Friday, December 5, 2008

White Christmas


There are some traditions that just can't be missed, and watching White Christmas is one of them. I remember the first time I watched this movie . . . I was with my roommate Anna and we snuck off to the dollar theater on campus (we were freshman, poor, and in desperate need of avoiding homework. I had never heard of a dollar theater before moving to Utah and I thought it was the most brilliant idea.) Since then, there have been very few Christmases where I have not see this movie. This is one of my favorite holiday movies, although I think the reason why I like it is because it's not a traditional Christmas movie. Sure, it's cheesy, but there aren't any songs about Santa or the realization of some Christmas miracle sometime toward the end. They just used Christmas as an excuse to produce another song and dance movie. But hey, I'm not complaining! I really love this movie.

Here are some interesting facts about White Christmas:
1. The song "White Christmas" was originally sung in the movie Holiday Inn. The movie is based on the song which became the bestselling single for more than 50 years until overtaken in 1997 by "Candle in the Wind", Elton John's tribute to the late Princess Diana. (I think this is seriously messed up, by the way.)
2. Rosemary Clooney (center left) is the aunt of George Clooney. I would much rather meet her than George, to be honest.
3. Vera-Ellen (far right) suffered from anorexia throughout the 50s, long before doctors had coined the term anorexia. Due to her anorexia, she suffered from arthritis and premature aging. In fact, she only wears turtlenecks in White Christmas because her neck looked severely older than the rest of her body.
4. Danny Kaye was the third choice for the movie behind Fred Astaire and someone else.
5. Rosemary Clooney sings both parts in the song "Sisters."

5 comments:

Holly said...

I don't think I have ever seen White Christmas (I know, you can smack me upside the head next time you see me) but any movie with Danny Kaye is one to see in my humble opinion.

bec said...

wow. you are so knowledgeable. All I know is they played it at the post office last year while I was standing in line and it made my day.

Coordination Queen said...

I'm going to admit to the fact I've never actually watched this movie... maybe I'll try it out this year.

AC said...

We'll follow the old man wherever he wants to go!

I love this movie.

Rachel said...

Thank you for giving these facts on your blog. You did not share the fact of Rosemary Clooney singing both parts when we watched it, so I'm glad that you posted it here. :)