July 3, 2026 - Good Morning! It’s Friday, July 3.
Israel Beilin was born in 1888 in Siberia, Russia. His father made his living as a cantor, a singer in the Jewish synagogue. When Israel was five-years-old, an angry, racist mob burned his village to the ground. His family lost their home, but found a new one in the New World, settling in the very poorest part of New York City. They were joined by hundreds of thousands of Jewish immigrants who came to America in the years right before and right after the turn of the century, escaping persecution.
Israel had to leave school at the age of eight, to help support his family. He sold newspapers on the street, and began singing as he worked, popular songs of the day and some that he made up himself, attracting attention and tips. As he grew, his attention turned more and more towards music, and at eighteen he sold his first song - for 33 cents. At 21 he had his first hit song, the classic ”Alexander’s Ragtime Band”. A first edition copy is the pride and joy of my sheet music collection. Oh, and on that sheet music the printer misspelled the composer’s name. Forever after he would be known as Irving Berlin.
Over the next half century, Berlin would write over 1500 songs, many that became hits. An extremely short list includes “Easter Parade,” “Puttin’ On the Ritz,” “Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better,” “Blue Skies,” “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” and “White Christmas”. He received numerous Oscar’s, Emmys, and Tony’s. And in 1976, President Gerald Ford awarded him the Medal of Freedom. He died in 1989 at the age of 101. Irving Berlin came to our country as an immigrant. He brought with him the clothes on his back and a dream. The American Dream.
And he left us this song.
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside Her and guide Her
Through the night with the light from above
From the mountains to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America, my home sweet home
God bless America, my home sweet home
Have a great Semiquincentennial weekend! Meet you back here on Monday.
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
