What do you do with a general when he stops being a general? Give him a Christmas that’s merry and bright — and most definitely white! The 1954 film “White Christmas” remains an iconic Christmas classic to this day.
Bing Crosby, the Oscar-winning megastar “Voice of America.” A score by Irving Berlin, composer of the most popular song of all time (“White Christmas”). Vera-Ellen, one of the most talented female dancers of the age. Michael Curtiz, director of one of the top movies in Hollywood history (“Casablanca”).
The song “White Christmas,” which remains the top-selling single of all time, actually debuted years earlier, at Christmastime 1941. Bing Crosby introduced it mere days after the attack on Pearl Harbor launched America into WWII. Crosby would go on to sing Berlin’s hit in the movie “Holiday Inn” — and to thousands of soldiers on his tours to entertain troops during the war.
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One of the most valuable inside sources for the film, which was released 70 years ago in (then) brand-new VistaVision style, is Rosemary Clooney, who was one of the stars, and who years later did an interview fondly recalling the movie that made her a star and triggered a close, life-long friendship with Bing Crosby. Clooney met Bing before work started on the movie, and remembered being so nervous at meeting the most famous and popular star of the time that she misspoke embarrassingly!
If you want to see what Kaye’s clowning for Bing’s benefit looked like, just watch the scene where Kaye and Bing perform a silly version of the “Sisters” song. Kaye and Bing were joking around on set one day, imitating the classic “Sisters” routine that Clooney and Vera-Ellen performed, and director Michael Curtiz realized he had a great scene in the making and decided to film the two. Ultimately it turned into the movie scene.
Related: White Christmas: BTS’s V and Bing Crosby Top Charts in 43 Countries
Rosemary Clooney was not the only person to find new fame after the film; George Chakiris, memorable as the handsomest of the four male dancers surrounding Clooney in her solo song, would go on to star in “West Side Story” and nab an Oscar.
“White Christmas,” like its title song, is truly a classic for the ages, an unforgettable and heartwarming Christmas tale showcasing so much of the best of American entertainment and the Golden Age of Hollywood.