Thanks for the Memory
Encyclopedia
"Thanks for the Memory" (1938) is a popular song, with music composed by Ralph Rainger
and lyrics by Leo Robin
. It was introduced in the 1938 film The Big Broadcast of 1938
by Shep Fields and His Orchestra
with vocals by Bob Hope
and Shirley Ross
. Dorothy Lamour
's solo recording of the song was also popular, and has led to many mistakenly believing over the years that it was she, and Hope, who sang the tune in the film (in which Lamour also appeared).
In the film, Ross and Hope's characters are a married couple who come to the brink of divorce. Near the film's end they poignantly sing one of the many versions of this song, recalling the ups and downs of their relationship. (Then they decide to stick together.)
The song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
, and became Hope's signature tune, with many different lyrics adapted to any situation.
The song is often regarded as a companion piece to "Two Sleepy People
", written in September 1938 by Hoagy Carmichael
with lyrics by Frank Loesser
, also performed by Bob Hope
and Shirley Ross
in the movie Thanks for the Memory which appeared in 1939, taking its title from the success of the song.
recorded the song for his 1956 album, Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around
.
Ella Fitzgerald
recorded this on her Verve
release Whisper Not
, with backing by Marty Paich
and his orchestra.
Frank Sinatra
recorded an extended version of the song with altered lyrics for his 1981 album, She Shot Me Down
.
Harry Nilsson
released a version on his album recorded with Gordon Jenkins
, A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night
.
Ralph Rainger
Ralph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.-Biography:Born Ralph Reichenthal in New York City, Rainger embarked on a legal career before escaping to Broadway where he became Clifton Webb's accompanist...
and lyrics by Leo Robin
Leo Robin
Leo Robin was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope in the film The Big Broadcast of 1938.-Biography:Robin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and...
. It was introduced in the 1938 film The Big Broadcast of 1938
The Big Broadcast of 1938
The Big Broadcast of 1938 is a Paramount Pictures film featuring W.C. Fields and Bob Hope. Directed by Mitchell Leisen, the film is the last in a series of Big Broadcast movies that were variety show anthologies...
by Shep Fields and His Orchestra
Shep Fields
Shep Fields was the band leader for the "Shep Fields and His Rippling Rhythm" orchestra during the Big Band era of the 1930s.-Biography:...
with vocals by Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Shirley Ross
Shirley Ross
Shirley Ross was an American actress and singer.Ross was born Bernice Gaunt in Omaha, Nebraska but her family relocated to California when she was a child. She studied at Hollywood High School and the University of California and auditioned successfully for Gus Arnheim's band during her second...
. Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour was an American film actress. She is best remembered for appearing in the Road to... movies, a series of successful comedies starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope .-Early life:Lamour was born Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton in New Orleans, Louisiana, the daughter of Carmen Louise Dorothy...
's solo recording of the song was also popular, and has led to many mistakenly believing over the years that it was she, and Hope, who sang the tune in the film (in which Lamour also appeared).
In the film, Ross and Hope's characters are a married couple who come to the brink of divorce. Near the film's end they poignantly sing one of the many versions of this song, recalling the ups and downs of their relationship. (Then they decide to stick together.)
The song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
, and became Hope's signature tune, with many different lyrics adapted to any situation.
The song is often regarded as a companion piece to "Two Sleepy People
Two Sleepy People
"Two Sleepy People" is a song written on September 10, 1938 by Hoagy Carmichael with lyrics by Frank Loesser.As well as being recorded by Carmichael himself, the song has been performed and recorded by a number of artists including Al Bowlly, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Art Garfunkel, Fats Waller,...
", written in September 1938 by Hoagy Carmichael
Hoagy Carmichael
Howard Hoagland "Hoagy" Carmichael was an American composer, pianist, singer, actor, and bandleader. He is best known for writing "Stardust", "Georgia On My Mind", "The Nearness of You", and "Heart and Soul", four of the most-recorded American songs of all time.Alec Wilder, in his study of the...
with lyrics by Frank Loesser
Frank Loesser
Frank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
, also performed by Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Shirley Ross
Shirley Ross
Shirley Ross was an American actress and singer.Ross was born Bernice Gaunt in Omaha, Nebraska but her family relocated to California when she was a child. She studied at Hollywood High School and the University of California and auditioned successfully for Gus Arnheim's band during her second...
in the movie Thanks for the Memory which appeared in 1939, taking its title from the success of the song.
