The Vegas Voice 12-20

White Christmas
By: Yvonne Cloutier / Musical Moments
Who would have thought that a song
written in the southwest, with the verse
about orange and palm trees,
would become one of the greatest hits of all times?
Well, that is what happened with a song
called White Christmas. It was written in 1941-
- words and music by Irving Berlin. It was the
highest grossing hit for almost 60 years, won him
an Oscar for best song of 1942, and is a perennial
best seller during the holiday season.
Actually, Berlin didn’t like the Christmas holiday
season because it reminded him of his only son
who died at 24 days old on a December 1 st . But
songwriters are always looking for that special song
that will become a standard, and that was what Berlin was looking for.
Berlin wrote the lyrics first, as he usually did with his songs, and then
could pick out the melody on his piano. However, he needed someone
to write the harmony.
This was done by his musical secretary, Helmy Kresna. With White
Christmas, he told her: “Grab your pen and take down this song. I just
wrote the best song I’ve ever written - heck, I just wrote the best song
that anybody’s ever written!”
Berlin felt that the lyrics made a song a hit, and the tune made it last.
Al Jolson though, said the singer has much to do with
a hit song. Bing Crosby was the engine behind White
Christmas bringing it to the 50,000,000 mark, when
it was released.
He first sang it on his radio show The Kraft Music
Hall on Christmas Day, 1941. He actually thought it
an “okay” song the first time he heard it.
Bing sang it in the 1942 movie Holiday Inn with
Marjorie Reynolds, not Rosemary Clooney as some
people think. Marjorie, unable to sing well, lipsynced
Martha Mear’s voice.
Berlin was asked to write holidays anthems, so he
also wrote Easter Parade and Happy Holidays, both big hits.
Irving Berlin, a creative Russian Jewish American genius, whose
songs will live on forever, died in 1989.
Yvonne Cloutier, a former teacher/principal, with a music
background, specializes in ragtime piano. She researches and
reports about music on SCA-TV.com/Anthem Alive! You can
contact her at www.mytimeisragtime.com.
8
The Great Conjunction: Saturn & Jupiter
By: Kate Wind / Kate’s Insight
Jupiter and Saturn, two powerful planets,
are meeting on December 21 st at 00 degrees
Aquarius. This is extremely notable because,
although these planets meet up every 19.5 years;
they haven’t been together in Aquarius since January 1405 AD.
Jupiter stands for expansion and growth, fortunate timing and
bringing unlikely people together while Saturn deals with structure,
boundaries and discipline. Simply said, these two planets get stuff done
when they are together and set a tone.
When Jupiter and Saturn meet up in Aquarius, it will mark the
beginning of a 200 year cycle inspiring unconventional yet progressive
thinking, humanitarian efforts and rebellion.
For the past 200 years, the Jupiter and Saturn meetups have been in
Earth signs with the exception of two. Unlike Earth, which is slow and
stable, Air is unpredictable and quick to move, so we need to prepare for
unlikely and fast change!
When Jupiter and Saturn met in Aquarius in 1405, innovation,
social change and breaking from the past to incorporate creativity was
ushered in!
A Jupiter and Saturn meet up provides a theme for the following 20
years. We are currently finishing the energy that kicked off in 2000 -
survivalism.
Looking at historical events, themes and even the topics of TV
programming over the past 20 years “surviving” has been the theme.
December 2020
We kicked 2000 off with Y2K followed by 9/11, the 2008 crash and now
ending with Covid-19, just to name a few.
We can’t ignore that 2000 opened with the program Survivor
and ended with Schitt’s Creek (9 Emmy’s) - both showcasing how to
overcome the toughest of situations.
On December 21 st , we open a new 20-year chapter of determination.
We will rewrite our history and watch the modernization of old/
ancient thinking (think astrology) and old constructs take place. With
Aquarius activated, medical and technological breakthroughs will
forge us forward.
Get ready - because we can’t stop it!
Kate Wind is second-generation Astrologer and Feng Shui
Consultant. She speaks on an array of topics, from astrological
influences, Chinese New Year, Feng Shui and Tarot. You can contact
her at: the katewind@gmail.com. Her podcast, Mom and Me
Astrology can be found on any of the major podcast apps.