Happy Birthday to YOU!
Audrey had a birthday on Saturday, so...Audrey, you don't mind me using your name, do you? There, sweet gal, I knew you wouldn't!) xx
We all know that song, don't we? Why do we rarely hear it on TV or in the movies?
I am sure you have all been wondering why that is so. Well, wonder no more, because you know I am about to tell you! (Maybe most of you know this already!)
The song is credited to Patty Hill and her sister, Mildred J. Hill. (If you DO hear this song sung during a movie, you should see those names in the end credits.) Patty Hill was a kindergarten teacher in Louisville, Kentucky in the late 1800's and her sister, Mildred was a pianist and composer. Patty wrote the song originally as "Good Morning To You" for her kindergarten classes to sing at the beginning of the day. The sisters liked it so much that they changed the words to "Happy Birthday To You" and would sing the song at birthday parties. It was published in their book, "Song Stories for the Kindergarten" in 1893. Since then, it has been translated into at least 18 languages and has travelled all over the world! The publishing rights were bought by Warner/Chappell in 1988 and since that time, anytime the song is sung, royalty fees must be paid to Warner/ Chappell. The company charges up to $10,000.00 any time the song appears in a film or TV show. Even at a restaurant, the staff are not allowed to sing "Happy Birthday To You.", as it cannot be sung without paying royalties "anywhere open to the public, and for any group where a substantial number are not family or friends." Well. I read that Warner/Chappell collects millions of dollars every year from this one song alone. Many of the movies get around this by bringing a big birthday cake in and when everyone is drawing a breath to start singing the song, the scene will break away before the song begins! (Have you ever noticed this?)
There is a lot of legalese that is connected to this topic and it gets a bit complicated. Some of these copyright laws may change in the future but for now, I believe that the above information is true.
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| Homemade Birthday Cake Made by ME for Our Son...Nothing Fancy but Good! |
John Lowrie Morrison is an artist from Scotland that I just discovered from a wonderful blog. Thank you, Cait! Since I just found out about this artist during the month of April, I will think of it as a late birthday present to myself. Happy Birthday to me! This color just makes me so happy!
And Happy Birthday to YOU, whoever you are, reading this blog, you may have already had your birthday this year, or it is still to come! Just don't expect me to sing to you, I don't want to pay any money to Warner/Chappell!
Oh wow! I had no idea about the birthday song. I hadn't noticed that about birthday scenes in movies. I'll have to pay more attention. I have heard the song sang at restaurants though. :- )
ReplyDeleteI noticed them not singing Happy Birthday in movies from years ago, and looked into it, and that is how I found this out!
DeleteI suppose Warner/Chappell has to find all those folks first! Was it sung by the staff at the restaurant, or was it the group of friends or family? If it was by the staff, better not let that publishing company know about it!
Thank you, Kay, for this interesting glimpse into the world of copyright, and how it influences what we may (or may not!) hear or see on TV and in the cinema! I would have thought songs like "Happy Birthday" were sort of common property, and actually never thought about the absence of the song in many birthday scenes.
ReplyDeleteGood job we don't have to fork out royalties every time we sing a Christmas song at Christmas, or Happy Birthday at a celebration in the family or circle of friends! And I am quite convinced it is often sung in more or less public places without anyone having checked with Warner/Chappell first ;-)
Maybe there are companies here in the USA that are very concerned about having to pay money! I used to hear the staff at restaurants sing "Happy Birthday" quite often, but at one point, I think it was the early 1990's, I never heard the Happy Birthday song and have never heard it since!
DeletePublic Domain, that is the term for songs that are no longer in copyright or the copyright has expired. I just it looked it up, the works of Shakespeare and Beethoven are in that category!
It is the places of business that have to worry about singing the Happy Birthday song...my last line was my ATTEMPT at humor! :-)
How very interesting, that such a simple song could be worth so much.
ReplyDeleteI know, Tracey! It makes you want to sit and down and write a song, doesn't it?
DeleteSo pleased you like that artist too, I discovered him by accident myself. Think of it as a belated birthday card, I wish you very many happy returns. (The choccy cake looks yummy).
ReplyDeleteYes, Cait, I think he's wonderful! I didn't know who he was, only that signature JOLOMO in the lower right hand corner! Thanks for having that on your post, and I will accept it as a belated birthday card. Thank you!
DeleteAnd you would like that choccy cake! Hey, that little HAPPY BIRTHDAY decoration is one I have had for years, I just wash it and re-use it, it might be an antique one day! :-)
Years ago i had read the story of the Hill sisters. The money used to go to their estate, until it was purchased, as you said. It's actually only the tune that is copyright, i think, which is why one movie has the words spoken not sung in the party scene. (It's an old movie, i can't remember which one.)
ReplyDeleteThank you for introducing me to this artist's work! It is beautiful.
There is a lot of legal stuff connected to this song and I am no lawyer! All I know is that in most of the movies that I have seen, they really do try to avoid singing this song!
DeleteSo happy you like this artist too, I was happy to discover all that color! Reminds me of Chagall.
Thanks for the info on the song, guess I'll have to start sending Warner Bros. money from now on, though I do tend to sing the John Lennon version more---You say it's your birthday----
ReplyDeleteHa! I share the same birthday with a nice lady at church! I like to call and leave this on her answering machine..."You say it's your birthday , it's my birthday too, YEAH!" Okay, Dona B. you know who I am talking about!!
DeleteHappy Birthday! Nope, not singing!
ReplyDeleteMy specialty is calling and leaving my song on an answering machine ...and I sing Happy Birthday like Elvis! Ha! I can do it too!
