Happy Birthday to you!
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작성일2008-11-28 23:12
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"Happy Birthday to You"
By Hyon O’Brien
Not many people know the origins of the “Happy Birthday to You” song. I had to look it up in the Internet to get it right. According to my beloved Wikipedia, it dates back to the mid-19th century, when two sisters, Patty and Mildred J. Hill, began singing the song “Good Morning To All” to their kindergarten class in Kentucky. In 1893, they published the tune in their songbook Song Stories for the Kindergarten. However, many believe that the Hill sisters most likely copied the tune and lyrical idea from other songs from that same period.
The Hill Sisters' students enjoyed their teachers' version of "Good Morning To All" so much that they began spontaneously singing it at birthday parties, changing the lyrics to "Happy Birthday”. In 1924, Robert Coleman included "Good Morning to All" in a songbook with the birthday lyrics as a second verse. Coleman also published "Happy Birthday" in The American Hymnal in 1933.
In 1935, "Happy Birthday to You" was copyrighted as a work for hire by Preston Ware Orem for the Summy Company, the publisher of "Good Morning to All". A new company, Birch Tree Group Limited, was formed to protect and enforce the song's copyright. In 1988, the rights to "Happy Birthday to You" and its assets were sold to the Time-Warner Corporation. The company still strongly believes that one cannot sing the "Happy Birthday to You" lyrics for profit without paying extremely high royalties (by some accounts, upwards of $10,000 for a single use in a film or television program). This includes use in film, television, radio, anywhere open to the public, or even among a group where a substantial number of those in attendance are not family or friend to whoever is performing the song.
Many question the validity of the current copyright, as the melody of the song was most likely borrowed from other popular songs of the time, and the lyrics were improvised by a group of five and six-year-old children who never received any compensation. The song is currently set to pass into the public domain in 2030. (My lawyer advises me that you don’t have to worry about receiving a threatening letter from a law firm for singing the song to the birthday boy or girl at parties. About ringtones, however, he’s not so sure.)
About 10 years ago, while living in Hong Kong, I joined the Friends of Art Museum of Chinese University on a tour to South Africa. I remember feeling stunned by the beauty of Cape Town, set against the dramatic backdrop of its Table Mountain. After a full day tour of Cape Town and surrounding areas, our tour bus was on its way to our waterfront hotel. Some of us were delighted to have the option of being let off in the old section of Cape Town. Three of us who were more daring and venturesome had a great time roaming around the old part of Cape Town looking at neoclassical buildings in one downtown area and, in a residential area, houses that reminded me of Italian section of Buenos Aires sporting colorfully painted facades with cozy and quaint looks.
When we were ready to go back to our hotel to join the others for dinner, we couldn’t find a taxi stand. I stopped a lady walking by and asked where we could find a taxi. She asked me where we were going. We told her our hotel name. She said she was heading in that direction and offered to drive us there. With an overwhelming feeling of gratitude and relief, we followed her to her car. As we proceeded to the direction of our hotel, I expressed my thankfulness for her extraordinary kindness. Her answer surprised me. “Actually you can do something for me. Today is my birthday. Will you sing “Happy Birthday” to me?” We in unison replied, “Of course”. I asked for her name so we can include it in the song (happy birthday, dear----). She answered “-----De Beer.” I knew about the De Beers Company that has the monopoly of world’s diamond market. To my surprised question, “Are you related to THE De Beer family?”, she answered, “Yes, by marriage.” We proceeded to sing her our heart-felt best wish-filled “Happy Birthday to you” right in the car while it was moving in the streets of Cape Town.
Later research revealed the connection between Cecil Rhodes (1853-1902) and De Beers Group, a name synonymous with the diamond industry. Cecil Rhodes, perhaps best remembered by the world as the founder of Oxford University’s Rhodes Scholarship (one of the notable recipients was President Bill Clinton) was the founder of Rhodesia (modern day Zimbabwe and Zambia), and once a prime minister of the Cape Colony (this is before the birth of South Africa). Cecil had a brother named Hebert who joined the diamond rush in Kimberley area. Cecil Rhodes joined his brother and made tons of money selling water pumps that were used to pump out water from the floor of diamond mines, which were subject to frequent flooding. Cecil Rhodes amassed claims of diamond mines as owners couldn’t pay the exorbitant prices that he charged. Soon he owned the majority of the Kimberly mines and in 1880 he launched the De Beers Mining Company with a partner Charles Rudd, naming it after the ranch that his brother bought off from the De Beer brothers. The rest is history.
It’s fun to think that we hitchhiked in Cape Town with one of the most fascinating history-ridden South African surnames!
My next HAPPY BIRTHDAY song dedication goes to the Republic of Korea that became 60 years old this year on August 15. The Korean nation, which by legend came into being in 2,333 BC, has morphed through a long tumultuous history going from many quasi-kingdoms to the Three Kingdoms to United Shilla to Koryo then to Joseon Dynasty. Its tragic 36 years under Japan (1910-1945) ended when World War II finally ended with the Allies’ victory. In the aftermath, Korean peninsula was controlled by the Soviet Union in the north and United States in the south. The two Cold War rivals established governments sympathetic to their own ideologies, leading to Korea’s division into two political territories. Despite the wish of the Koreans for unified Korea, South Korea held its national election in 1948 and installed Dr Syngman Rhee as its first president. Thus giving birth to Republic of Korea.
A personal note: For the first time in our 38 year marriage, my husband is away from home on his birthday: for two weeks he is in North Korea with Eugene Bell Foundation's work with tuberculosis patients. He joined Dr Steve Linton to visit 20 TB clinics and monitor the delivery of medical equiments and medicine. He will have much to report back. Happy Birthday, Tim.
