European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 10, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse This is the army Irving Berlin who Ca Fantu hit 100th birthday my 11, a Nutini Tike a world War i doughboy la my rendition of i Tang. Of. How i Hals to Gal up in the morning lit Seana from his 1940s him this it the Amy 1941 photo Al leh. Starring Elhel Merman and based on the Lile of the Sharpshooter Annie Oakley. Berlin Wolfl All the music and lyrics Lor the show which included an unusually Large number of stings thai became hits the Girt thai i Mairy they say ii s wonderful Doin what comes naturally id name Only a few. Bui perhaps the most famous song irom Annie is there s no business like show business which became the unofficial theme song or the entire entertainment indu Alry in America. Allee the phenomenal Success of Annie get your gun Berlin wrote Only three Moie Broadway musicals. Miss Liberty 1949call me Madam 1950and or. President 1962. Alloi Iii he retired irom songwriting in the mid 1960s, Irving Berlin s music continues to to heard today on phonograph records on radio in movies and in revivals of his Broadway shows. By the end of his Tang and productive career Irving boil had written 21 Broadway musical shows composed the scores for several motion pictures and published almost 1,500 individual songs Many of which ate familiar throughout the world. His music included elements of ragtime blues jazz Waltzes even country and Wos Lern and Lalin amen can i Homos Allol which to Farmed Inlo songs thai wore distinctly his own. As another famous composer. Jerome Kern once said Aboul him Irvin re Berlin has no place in american music. He is american a 10. 1988 by Sid Schapiro he two world wars have produced two Greal army musical shows and Irving Berlin the celebrated songwriter and showman who Marks his Loolah birthday May 11, has been responsible for both of them. Drafted in world War 1, he was assigned to Camp Upton. N.y., located near a Village with the name of Yaphank. He was Given the task for doing something never done before staging a Broadway musical with a solder cast. Berlin eat cd it Yip Yip Saphan. And m in the Anli bugler lament. Of How i hate to gel up in the morning was introduced. Twenty four years later in world War ii Berlin checked in again Al Camp upon drafted this time to put on another Soldier show with which the army could storm Broadway when he moved in upon. He brought Wilh him his 33-year-old shifting keyboard piano which he had there during we i and on which he has composed most of his famous songs. His piano was moved into a comfortable sitting room near his bunk in an old Barracks the casting and actual work on the show was done in the Camp s Little opry a bit overawed Al the invitation to match the Yaphank production which netted $35.000 on Broadway during a limited run of four weeks. Berlin wasted no time in scouting for fhe Soldier Talent from which he Drew the casts 300 All enlisted men. Gathered irom military posts across the country. The original company included a so piece orchestra and technicians. I a Rcd at his initial discoveries he promptly Anne Jned thai Affer living and working with the soldiers for a month As he did in 1918. When he was sol. Irving Berlin. Infantry. He was ready to return to Broadway with a worthy successor to his we i hit. Well Call 11 this is the he said and Wilh a nostalgic sparkle in his eyes he looked up As if to visualize the Yaphank Billing Uncle Sam presents a military mess cooked up by the bos in the tila the rollicking show s abbreviated nickname was Given a 21 gun Salute by the theater critics. Richard Walls jr., of the now defunct now York Herald Tribune noted. Because this is the army does not try to capitalize on patriotism it is Ono of the most truly patriotic works i have Ever encountered. Because in always keeps ils sense of humor and never tries to to emotional it is one of the most moving events in theatrical Laler in a Baltimore interview Berlin Laid reporters Tho Talent in this show is the greatest 1 have Ever seen please say that. The boys All of them Are and he added there Are no individualists no Palma Donnas. Thai is. Except when they Are doing their specialities. Why when we worn in new Yolk a couple of the principals failed to show up Lor a Call and they pulled Thorn right out of the show. Their understudied did their parts that night. The principals Ono of them swept up the theater and Iho other was detailed As an attendant in the men s the members of the cast proved that army discipline to which they were subject even during their temporary detachment irom training Camps was not a Stiller of effervescent Talent. They made the audiences Roll in the aisles As they did their stuff in All sorts of outlandish get ups. The show started off along minstrel tines featuring what the Well dressed Man in Harlem will Wear with some Nilly slopping by a group of Black dancers. Then it wont Inlo vaudeville before the first act ran its course and wound up As a revue. Dressed in Sailor whiles the army in tended a Salute to the Navy in a spectacular and rousing bit. Hour about a cheer Tor the Navy and then in got around to the air Force Loo. With the Catchy song. With my head in the Clouds and the chorus bringing out All the swing and Melody in american eagles. And there was Iho number. The army s made a Man out of me. Just before the close Berlin appeared with a group of veterans from the 1918 show losing his memorable of. How t Hale to gel up m the morning and the Yaphank doughboy spanned the years in line style with nimble Steps from their own show. Downtrodden privates juggled potatoes on up and snatched missing uniform buttons out of Irvn air at inspection the singing both Solo and Eho ius gave Berlin s Novesl song delights a tuneful Sond ill including i left my heart Al the stage door canteen. I m getting tired so i can sleep and of course the stirring title song with these opening lines of the chorus Titis is the army copyright 1942, Irving Berlin trips is Iho army mister Jones no private rooms or telephones you had your breast in bed before. But you Ivor 7 have if Here any More this is the army ils producer billed As Uncle Sam. Opened at the Broadway theater in new York on july 4,1942, and was an immediate Success playing Here Lor 12 weeks. It ran Lor More than three years closing on oct. 22,145. In Honolulu where Berlin rejoined the show for i helical curtain. He poured with tila through the United Stales. For seven months in Britain six months in Italy. 10 weeks in new Guinea and 10 weeks in the Philippines. The show went on to Okinawa. Egypt. India and other spots. But All remember the command performance for president Franklin d. Roosevelt who roared Wilh laughter at Iho National theater in Washington where secret service men carefully examined the company s rifles. In october 1943, tila reduced to a l ils original cast Well to London. The troupe played throughout Britain to audiences of civilians and Allied troops. An important moment of the tour there was the night the King and Queen Camo to the show and the King requested Berlin losing his Alexander s ragtime band. The closing night performance in London on feb. 6.1944, was played before Gen. Dwight d. Eisenhower the supreme Allied commander in Europe he was enthusiastic and arrangements were made to play before go audiences. It opened in Naples on april 3 and played in Rome six Days Aller its capture. Army emergency Relief beneficiary of All revenues from the show and Iho Warner Bros film realized nearly j10 million Wilh Iho end of world War ii All rights to the show reverted to Berlin who immediately earmarked All supplementary income performing rights and other revenues accruing to this is the army for his god bless America fund Lor the Benefit of the boy and girl souls of Anrica. But the Money actor is Berlin said. The important matter is that the show has played to about iwo million servicemen All Over the world and in never ailed to got a terrific response Irum them " Isis Schapin. Soft and 5uv pkwy a to Tau tin a i i Ort w 1k7 of met stun Zugi Olk i it hip tin or in u 5 a nil try in ill a i j fun him Imj-11 six. 1llbilaurantcn a o44iv Riu us Brand my my i of Ihrl Chi. Spirt Cili � Imp . I mtg ek1i. A it to. A i in Jolt to attend the stars and stripes Pago is
