In 1893 two sisters, Mildred Hill, a music teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school,published, jointly, Song Stories for the Kindergarten and Primary Schools. Patty wrote the words and Mildred set them to music. Of all the songs in the collection, their favorite was "Good Morning to All.”
Good morning to you
Good morning to you,
Good morning, dear children
Good morning to all.
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."
The Hill sister's song soon spread beyond the confines of the school. Its very simplicity and directness appealed to people of all ages. The first book including the "Happy birthday" lyric set to the tune of "Good Morning to All" was The Elementary Worker and His Work published in 1912.
Various movies and radio shows started using the song as a birthday greeting. It was sung in the 1931 Broadway musical The Band Wagon and was part of Western Union's first "singing telegram" in 1933.
Mildred died in 1916, together with a third sister named Jessica, sought copyright for "Happy Birthday."In 1934 the sisters proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes.
The actress Marilyn Monroe performed her infamous rendition of "Happy Birthday to You," during a televised birthday celebration for American president John F. Kennedy at New York City's Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1962.
Good morning to you
Good morning to you,
Good morning, dear children
Good morning to all.
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."
The Hill sister's song soon spread beyond the confines of the school. Its very simplicity and directness appealed to people of all ages. The first book including the "Happy birthday" lyric set to the tune of "Good Morning to All" was The Elementary Worker and His Work published in 1912.
Various movies and radio shows started using the song as a birthday greeting. It was sung in the 1931 Broadway musical The Band Wagon and was part of Western Union's first "singing telegram" in 1933.
Mildred died in 1916, together with a third sister named Jessica, sought copyright for "Happy Birthday."In 1934 the sisters proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes.
The actress Marilyn Monroe performed her infamous rendition of "Happy Birthday to You," during a televised birthday celebration for American president John F. Kennedy at New York City's Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1962.
“Happy Birthday” was the first song to be performed in outer space. On March 8, 1969, the astronauts on Apollo IX sang it to celebrate the birthday of Christopher Kraft, who at that time was director of NASA space operations.
Warner Chappell, the copyright owners of the song "Happy Birthday" make up to $2 million a year in licensing deals.
“Happy Birthday" was named the highest-earning song of all time in the documentary The Richest Songs In The World, which aired on BBC Four on December 28, 2012. Runner-up was Irving Berlin's "White Christmas."
In September 2015, a federal judge ruled that the original copyright for "Happy Birthday" was only granted for specific arrangements of the music, not the song itself, so the song's lyrics are in the public domain.
To play "Happy Birthday" on your phone, press 112163 112196 11#9632 969363.
Warner Chappell, the copyright owners of the song "Happy Birthday" make up to $2 million a year in licensing deals.
“Happy Birthday" was named the highest-earning song of all time in the documentary The Richest Songs In The World, which aired on BBC Four on December 28, 2012. Runner-up was Irving Berlin's "White Christmas."
In September 2015, a federal judge ruled that the original copyright for "Happy Birthday" was only granted for specific arrangements of the music, not the song itself, so the song's lyrics are in the public domain.
To play "Happy Birthday" on your phone, press 112163 112196 11#9632 969363.
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