BY SEAN TATE

Irving Berlin

Intro

Born in Mogilev, Russia (Now Belarus) on May 11, 1888

Born Israel Baline before coming to AmericaYoungest of 8Fled to the United States due to the

government persecution of the Jews

Early life in the United States

Arrived in New York in 1983 and worked selling newspapers on street corners with his brothers

Later worked as a singing waiter, this started is singing career Couldn’t read music, taught himself the piano Wrote his first song, “Marie From Sunny Italy” here

and earned 37 cents.First big hit, “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” made him internationally recognized

Berlin during World War I

Boosted American soldier morale with songs like “Yip, Yip, Yaphank” and “Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning”, which he sang himself

On Armistice Day Berlin wrote the famous, patriotic song “God Bless America.”

Berlin during World War II

Wrote the musical “This is the Army” which raised $10 million for the Army Emergency Relief Made into a movie in 1943

Wrote songs for the American Red Cross such as, “Angels of Mercy” and “Arms for the Love of America”

After the war he retired and died in 1989 at 101 years old

Legacy

Berlin wrote over 900 songs, 19 musicals and the scores of 18 movies in his life

Many consider him one of the greatest American songwriters of his time “Irving Berlin has no place in American music. He is

American music.” – Jerome Kern, songwriter 1924 "Irving Berlin's music will last not for just an hour, not

for just a day, not for just a year, but always.“ - Morton Gould, president of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) 1988

Connection

Iriving Berlin’s connection to Last Days of Summer is when Joey explains that on the Fourth of July the 433rd Infantry marches from Grand Army Plaza to Anzio with a Irving Berlin song guiding them

Bibliography

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/berlin.html

http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Irving-Berlin-Biography/954E8A4CFAC1945848256970000CC030

http://www.rnh.com/irvingberlin/full_bio