By Hyon O’Brien
Not many people know the origins of the “Happy Birthday to You” song. I had to look it up in the Internet to get it right. According to my beloved Wikipedia, it dates back to the mid-19th century, when two sisters, Patty and Mildred J. Hill, began singing the song “Good Morning To All” to their kindergarten class in Kentucky. In 1893, they published the tune in their songbook Song Stories for the Kindergarten. However, many believe that the Hill sisters most likely copied the tune and lyrical idea from other songs from that same period.
The Hill Sisters' students enjoyed their teachers' version of "Good Morning To All" so much that they began spontaneously singing it at birthday parties, changing the lyrics to "Happy Birthday”. In 1924, Robert Coleman included "Good Morning to All" in a songbook with the birthday lyrics as a second verse. Coleman also published "Happy Birthday" in The American Hymnal in 1933.
In 1935, "Happy Birthday to You" was copyrighted as a work for hire by Preston Ware Orem for the Summy Company, the publisher of "Good Morning to All". A new company, Birch Tree Group Limited, was formed to protect and enforce the song's copyright. In 1988, the rights to "Happy Birthday to You" and its assets were sold to the Time-Warner Corporation. The company still strongly believes that one cannot sing the "Happy Birthday to You" lyrics for profit without paying extremely high royalties (by some accounts, upwards of $10,000 for a single use in a film or television program). This includes use in film, television, radio, anywhere open to the public, or even among a group where a substantial number of those in attendance are not family or friend to whoever is performing the song.
Many question the validity of the current copyright, as the melody of the song was most likely borrowed from other popular songs of the time, and the lyrics were improvised by a group of five and six-year-old children who never received any compensation. The song is currently set to pass into the public domain in 2030. (My lawyer advises me that you don’t have to worry about receiving a threatening letter from a law firm for singing the song to the birthday boy or girl at parties. About ringtones, however, he’s not so sure.)
About 10 years ago, while living in Hong Kong, I joined the Friends of Art Museum of Chinese University on a tour to South Africa. I remember feeling stunned by the beauty of Cape Town, set against the dramatic backdrop of its Table Mountain. After a full day tour of Cape Town and surrounding areas, our tour bus was on its way to our waterfront hotel. Some of us were delighted to have the option of being let off in the old section of Cape Town. Three of us who were more daring and venturesome had a great time roaming around the old part of Cape Town looking at neoclassical buildings in one downtown area and, in a residential area, houses that reminded me of Italian section of Buenos Aires sporting colorfully painted facades with cozy and quaint looks.
When we were ready to go back to our hotel to join the others for dinner, we couldn’t find a taxi stand. I stopped a lady walking by and asked where we could find a taxi. She asked me where we were going. We told her our hotel name. She said she was heading in that direction and offered to drive us there. With an overwhelming feeling of gratitude and relief, we followed her to her car. As we proceeded to the direction of our hotel, I expressed my thankfulness for her extraordinary kindness. Her answer surprised me. “Actually you can do something for me. Today is my birthday. Will you sing “Happy Birthday” to me?” We in unison replied, “Of course”. I asked for her name so we can include it in the song (happy birthday, dear----). She answered “-----De Beer.” I knew about the De Beers Company that has the monopoly of world’s diamond market. To my surprised question, “Are you related to THE De Beer family?”, she answered, “Yes, by marriage.” We proceeded to sing her our heart-felt best wish-filled “Happy Birthday to you” right in the car while it was moving in the streets of Cape Town.
Later research revealed the connection between Cecil Rhodes (1853-1902) and De Beers Group, a name synonymous with the diamond industry. Cecil Rhodes, perhaps best remembered by the world as the founder of Oxford University’s Rhodes Scholarship (one of the notable recipients was President Bill Clinton) was the founder of Rhodesia (modern day Zimbabwe and Zambia), and once a prime minister of the Cape Colony (this is before the birth of South Africa). Cecil had a brother named Hebert who joined the diamond rush in Kimberley area. Cecil Rhodes joined his brother and made tons of money selling water pumps that were used to pump out water from the floor of diamond mines, which were subject to frequent flooding. Cecil Rhodes amassed claims of diamond mines as owners couldn’t pay the exorbitant prices that he charged. Soon he owned the majority of the Kimberly mines and in 1880 he launched the De Beers Mining Company with a partner Charles Rudd, naming it after the ranch that his brother bought off from the De Beer brothers. The rest is history.
It’s fun to think that we hitchhiked in Cape Town with one of the most fascinating history-ridden South African surnames!
My next HAPPY BIRTHDAY song dedication goes to the Republic of Korea that became 60 years old this year on August 15. The Korean nation, which by legend came into being in 2,333 BC, has morphed through a long tumultuous history going from many quasi-kingdoms to the Three Kingdoms to United Shilla to Koryo then to Joseon Dynasty. Its tragic 36 years under Japan (1910-1945) ended when World War II finally ended with the Allies’ victory. In the aftermath, Korean peninsula was controlled by the Soviet Union in the north and United States in the south. The two Cold War rivals established governments sympathetic to their own ideologies, leading to Korea’s division into two political territories. Despite the wish of the Koreans for unified Korea, South Korea held its national election in 1948 and installed Dr Syngman Rhee as its first president. Thus giving birth to Republic of Korea.
A personal note: For the first time in our 38 year marriage, my husband is away from home on his birthday: for two weeks he is in North Korea with Eugene Bell Foundation's work with tuberculosis patients. He joined Dr Steve Linton to visit 20 TB clinics and monitor the delivery of medical equiments and medicine. He will have much to report back. Happy Birthday, Tim.
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