February 22. Washington’s birthday. Not the contemporary holiday (a.k.a. Presidents Day), mind you, but the actual anniversary of his birth.
Anybody else a fan of “Holiday Inn” (1942), with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire? Irving Berlin astounds with a dozen songs constructed on holidays from the American calendar. Some have earned their immortality (“White Christmas” and “Easter Parade”). Others are completely forgettable. The song celebrating Washington’s Birthday falls soundly into the latter category – which, I argue, only makes it all the more enjoyable.
I find “Holiday Inn” vastly superior to its remake-of-sorts, “White Christmas” (1954), which pairs Crosby with Danny Kaye. Unfortunately Berlin’s celebration of Lincoln’s Birthday as a jaw-dropping black face number hasn’t aged particularly well. (At one point, Bing actually interjects, “Who dat?”) This number, more than anything, is probably what damns “Holiday Inn” to comparative obscurity – except for “White Christmas,” anyway – which is a shame, because the movie is very entertaining. These days, the segment is edited out of most television airings of the film, with the exception of those broadcast on TCM, which doesn’t attempt to whitewash history.
Washington’s Birthday is represented by “I Can’t Tell a Lie.” The number features Bing in a disheveled powdered wig, attempting to undermine Astaire, his rival in love, with a schizophrenic musical accompaniment that ping-pongs wildly (in the film) between 18th century minuet and 1940s big band.
Get a load of Berlin’s excruciatingly contrived lyrics. They can’t all be “White Christmas,” you know.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bxh52CY7EsU
Tag: Holiday Inn
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Ted Hanover Drinking Fred Astaire’s Funny Line
Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire): Then I had a drink…
Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby): A drink? Boy, you were fractured!
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Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn a Patriotic Dive
O that Irving Berlin.
I watch “Holiday Inn” once a year, whether I need it or not. If you don’t know the premise, worn-out crooner Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) plans to retire from showbiz, but after a year of hard labor at his “retreat” on a Connecticut farm, he hits upon the idea to convert his home into a nightclub that’s only open (wait for it) ON HOLIDAYS.
Of course, along the way, there are plenty of farcical digressions, as he and his former partner, hoofer Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), become involved in successive love triangles. The preposterous framework gives Berlin a chance to write a song for every festive occasion, and then some.
The results are a mixed bag. On the one hand we’ve got “White Christmas.” On the other, songs like “I Can’t Tell a Lie” (for Washington’s Birthday). And it’s best not even to bring up the Lincoln number in the 21st century.
That said, how can I pass on Bing as the Freedom Man?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEUBmmQrygU
Or Fred with firecrackers?
Celebrate responsibly, everyone, and have a happy 4th!
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Holiday Inn’s Forgotten Washington’s Birthday
February 22. Washington’s birthday. Not the contemporary holiday (a.k.a. Presidents Day), mind you, but the actual anniversary of his birth.
Anybody else a fan of “Holiday Inn” (1942), with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire? Irving Berlin astounds with a dozen songs constructed on holidays from the American calendar. Some have earned their immortality (“White Christmas” and “Easter Parade”). Others are completely forgettable. The song celebrating Washington’s Birthday falls soundly into the latter category – which, I argue, only makes it all the more enjoyable.
I find “Holiday Inn” vastly superior to its remake-of-sorts, “White Christmas” (1954), which pairs Crosby with Danny Kaye. Unfortunately Berlin’s celebration of Lincoln’s Birthday as a jaw-dropping black face number hasn’t aged particularly well. (At one point, Bing actually interjects, “Who dat?”) These days, the segment is edited out of most television airings of the film, with the exception of those broadcast on TCM, which doesn’t attempt to white wash history.
This number, more than anything, is probably what damns “Holiday Inn” to comparative obscurity – next to “White Christmas,” anyway – which is a shame, because it is very entertaining. Every time I check YouTube, there’s not even a clip of Washington’s Birthday, which features Bing in a disheveled powdered wig attempting to undermine Astaire, his rival in love, with a schizophrenic musical accompaniment that ping-pongs wildly (in the film) between 18th century minuet and 1940s big band.
Oh well. At least we have this recording, with Berlin’s excruciatingly contrived lyrics. They can’t all be “White Christmas,” you know.
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Fred Astaire’s 4th of July Dance in Holiday Inn
Happy Birthday, America! Here’s Fred Astaire doing his thing, from “Holiday Inn.”
http://fan.tcm.com/_Holiday-Inn-Firecracker-dance/video/864017/66470.html?createPassive=true
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any clips of Bing as the Freedom Man (pictured top).
As a footnote, here’s my article about this summer’s big goings-on in the Great Auditorium at Ocean Grove, in today’s Trenton Times:
http://www.nj.com/times-entertainment/index.ssf/2014/07/musicians_to_fill_ocean_groves.html
Be safe, everybody! Don’t do anything I would do.
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