe and South Pacific battle zones; all proceeds were assigned to Army Emergency Relief and other service agencies. Berlin was also a member of the French Legion of Honor and held the Congressional Medal of Honor for "God Bless America", the proceeds from which went to the God Bless America Fund. His songs were sung by Fred Astaire, Al Jolson, Judy Garland, Bing Crosby, Dick Powell, Alice Faye and many others. Irving Berlin died at the age of 101 of natural causes on September 22, 1989 in New York City.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Jack Backstreet
- SpousesEllin Blanca Mackay(January 4, 1926 - July 29, 1988) (her death, 4 children)Dorothy Goetz(February 28, 1912 - July 17, 1912) (her death)
- ParentsMoses BerlinLeah Lipkin Baline
- When Berlin married Ellin Mackay, the Comstock Lode heiress, the bride's father wrote her out of his will for marrying a Jew. Berlin then assigned the copyright of his popular song, "Always", to her, which yielded very handsome royalties as the years went by. And true to the sentiments of the song, Berlin devoted himself to his lovely wife for the rest of her long life.
- He was widely considered of the greatest songwriters in American history. His music forms a great part of the Great American Songbook.
- First meet lifelong best friend Fred Astaire on the set of Top Hat (1935).
- During the filming of his singing his composition "Oh How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning" in This Is the Army (1943), one of the backstage crew was heard to have whispered to another crew worker, "If the guy who wrote this song could hear this guy singing it, he would roll over in his grave!".
- Was denied a Kennedy Center Honor. By the time he was considered for one, he was too sick to fulfill the requirement that an honoree must attend the award ceremony.
- Never hate a song that's sold a half million copies
- The song has ended, but the melody lingers on.
- The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success.
- [to his daughter, on his wife's lavish Christmas spending] I gave up trying to get your mother to economize. It was easier just to make more money.
- [on Fred Astaire] Fred knew the value of a song and his heart was in it before his feet took over.
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