JEFFERSONVILLE — The largest-grossing movie in 1954 took in a whopping $12 million in ticket sales, leaving its competition in the dust — or snow, as it were.

The movie was intended to reunite popular actors Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire in their third Irving Berlin musical. The plan was to showcase the blending of crooner Bing Crosby’s soft tones with one of the hottest female voices of the day, Rosemary Clooney, on a song that had actually been included in one of Berlin’s earlier movies, 1942’s “Holiday Inn.” Academy Awards were foreseen for acting, film and song.

Astaire read the script and turned the project down flat. Donald O’Connor was summoned to fill in, but an illness prevented him from actually filming the movie. The script finally settled in the lap of dancer and comedian Danny Kaye.

When the time came to record the album accompanying the movie, Clooney’s contract with Columbia Records made it impossible for her to participate, and the recording of the main female voice for the soundtrack of “White Christmas” was actually performed by a young, up-and-coming singer, Peggy Lee. Even years later, as the movie was set to be released first on VHS and later on DVD, the production hit one legal snag after another, delaying its release for years.

Ironically, the movie “White Christmas” earned no nods for the Oscar that year, but the tune “Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep” was counted worthy of a nomination for the Award for Best Original Song.

A blessing? This movie? Nothing had worked out as planned. Trouble beset its every step. There is no way this movie was a blessing.

Yet, “White Christmas” is one of the most beloved films on most everyone’s top 10 Christmas movie list. The Bing Crosby version of the song “White Christmas” is deemed the best-selling single of all time, moving more than 50 million copies. Counting all of the covers by hundreds of other singers through the decades, the total count for the song tops 100 million.

A blessing? Indeed.

We tend to think of blessings as things that we get exactly as we want them. Our good health has been a blessing this year. The beautiful, compliant child is a blessing to our family. The new car shows how much we have been blessed.

Some 2,000 years ago in a small village in Galilee, a young bride-to-be was greeted by an angel — a messenger from God. The angel told her she was pregnant, going to deliver a son not by her husband to be, but by God himself. The angel gave detail after detail to assure Mary that the message was true. And the angel left by saying that Mary had found favor in God’s eyes — that she was blessed.

In many ways, our world today is not all that different than a world awaiting the birth of Mary’s child. Political unrest rumbled on the large world horizon. Local merchants grumbled at low sales and high taxes. Donkeys didn’t get as many miles per bushel of hay as advertised. The local rabbi slighted a family at the distribution of meals last Sabbath. Life continued to be hard; some wonder if the Israeli dream had become a thing of the past.

And the voice of God echoed from centuries past through a rolling hillside in Israel to a car-filled parking lot leading to the Kennedy Bridge in Southern Indiana — unto us is born this day a savior — joy to the world — Immanuel, God with us, working among us.

God with us is a blessing when all we see is turmoil. God with us brings security when all we see is financial unrest. God with us brings peace when all we see is political upheaval. God with us is light when all we see is darkness. God with us is hope when all we see is despair.

And I’ll go to sleep, counting my blessings when all I see is cars.



— Tom May is the Minister of Discipleship at Eastside Christian Church in Jeffersonville. He holds his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cincinnati Christian University and Seminary. He is an adjunct instructor in the Communications Department at Indiana University Southeast.