Music & Stories of White Christmas

It's almost Christmas, so let's talk about a classic. White Christmas is a 1954 American musical film that tells the story of a Broadway star and aspiring performer, both Army veterans, who team up to entertain WWII soldiers who are deployed and away from their families for the Christmas holiday. After returning home, the two men travel to perform in various places, meet two women they fall in love with, and end up choreographing an entire performance for a retired Army General to remind him that he is not forgotten. The musical piece from this movie I'll be focusing on is "Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army", the song that instantly became an iconic tune during the war. The song reveals the impact of military service in WWII depicts what it's like for military veterans to return to civilian life.

The song "Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army", performed in the movie White Christmas, was composed by Irving Berlin. The song was originally recorded by Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney & Vera-Allen on October 14, 1954 and was released in the U.S. in December of 1954. Listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4c6AwTrUcg 

This song was written to align with the lessons of the movie and to arouse a sense of pride in veterans. "Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army" is a song for those veterans who served in the military and had to make the difficult transition back to civilian life. As the story goes, Bob Wallace and Phil Davis perform the song as a gift to their retired Army General friend to remind him of his accomplishments and let him know he is not forgotten. When this song is performed, it depicts the Army as one big happy family where all servicemembers are there for each other no matter what. 

One musical element found in this song is the instrumental interlude. This song has a wonderful, short but sweet, instrumental interlude at the beginning of the song consisting of trumpets and drums. The interlude gets the attention of listeners very quick and is a great bridge leading to the start of the lyrics. A second musical element found in this song is prosody, which is the way the words are set to specific notes in the song's melody. The song itself tells a story of how the Army isn't so bad after all and all the words are very clearly sung, but come off as spoken to many listeners. I believe this musical element is very important because it gives the song a personal touch and listeners can understand the meaning.

The deeper message in White Christmas and more specifically, "Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army, is to show the effects of war on veterans after they return home and have to adjust back to a normal, civilian life. The movie follows a retired Army general who doesn't know anything but the Army life and struggles to find something to do when his military service has come to an end. In the movie, the question "What do you do with a General when he stops being a General?" is asked and there are many veterans who can relate to this question of what they are to do when their military service has come to an end. The movie ends on a positive and uplifting note as dozens of Army veterans come together to support the retired Army General and each other. There is a saying throughout the movie that goes: "Let's just say we're doing it for an old pal in the Army", proving that veterans stick together and will always be able to look to each other for support.

This is my all-time favorite film. I love the songs and the story behind the movie; it always triggers my emotions. In my opinion, the actors did a wonderful job of portraying their parts and making this movie so special for so many who watched. I grew up in a very patriotic home where watching this film was an annual Christmas Eve tradition. Now, I am married to a Marine and this movie hits home even more. My husband is still active duty, but one day he will be retired and will have to make the transition to a normal, civilian life. In my opinion, the Marine Corps is reserved as the best branch of the military because of its high standards and top quality training, but its brotherhood is the most important aspect. The saying "Once a Marine, Always a Marine" is so true and the brotherhood is for a lifetime. It's comforting to know that my husband will always have that brotherhood and support system of other Marine veterans when he is retired. 

Sources:

Berlin, Irving. “Gee! I Wish I Was Back in the Army.” Second Hand Songs - A Cover Songs Database, https://secondhandsongs.com/work/164118/all.

MarshallV. “‘Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army’: The National WWII Museum: New Orleans.” The National WWII Museum | New Orleans, The National World War II Museum, 21 Dec. 2019, https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/gee-i-wish-i-was-back-army.

Page, Kirsty. Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army..., 1 Jan. 1970, http://pagecinemasociety.blogspot.com/2011/04/gee-i-wish-i-was-back-in-army.html.

“White Christmas (Film).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 July 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Christmas_(film).