Cover versions
Bing CrosbyBing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
recorded the song for his 1956 album, Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around
Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around
Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around was Bing Crosby's fifth Decca long play album, recorded and originally released in 1956.This was a concept album of sorts...
.
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
recorded this on her Verve
Verve Records
Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
release Whisper Not
Whisper Not
Whisper Not is a 1967 studio album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, with the Marty Paich Orchestra. Ella had previously recorded with Marty Paich and his more familiar Dek-tette on the 1957 album Ella Swings Lightly.Whisper Not is Ella's penultimate recording for the Verve label...
, with backing by Marty Paich
Marty Paich
Martin Louis "Marty" Paich was an American pianist, composer, arranger, producer, music director and conductor....
and his orchestra.
Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
recorded an extended version of the song with altered lyrics for his 1981 album, She Shot Me Down
She Shot Me Down
She Shot Me Down is a 1981 album by Frank Sinatra. This was the final album Sinatra recorded for the record label he founded, Reprise Records and generally considered an artistic triumph that evokes the best of Sinatra during this stage of his career...
.
Harry Nilsson
Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson...
released a version on his album recorded with Gordon Jenkins
Gordon Jenkins
Gordon Hill Jenkins was an American arranger, composer and pianist who was an influential figure in popular music in the 1940s and 1950s, renowned for his lush string arrangements...
, A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night
A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night
A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night is an album of classic 20th-century standards sung by Harry Nilsson. The album was arranged by Sinatra arranger Gordon Jenkins, and produced by Derek Taylor....
.
Parodies
- Marilyn MonroeMarilyn MonroeMarilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
's performance of "Happy Birthday, Mr. PresidentHappy Birthday, Mr. President"Happy Birthday, Mr. President" is a song sung by actress and singer Marilyn Monroe on Saturday, May 19, 1962, for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, at a celebration of his forty-fifth birthday, ten days before the actual day of his 45th birthday . Sung in a sultry voice, Monroe...
" to U.S. President John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
in 1962 was followed by an additional verse sung to the tune of "Thanks for the Memory": "Thanks, Mr. President/For all the things you've done/The battles that you've won/The way you deal with U.S. SteelU.S. SteelThe United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
/And our problems by the ton/We thank you so much." - The song was parodied as "Thanks for the MedicareMedicare (United States)Medicare is a social insurance program administered by the United States government, providing health insurance coverage to people who are aged 65 and over; to those who are under 65 and are permanently physically disabled or who have a congenital physical disability; or to those who meet other...
" on one episode of the 1980s NBC-TV sitcom The Golden GirlsThe Golden GirlsThe Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
. Estelle GettyEstelle GettyEstelle Scher-Gettleman , better known by her stage name Estelle Getty, was an American actress, who appeared in film, television, and theatre...
's character, Sophia PetrilloSophia PetrilloSophia Petrillo is a fictional character from the TV series The Golden Girls, and its spin-offs The Golden Palace and Empty Nest. She was portrayed by Estelle Getty for 10 years and 258 episodes and was arguably the breakout character of the show...
, sang these lyrics to the melody of the song: "Thanks for the Medicare/For Blue Cross and Blue Shield/For a hip that finally healed/Remember, on prescriptions, generic is a steal/We thank you so much." - Connie ChungConnie ChungConnie Chung, full name: Constance Yu-Hwa Chung Povich is an American journalist who has been an anchor and reporter for the U.S. television news networks NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC. Some of her more famous interview subjects include Claus von Bülow and U.S...
sang a rendition of it with her husband Maury PovichMaury PovichMaurice Richard "Maury" Povich is an American TV talk show host who currently hosts his self-titled talk show Maury.-Personal background:...
on the final episode of her show Weekends with Maury and ConnieWeekends with Maury and ConnieWeekends with Maury and Connie is an MSNBC television news series featuring light-hearted take on news of the week.It was hosted by talk show host Maury Povich and his wife, television news anchor Connie Chung. Beginning in early 2006, it appeared every weekend morning on MSNBC until Dan Abrams was...
in 2006. - Judi DenchJudi DenchDame Judith Olivia "Judi" Dench, CH, DBE, FRSA is an English film, stage and television actress.Dench made her professional debut in 1957 with the Old Vic Company. Over the following few years she played in several of William Shakespeare's plays in such roles as Ophelia in Hamlet, Juliet in Romeo...
sang her own 'thank you' version especially for Sir Michael Parkinson on his final show - The Final Conversation - in December 2007.