DeleteLike the pictures Kay. Probably hate that song as much as you dislike K.P. :o)
ReplyDeleteHey Bob!
DeleteDon't be mad at me because I told you that you had such a beautiful post and then, you had that slutty KP at the end of it! I have a whole slew of singers that I can't stand, she is just one of many! ;-)
Do you know of this artist? He might be very well known in Scotland but I had never heard of him, I really like him.
Just as I brought this site up....a group of singers on TV burst into song...singing "Happy Birthday"!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday to everyone who's having a birthday...and to those who will be! :)
Uh, there goes more money to Warner/Chappell!
DeleteThat might not be the case in the future, I have read that there is a real possibility that the copyright law might be changed regarding this song.
Yes! Happy Birthday to all us, we all will have one this year!! :-)
Very educational as I did not know the back story on Happy Birthday. I have one in a few weeks, but I just try to let them pass quietly.
ReplyDeleteOh, I am sure that SOMEONE makes a fuss over you, don't they? :-)
DeleteHope you will have a happy birthday in May, a lovely time of the year!
I'd love to know the story behind your visit to a bluebell wood in East Sussex. And thank you for your visit over to my neck of the woods.
ReplyDeletehttp://georgiagirlwithanenglishheart.blogspot.com/2011/11/england-at-her-best.html
DeleteThere, Lucille, I have the link above where I wrote a bit about the bluebell walk. My husband is English and my in-laws live in Eastbourne. We always just miss the Bluebells, but one magical year, they were a bit late, and I was able to see a bluebell wood. That is the photo on the side of my blog.
Yours is one of the first blogs that I remember reading and enjoying!
A rather sad story, I think......If every anything should be in the public domain, it is surely Happy Birthday......
ReplyDeleteLove this artist and I want to see more of his work!
I know, and the courts might agree with that very soon. We shall see!
DeleteAnd glad you like this artist too, he seems very interesting, he is a pastor and philanthropist also! (Hope that is spelled correctly, I might be like the character from The Wizard of Oz and just call him a "Do-Gooder"! HA!)
Oh dear, we and the staff sang Happy birthday to my daughter in a restaurant just yesterday! I'm surprised it is still in copyright though as I always understood it came out so many years after publication. Hey ho, a few people singing in a restaurant are small fry compared to movies. x
ReplyDeleteAmerican restaurants must be more afraid of lawsuits, I would guess, I have not heard this song sung in a restaurant here since the early 1990's!
Delete(They might have a made up song all their own, but NOT the Happy Birthday song as we know it.)
Happy Birthday to your Sweet Pea! Lovely time of year to have a birthday! xx
My sister in law Alice always sings a birthday song to the melody of Franz Lehar's Merry Widow. The words are: "Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, we love you.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday and may all your dreams come true.
When you blow out the candles, one light stays aglow.
It's the love light in your eyes, where e're you go."
I'm pretty sure Lehar is out of copyright!
That is simply beautiful! I thank you a million times for leaving me this comment and telling me this! I love the words, and I will look up the melody to go with these lovely words.
DeleteThank you again! xx
Kay, oh my goodness, you are SO SWEET!!! Thank you so much. I've been insanely busy and I'm just starting to catch up on some blogging this evening. I see that you posted this 4 days ago!!! I'm sorry it took me so long to see it! I had no idea about the birthday song ~ I did always find it weird that it was missing from TV and movies.....now I know. Thank you again for making me feel so special!!! XOXOXOXOXOXO
ReplyDeleteHey Audrey,
DeleteI know about being busy myself, you notice I've not done a post lately.
And I am glad that you also noticed about not hearing the song on TV or in the movies. This probably falls under the category of "Who Cares, Kay?"...I get that a lot.
If I can make you feel special by my little post about the Happy Birthday song, then that makes me happy. xx
Hi Kay! I KNOW I commented earlier on this post. I think Blogger has been eating some of my comments. More like me screwing up!
ReplyDeleteI just love that Christopher made you a birthday cake ~ how absolutely loving and sweet.
I find HB a very difficult song to sing. I'm always off key, as decades worth of students will verify!
Thank you for honoring our lovely, one-of-a-kind friend Audrey with birthday remembrances.
Have a happy week!
Yes! I am glad that you love Audrey too and her wonderful blog!
DeleteAnd that birthday cake was made by ME for C's birthday, it was just the first photo of a birthday cake that I could find for this post. The day that my son makes a cake for me...well, I will certainly do a post about it! HA!!
Hope you have a great week too, my friend! xx
Oopsies! My eyes are experts at transposing. It leads to some funny misunderstandings ~ and some not so funny. Like when I was ordering inventory at the motorcycle shop where I worked and ordered 5 engines for Goldwing bikes instead of 5 gaskets. Fortunately, the vendor knew our shop and just knew my boss wouldn't randomly be ordering 5 engines!
DeleteMaybe I should have a little conversation with C.! He's got almost a year!
Audrey is just a lovey, and I'm so glad that you introduced her to me!
It gave me a laugh thinking of my son baking a cake for me, so I really need to thank you! Yes, I will tell C. to read this post, HINT to son- I am looking for a birthday cake next year! If he makes me one, Louise, I will have YOU to thank for it!
DeleteHA HA on those 5 engines! Good thing people know to listen to what we MEAN and not what we type, right? xx
Thanks for the history lesson on the birthday song, Kay. I always enjoy learning things from blog posts. My birthday was in Feb and Grenville's is upcoming in July. Hope your friend, Audrey, had a great day and your own cake looked delicious as chocolate always is to me.
ReplyDeleteIt is just something that I noticed, that the song was not used much in movies and so, I looked it up. Hope you had a nice birthday in February and that your hubby will have a great one in July!
Delete