Music can be a powerful force. Did you know that the beloved patriotic song, “God Bless America,” was influential enough to unify even the major political parties back in the late thirties? Both the Democratic and Republican parties used it in 1939 as their key song for the presidential nomination conventions. A year later, because the song had done so much to tug at the patriotic heart strings of Americans everywhere, the National Committee for Music Appreciation even gave it special recognition.
The “spell” that “God Bless America” had cast on our entire country continued for years to come. On July 16, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower honored it and its composer, Irving Berlin, in a very special way. Because it was unanimously felt that this jewel of a song had done more than any other to create a sense of patriotism and national consciousness in our country, President Eisenhower passed a bill that gave Congress permission to create a beautiful and much deserved gold medal to present to Mr. Berlin.
The song was definitely ahead of its time when first written by Berlin in 1918. Serving in our military during World War I, he was asked to write and produce a show to raise money for a badly needed service center for Camp Upton where he was stationed at the time. Out of this came “Yip, Yip Yaphank” which opened at the Century Theatre in New York on July 26, 1918. Berlin had written “God Bless America” to be used as an optional finale for this production, but for some reason felt that it was not exactly suitable for this time.
Twenty years later, famous singer and legendary radio star, Kate Smith, asked Berlin to write a new patriotic song that she could sing on her radio show that was to air on Armistice Day. He ran across his manuscript for “God Bless America,” revised a few of the lyrics, and one of our most beloved patriotic songs of all time was set in motion. Kate introduced it to the world on that radio show which aired November 11, 1938 and continued to popularize it on other radio shows and records that she recorded thereafter.
Wanting to give back and not wanting to capitalize on his patriotism, Berlin set up a fund called the “God Bless America Fund” in 1940 and arranged for all the royalties from the song to be given to the Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and Campfire Girls of America. Lucky organizations! Berlin continued in this spirit as he wrote other patriotic songs during World War II and gave all royalties to charities such as Navy Relief, March of Dimes, and the Red Cross.
It’s no coincidence that such a legendary song, which is still as cherished today as it was then, was written by such a legendary composer. With an estimated 1500 songs to his credit, Irving Berlin is considered to be one of the greatest songwriters in American history, and his deeply rooted sense of patriotism caused him to give his all to our country – his military service, his music, and his financial gain from that music. What a remarkable man. God Bless Irving Berlin, and God Bless America,
STILL!
Watch the historic radio debut of "God Bless America" by Kate Smith on Armistice Day, November 11, 1938.
