SKOKIE, Ill.—When the song “White Christmas,” written by Irving Berlin (1888–1989) was originally performed in the 1942 movie musical “Holiday Inn,” it was overshadowed by “Be Careful, It’s My Heart,” also by Berlin. But it didn’t take long before “White Christmas” became the bigger hit. World War II had recently broken out, and soldiers overseas loved the song’s lyrics as they longed for days “just like the ones I used to know.” Being away from home, the song took on new meaning for them.
“Holiday Inn” did so well at the box office that Hollywood decided to reprise it, with a few changes, in the 1954 film musical “White Christmas,” named after the iconic song. That movie became even more popular than “Holiday Inn,” so when writers David Ives and Paul Blake were looking to write a new show, adapting that film into a stage musical seemed like a good idea.
